Real diamonds sparkle differently from fakes, but without experience it's difficult to recognize the differences. A well-cut diamond will have a good mix of white light, called brilliance, and flashes of color, called dispersion.
Real diamonds sparkle rainbow colors when their light is deflected to other surfaces. In other words, colors shoot from the diamond when the direct light hits the stone. This flash of colors from a diamond is called “fire.” Of course, brilliant multicolor sparks are appealing to most jewelry lovers.
A real diamond appears gray and white inside (brilliance) when held to the light and can reflect rainbow colors (fire) onto other surfaces. A fake diamond will display rainbow colors within the stone when held up to light.
By holding a diamond close to a source of light, such as a flashlight, you can tell whether or not it's real. Watch closely for the shimmers of light that shine from the stone. A real diamond will reflect light easily, and provide you with a disco ball or rainbow-like display.
As straightforward as it sounds, fill a glass of water at home to roughly three-quarters full. Separate the stone so that it is loose, and drop it into the water. Diamonds are highly dense and a genuine gem will sink to the bottom – every time. If it hovers to the surface or only partially sinks, then it is a replica.
Get a glass full of water and simply drop your diamond into the glass. If the diamond is real, it will drop to the bottom of the glass due to the high density of the stone. If it's a fake, it will float on the surface of the water.
The presence of one or more of these features in a diamond provides evidence that the stone has been filled: "FLASH EFFECT": One of the most common and obvious characteristics of a Yehuda treated stone.
The Density Test Real diamonds are incredibly dense, and often outmatch the fakes in density tests. To confirm this, fill a glass up with water and drop your diamond in. A fake diamond will most likely float on top or only sink to the middle while a real diamond will sink to the bottom thanks to its density.
An ideal cut diamond shows only a few intensely bright flashes in direct sunlight. A diamond that actually looks good in sunlight splits those few flashes up into ten or twenty smaller sparkles.
Place the stone on top of the newspaper, and see if you can read the words on the page through it. A real diamond of decent quality will refract light so intensely that you can't see through it. On the other hand, cubic zirconia is more transparent, and you'll be able to see right through it.
Most synthetic diamonds look too good to be true all due to their extreme brilliance. Does your stone look really bright with lots of rainbow reflected colors? If so, it's most likely cubic zirconia. Yes, real diamonds are brilliant, but they are much more subtle than synthetics.
A dirty stone doesn't sparkle because light simply can't enter the diamond and causes it to appear dull. So, if you notice your diamond jewelry getting cloudier overtime, it's likely due to a dirty surface and there's an easy fix to restore their luster.
Light is everything. It's the source of a diamond's beauty. Without light, there are no reflections. No sparkle.
Under natural light, diamonds give off white light. Cubic zirconia will show more fire. Both effects are beautiful and depend on personal preference. If you're looking for that telltale diamond sparkle, however, you won't find it in a cubic zirconia stone.
A pure and natural diamond is known to produce a blue glow when exposed to black light. The impure ones have certain chemical impurities that trigger the glow of other colors like green, white, red, and yellow when diamonds are exposed to ultraviolet light.
Diamonds are dense and will sink quickly, while certain imitations will sink more slowly. If your gem doesn't immediately sink to the bottom, it's likely a glass or quartz imitation.
Place the gemstones in a glass of water and watch. If it floats, then it is probably a fake stone. Real diamonds will sink to the bottom of the glass, while cubic zirconia will float to the surface.
Only about 25% to 35% of diamonds exhibit some degree of fluorescence in reaction to long-wave UV light. More than 95% of these diamonds fluoresce blue. A rare few fluoresce other colors such as yellow or green.
A diamond's sparkle is a result of its interaction with light. Gemologists describe sparkle as both brightness and fire. When light is reflected off the interior surfaces (facets) of a diamond, it's either reflected/perceived as white light (brightness) or colored light (fire).
Visit A Trusted Jeweler
Many jewelers will appraise your stone free of charge and experts will often be able to tell immediately if your diamond is authentic or not. If your stone came with a certificate, your jeweler should be happy to take a look at it and tell you whether it is from a trustworthy source.
A green, yellow, or gray glow usually means that the diamond is fake. If you don't see a noticeable glow or find that the color is very faint, the test is inconclusive. This is not a foolproof way to identify a fake diamond, so you should pair this test with several others for more informative results.
If you see 925 engraved on the ring, that means it's a sterling silver setting. Usually, engagement rings with a larger center diamond won't be set in sterling silver because it's too soft. And if you see a stamp that says "CZ," you're looking at a cubic zirconia stone, rather than a real diamond.
If the small stones on your diamond engagement ring are between 1 and 2 points (0.01-0.02 carats), it may be appraised at a price range of $300 to $700 per carat. Larger chips or stones at 0.10 carats may result in you being able to get $1000 or more for your jewelry if the diamonds score high on clarity and color.