The answer to that question is YES!
Yes, you can get some great looking I Clarity Diamonds. I've seen some I1 Clarity Diamonds that face up so well that they look like SI2 Clarity Diamonds (The next Clarity Rating up).
SI3?
Some Certificate Companies have actually added another Clarity Rating for these so-called great looking Diamonds, calling them SI3's!
This is basically saying that the Diamond is really too good to be considered an I Clarity Diamond, but not good enough to be an SI2. It's a border-line Diamond that really should be called an I1 Clarity Diamond, cause that's what it is!
Bionic Eyes
Most Jewelers and certificate companies live by a simple rule of thumb. If you can see inclusions with the naked eye (top down) then it's an I Clarity Diamond. End of discussion. I firmly agree. (Even though some people with what I would call "bionic eyes", can see inclusions in a SI1 Stone! I had to loupe it! It can happen!)
The I Clarity Range is actually one of the largest markets for Diamonds, since they make up 50% of all the Diamonds you see. So if you stopped half the people wearing Diamond rings today, and looked at their rings, chances are very good you'd see inclusions in them. It just goes to show you how rare it really is to get a Diamond with small invisible inclusions.
Where and How
Some people think that each Clarity Range has a specific amount of inclusions in them. Like they'll think VS Clarity has 4 inclusions, SI 5, I Clarity 6, and so on. This is farthest from the truth. Inclusions are all based upon WHERE they lie in the Diamond and how big they are.
Now, I'll step back a moment and say, an I Clarity Diamond COULD have 1 inclusion in it! It could. Chances are rare, but if that inclusion is big enough to spot with the naked eye, it could be the only thing keeping it from being rated a higher clarity diamond! Usually if there is only one inclusion that's visible in the diamond, diamond cutters will try to remove that inclusion by cutting around it. This would result in cutting a smaller diamond, but one that's higher quality.
How are larger Diamonds affected by I Clarity Diamonds? Read on...
