– You may have heard that diamonds are the hardest substance known to man, and if you hit your diamond with a hammer, it would not break. This is NOT true and such action would probably result in great financial loss. A diamond is the hardest substance, however hardness is resistance to scratching and not breaking. Resistance to breaking is called toughness, and jade is the toughest gemstone. The jade is much more likely to survive the hammer blow. The good news is that if your diamond has accidentally chipped, it can often be restored with minimal expense and minimal weight loss.

– You may have heard that the eye-visible black inclusions in some diamonds are called “carbon”. This is NOT true. The diamond crystal itself is carbon that has been under high temperature and pressure. The dark material that is encased in the diamond (carbon) is an impurity that can be many things, but not carbon. The good news is that if your diamond has eye-visible black inclusions, they can often be made to seemingly disappear by “boiling” the diamond in acid. This may require a laser drill to let the acid reach the black. The end result is often an eye-clean and much prettier stone.

– You may have heard that diamonds are the most brilliant gemstones. Brilliance or brightness is a measure of how much light is reflected back up to your eye. It is true that some diamonds are dazzling, however some are quite dull and reflect almost no light. Often the dull lifeless diamonds either have dirt on the underside or they have been cut with little regard towards maximizing beauty. The good news is that if your diamond has caked on dirt on the underside, a professional jewelry cleaning can easily restore the original brilliance. If it is dull because of poor proportions, a gemologist should advise you if re-cutting makes sense.