Buying Guide

How to Buy a Gold

Gold Purity, Color, Pricing, and Care

Gold has an extraordinary heritage with unique qualities. As an enduring element found naturally in a distinct yellow color, gold is resistant to rust, tarnish, and corrosion. Although gold is very strong, it's also the most malleable of all precious metals.

Purity

Pure gold is too soft for everyday wear, so it is alloyed with a mixture of metals like silver, copper, nickel, and zinc to give it strength and durability. Karatage, denoted by a number followed by "k" indicates purity, or how much of the metal in a piece of jewelry is gold. Karatage is expressed in 24ths, making 24k gold, 100% gold.

We craft our jewelry using both 18k and 14k gold. 18k gold is composed of 75% gold, which is alloyed with other metals to make it strong enough for everyday wear. 14k gold is composed of 58.3% gold and 41.7% of other metals.

Color

The color of gold is determined by two factors:

The type of metal alloys included
The percentage of each metal alloy

Yellow Gold

Natural gold and color-saturated alloys are what give yellow gold jewelry its rich shine. The alloys most commonly used, are copper with a red hue, and silver featuring a green hue. An expert mixture of copper, silver and pure gold gives this precious metal its signature warmth.

White Gold

A silvery white character is what makes white gold jewelry so appealing. In order to make the gold white, it is combined with metal alloys that are white in nature and plated with an extremely hard element called rhodium. Although strong, rhodium may wear away over time. Replating is a simple process that can be done to restore whiteness to your jewelry.

White Gold With Black Rhodium

Black rhodium is plated to white gold creating a rich black appearance that is extremely hard and strong. As with traditional white rhodium, black rhodium may wear away over time. Replating is a simple process that Acharya Diamonds offers to restore your jewelry's black finish.

Rose Gold

The beautiful pink hue of rose gold jewelry is created by using a copper alloy. Again, the overall percentages of metal alloys is the same for rose gold as it is for yellow or white, there is just a different mixture in what alloys are used.

Vermeil

Rich in golden color, many of our fine jewelry pieces are crafted with vermeil. The industry standard definition of vermeil is sterling silver that is plated with 10k gold with a minimum of 2.5 microns in thickness for longwearing durability. At Acharya Diamonds, we strive to offer a higher quality to our customers. Our vermeil pieces feature 14k to 24k gold.

For More Information...

Gold, element Au, was one of the first known metals. The gold standard defines the world's currency system, whereby money represents a value in gold.

24 karat = 100% gold Too soft for fine jewelry

22 karat = 91.7% gold Too soft for fine jewelry

18 karat = 75.0% gold Ideal for fine jewelry

14 karat = 58.3% gold Ideal for fine jewelry

10 karat = 41.7% gold Not acceptable for jewelry

Our 18k and 14k gold jewelry is intricately crafted into beautiful pieces for every occasion or style.

Pricing

Gold jewelry prices are dependent upon the purity of the gold used or karat weight, the market value of gold, and the level of craftsmanship and design of each jewelry piece.>

Care

Since gold is a natural element, it is affected by harsh chemicals such as chlorine or other cleaning products. We recommend that you remove your jewelry when using chemicals to reduce daily abrasions and prolong the luster. To clean gold jewelry, use a solution of warm water and detergent-free soap with a soft-bristled brush. When not worn, store your gold pieces in soft cloth bags or the original box to protect them from the elements of daily exposure.

How to Buy a Diamond

Understand the 4Cs of Diamond Quality

This basic knowledge will not only unlock the mystery of a diamond’s quality, it will help you understand a diamond’s value and price.

Diamond Color In most diamonds, the term actually refers to the absence of color. The less color in the stone, the more desirable and valuable it is. Some of these differences are not visible to the naked eye, but directly impact the overall quality and price of the stone.
Diamond Clarity measures the amount, size and placement of internal ‘inclusions,’ and external ‘blemishes.’ Grades run from ‘Flawless,’ with virtually no imperfections, to ‘Included,’ which contain a significant number of imperfections.
Diamond Cut does not refer to a diamond’s shape, but to the proportion and arrangement of its facets and the quality of workmanship. The amount of brilliance, sparkle and fire in a diamond is determined by cut. Grades range from ‘Excellent’ to ‘Poor.’
Diamond Carat refers to a diamond’s weight. Generally speaking, the higher the carat weight, the more expensive the stone. Two diamonds of equal carat weight, however, can have very different quality and price when the other three Cs are considered.

No matter how beautiful a diamond may look you simply cannot see its true quality. The 4Cs of diamond quality will provide you with the information you need to know the diamond’s actual quality.

Diamond Certification

What is a Certificate?

A diamond certificate, also called a diamond grading report, diamond dossier, or diamond quality document, is a report created by a team of gemologists. The diamond is evaluated, measured, and scrutinized using trained eyes, a jeweler’s loupe, a microscope, and other industry tools. A completed certificate includes an analysis of the diamond’s dimensions, clarity, color, polish, symmetry, and other characteristics. Many round diamonds will also include a cut grade on the report.

Acharya Diamonds are certified

Every loose diamond sold by Acharya Diamonds has been analyzed and graded by Solitaire Gemological Laboratories (SGL) & International Gemological Institute (IGI). These two laboratories are among the most respected laboratories in the diamond industry, and are known for their consistency and unbiased diamond grading systems. Diamonds that are accompanied by these grading reports are the most highly valued in the industry.

Diamond Buying Tips

Carat is the most misunderstood of the 4Cs. It actually refers to a diamond's weight, not its size.
Consider cut and carat together; a larger carat diamond with a poor cut grade can appear smaller than a smaller diamond with a higher cut grade.
To maximize your budget, "Buy Shy," which means selecting a carat weight slightly below the whole and half carat marks. For example, instead of a 2.0-carat diamond, consider buying a 1.9-carat weight. This will save a considerable amount of money and the slight size difference will never be noticed.

Diamond Carat Size Chart

This print out illustrates how diamonds of different carat weights and shapes will appear when viewed from the top down.
Your diamond may differ from the printout in length/width ratio, table, and depth.

DOWNLOAD CHART

Carat Weight considers two factors:

A Diamond's Top Diameter
It is important to measure, in millimeters, the distance across the top (diameter) of the diamond as this is how it is viewed when set into a ring.
A Diamond's Cut Grade
A diamond's cut grade should also be considered. When a diamond is well cut (grades Very Good or higher), the light reflected out of the top making it appear larger.

How do these two Carat Weight factors help when purchasing a diamond?
The diamond's diameter and cut grade reveal that smaller carat weight diamonds will appear larger with higher cut grades (Very Good and Ideal). On the flip side, a larger carat weight diamond could appear smaller with lower cut grades (Good, Fair and Poor).

More Expert Tips

If a large carat weight is important to you, yet you're working within a strict budget, consider a diamond with a good cut, SI1-SI2 clarity, and an I or J color grade.
Diamond prices jump at the full- and half-carat weights. Diamonds just below these weights cost significantly less, and, because carat weight is distributed across the entirety of the diamond, small size differences are almost impossible to detect.