Jewelry Glossary

Alloy — a combination or mixture of two or more metals

Carat Weight — the metric used to measure diamonds. One carat is equal to 0.2 grams or approximately the weight of a paperclip. Most diamonds used in fine jewelry weigh one carat or less.

Diamond Clarity — a measure of a diamond’s absence of inclusions and blemishes on a scale of flawless to included

Diamond Color — a measure of the absence of color in a diamond using the Gemological Institute of America® D to Z grading system, where D refers to colorless and Z refers to light, typically yellow

Diamond Seed — a small slice of diamond crystal used to grow a lab-grown diamond

Dispersion — measures the separation of white light into spectral colors (flashes of color)

Enamel — powdered glass or resin that is fused with metal to provide colorful accents

Fine Jewelry — a term that refers to jewelry made with precious metals, such as platinum, gold, or silver, and sometimes accented with precious stones, such as diamonds and gemstones

Gold — a popular precious metal used in fine jewelry known for its bright yellow hue. Other gold alloys used in fine jewelry provide color options, such as white and rose

Hardness — measures the stone’s resistance to scratching and abrasion. Hardness is measured from 1 to 10 on the Mohs scale with diamond at 10 being the hardest

Karat — a unit of measure for the purity of gold, based on a total of 24 parts

Lab-Grown Diamond — a man-made stone grown using either High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) or Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) methods that is optically, chemically, and physically the same as a natural diamond

Natural Diamond — a beautiful and durable gemstone grown in the earth over billions of years

Plating — a layer of metal coating applied electrically or mechanically onto another metal

Platinum — a precious metal known for its naturally white hue that does not dull over time. Platinum is typically the purest alloy used in fine jewelry, which makes it hypoallergenic

Precious Metals — metals that are valued for their quality in fine jewelry, such as gold, silver, and platinum

Refractive Index — measures the ability to bend light as it enters or leaves the diamond

Rhodium — a white, durable, corrosion-resistant metal that is usually used to plate white gold as an added layer of protection

Scintillation — refers to the flash of light caused by movement of the diamond, the light source, or the observer (sometimes called sparkle)

Sterling Silver — a silver alloy usually combined with copper used in fine jewelry and known for its affordability

Stone Shape — the outline shape of a diamond or gemstone as viewed from the top down. Popular stone shapes included in 302 Fine Jewelry are round, oval, straight baguette, tapered baguette, marquise, square, pear, and triangle

Tarnish — a mild form of corrosion caused by contact with chemical elements or compounds in the environment