Need To Know

Buying a diamond for your engagement ring can be an overwhelming, yet exciting task. Knowing that, we've gone well beyond the traditional 4 C's of diamonds that you'll get from most jewelers. To better assist you in your diamond buying quest and to arm you with the information you'll need to make an intelligent decision, We bring you: Hyde Park's 6 C's (and one 'S').

Who Graded it?
A diamond is valued based on its color, clarity and cut. But while this seems pretty straightforward, how each diamond earns its grade isn't. Hyde Park only recognizes the grades of the world's most respected grading laboratories, the G.I.A. (Gemological Institute of America), the A.G.S. (American Gem Society), and G.C.A.L. (Gem Certification and Assurance Laboratory). Both G.I.A. and A.G.S. are non-profit organizations known as the world's most accurate diamond evaluators. G.C.A.L. adheres to the highest standards and ethics, so much so that they offer a "Zero Tolerance 4 C's Consumer Guarantee"�. If a diamond graded by G.C.A.L. is re-submitted within the covered time, and one of the 4 C's is determined to be lower in quality or weight, then you receive the cash value difference in the grades, or an exchange of the diamond. Sadly, there are many other grading organizations out there that don't share this same respect. And when a jeweler uses inferior grading systems, the exact same diamond can be incorrectly graded much higher. Which means you will pay more, but not get more.

Sourcing
Another reason two similar diamonds can be sold for different prices is the cost the jeweler themselves paid for each diamond. Every jewelry store you visit will have a different system for purchasing the diamonds they offer to their customers. Hyde Park buys diamonds directly from diamond cutters, as well as through a sophisticated electronic trading network, to ensure that we're buying and supplying diamonds at the lowest possible price. So with over 30 years of experience in the diamond business, no one can sell you a superior quality diamond at a better value.

Apples & Oranges
Many people think of diamonds as "the bigger the better"� and do not realize the many ways that a bigger diamond can be made to look better and actually be worth a lot less. Treatments performed on diamonds to make them appear to be better than they are have increased as technology has progressed. One such method called fracture filling actually infuses the diamond with a transparent material to make fractures disappear. Companies such as Yehuda and Oved sell these diamonds to retailers across the world. The first time a jeweler heats the diamond when performing simple maintenance, such as ring sizing, the material in the fracture "burns"� making the fracture even more visible than before. Other treatments use lasers to "drill"� into the diamond in order to introduce acids that "bleach"� an easily seen black inclusion to a less visible white inclusion. And even more sophisticated methods of putting a diamond under high temperatures and high pressure (HTHP) can change a low color diamond into a high color diamond. None of these pretenders carry the same value as diamonds purchased at Hyde Park, because we prefer natural diamonds and simply do not sell diamonds that are "treated"� in any way.