Understanding your IGI appraisal report

If you want to make sure that the diamond or diamonds you buy are worth the money you paid for them, it is important to have an IGI appraisal report for each one. This is especially important if you want to purchase insurance for your diamonds or if you plan to sell them in the future. The appraisal summary will give you details of the gemological report for each diamond that you submit to the International Gemological Institute.

With IGI appraisals, as with other facilities that evaluate diamonds, such as EGL diamonds, diamonds are studied and analyzed by a team of gemologists to provide details of color, carat, clarity and cut, which are known as the four C’s of the diamonds. The summary report will also include a color photo of each diamond and, if you wish, you can engrave the IGI logo on the shank of a diamond ring to prove that the appraisal report is legitimate. This engraving is important for identification purposes, in case a diamond ring is stolen in a robbery.

In addition to having an IGI assessment, you can also have letters and numbers laser printed on the diamond. This often takes the form of the report number and will not spoil the diamond in any way. The only way it can be seen is with a 10x microscope. If you buy a diamond as a gift and want to be valued, you can also have a personalized message laser printed on the stone for identification which, while original and thoughtful, will likely prevent the diamond from clumping with money-back guarantee diamonds.

The latest advancement in the diamond world in serving clients requesting IGI ratings is the institute’s ability to make table marks. This allows jewelry resellers to print their own logo or brand on the diamond. Customers can only view this impression using specialized viewing equipment at the seller’s location. With this equipment, buyers can see a great 3-D image. An enlarged image of this brand is added to the report if you make use of this service in the appraisal.

Although you can have your diamond appraised at other facilities, such as EGL diamonds or GIA diamond rings, IGI appraisals are the only appraisals offering diamond repair today. Although diamond is the hardest of the precious metals, it can be subject to chipping and wear over time. IGI polishers are masters of their craft and can even reshape diamond cuts that are no longer in fashion. They can also rearrange the facets of a diamond that has been poorly cut.

The report you receive after the IGI evaluations are done is basically a statement that proves that the diamond is real and is not a substitute, such as a cubic zirconia diamond. In addition to the summary of the four C’s, you will also see a diagram of the rhombus in which all the information in the report is shown in detail. This will give you information about the diamond that you probably did not realize. For jewelers selling loose stones, IGI appraisals will seal, upon request, the stone along with the report in a plastic container.

Then when the customer walks in to make a purchase, the report is available to them so they can examine the properties of the diamond and make sure it is the stone they want. If you are not familiar with diamonds, you may wonder why so much attention is paid to the color of diamonds. Although they appear white, very few diamonds are actually pure white and traces of color in the stone can diminish its value. At the same time, there are colored diamonds, which are very rare and therefore very expensive. This is why gemologists pay special attention to color when evaluating the value of a diamond.