{"id":4454,"date":"2024-07-14T08:00:38","date_gmt":"2024-07-14T12:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/?p=4454"},"modified":"2024-07-14T12:55:15","modified_gmt":"2024-07-14T16:55:15","slug":"si2-clarity-diamonds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/si2-clarity-diamonds\/","title":{"rendered":"SI2 CLARITY DIAMONDS"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"blog-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/SI2-Diamonds.gif\" alt=\"SI2 Diamonds\" title=\"SI2 Diamonds\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-4459\" \/><\/div>\n<p><strong>What are SI2 Clarity Diamonds?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nIs SI2 clarity a <strong>good clarity<\/strong> or a <strong>bad clarity?<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p>\nIn other words, <strong>should you buy SI2 diamonds?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nThese are the questions we&#8217;ll look at and we&#8217;ll also see why SI2 clarity diamonds are <strong>the most controversial clarity<\/strong> of diamonds on the market.<\/p>\n<p><h2>SI clarity<\/h2>\n<p>\nSI means<strong> slightly included<\/strong>. Some call it &#8220;<strong>slightly imperfect<\/strong>&#8220;, but they all mean the same thing, the diamond has small inclusions in it.<\/p>\n<p>\nThe SI clarity group is broken down into <strong>2 categories:<\/strong> SI1, which is the higher end of the SI range (closer to VS clarity), and SI2, the lower end of the SI clarities (closer to I clarity).<\/p>\n<p><h2>See the clarity chart below!<\/h2>\n<p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Clarity-Grading-Chart.gif\" alt=\"Clarity Grading Chart\" title=\"Clarity Grading Chart\" width=\"502\" height=\"115\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4455\" \/><\/p>\n<p>\n<strong>SI2 is not a bad quality at all<\/strong>&#8230; But, it is a <strong>borderline<\/strong> quality. SI2 divides all the diamonds in the world into 2 sections:<\/p>\n<p><strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Those that have invisible inclusions<\/li>\n<li>Those that have visible inclusions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nSI2 falls right in the middle of those 2 groups.<\/p>\n<p><h2>The SI2 clarity chart:<\/h2>\n<p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/SI2-Diamond-Clarity.gif\" alt=\"SI2 Diamond Clarity Chart\" title=\"SI2 Diamond Clarity Chart\" width=\"502\" height=\"99\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4458\" \/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Invisible inclusion range<\/h2>\n<p>\nSI1 clarity and higher (FL, IF, VVS, VS) is in the <strong>invisible inclusion range<\/strong>. That means that the inclusions aren&#8217;t actually &#8220;<strong>invisible<\/strong>&#8220;, but that they are invisible to the bare (<strong>unaided<\/strong>) eye (no <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2Edr9HQ\">microscope<\/a> or <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2kwSI5G\">10x jeweler&#8217;s loupe<\/a>). Under a scope, <strong>sure<\/strong>, you&#8217;ll be able to see the inclusions pretty easily, but not just by looking directly at the stone!<\/p>\n<p><h2>Eye-visible range<\/h2>\n<p>\nI1 clarity and lower (I1, I2 and I3) puts you into diamonds where the inclusions and flaws are large enough and obvious enough <strong>to see with the bare eye<\/strong>. Just by looking at these diamonds you&#8217;ll be able to see cracks, fractures, black carbon spots, clouds and crystals.<\/p>\n<p>\nMost people will see these inclusions, <strong>think it is dirt on the diamond<\/strong>, and try to <strong>wipe<\/strong> it away. This doesn&#8217;t work of course. The inclusions in that diamond will never change. They have been in that diamond for a million years and will be for another.<\/p>\n<p><h2>Identification marks<\/h2>\n<p>\nInclusions are like <strong>freckles and birthmarks<\/strong> on people. They were made and formed in nature and are just a way of identifying and characterizing a diamond. They are neither good or bad, inclusions are what they are; <strong>identification marks!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nSI2 (the 8th grade from the top), is the clarity that separates these 2 groups: <strong>The visible inclusions from the invisible inclusions!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><h2>See the picture below to compare clarities:<\/h2>\n<p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/SI2-Clarity.gif\" alt=\"SI2 Clarity\" title=\"SI2 Clarity\" width=\"502\" height=\"211\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4456\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In SI2 diamonds, when viewed from the top (through the <strong>crown<\/strong>), you should <strong>NOT <\/strong>be able to spot any inclusions. However, if you have a larger diamond, or a cut of diamond that has less brilliance and sparkle (like an Emerald cut), then you may be able to detect these flaws if you look for them. Generally, they are not obvious or noticeable!<\/p>\n<p><h2>Change your viewing position<\/h2>\n<p>\nYou <strong>CAN <\/strong>see inclusions in an SI2 if you change your viewing position. If you view an SI2 diamond from the side, looking at the diamond through the pavilion (base of the diamond), you should see flaws and imperfections. <strong>Common inclusions like:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Carbon Spots &#8211;<\/strong> Diamond inclusions that often appear dark or black.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Crystals &#8211;<\/strong> Minerals trapped within the diamond as it grew.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Clouds &#8211;<\/strong> Foggy or milky areas in the diamond.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Feathers &#8211;<\/strong> Fine, little breaks inside the diamond.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Fractures &#8211;<\/strong> Jagged breaks inside the diamond that spread out.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\nKeep in mind, <strong>this is usually not a big issue<\/strong>. Once diamonds are mounted in rings, pendants, earrings or bracelets, the prongs, mounting, bezels and baskets will help cover up and hide these visible inclusions. And unless you look at them from the side view,<strong> you won&#8217;t see them!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nPlus, when you show off your jewelry to your friends or family, they aren&#8217;t going to grab your hand, twist it and view the diamond from the side. No, they will always look at your ring straight down. <strong>Which is perfect!<\/strong> So unless you tell them that the diamond has inclusions, <strong>they won&#8217;t know, nor see them!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><h2>Controversial Diamonds<\/h2>\n<p>\nSI2 diamonds are very <strong>controversial diamonds<\/strong> because of the visible-invisible issue.<\/p>\n<p>\nA lot of jewelers may try to pass off a lower grade diamond for an SI2. <strong>It&#8217;s true! <\/strong>They may call a nice looking <strong>I1 clarity<\/strong> an SI2 because it makes it sound better and <strong>sells better<\/strong>&#8230; (People are under the impression that you <strong>MUST<\/strong> buy at least an SI clarity or higher&#8230; They just don&#8217;t realize this actually means <strong>SI1<\/strong>). SI2 clarity is always the questionable clarity.<\/p>\n<p>\nIf you do purchase an SI2 clarity diamond (<strong>you&#8217;ll save money<\/strong>), do one thing&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><h2>BUY GIA OR AGS CERTIFIED!<\/h2>\n<p>\nBuying a GIA certified or AGS certified SI2 clarity diamond will guarantee that this SI2 rating <strong>is truly an SI2!<\/strong> This is very important!<\/p>\n<p>\nWith any other certificate company out there, an SI2 could be an I1 (Which means <strong>you spent too much!<\/strong>)<\/p>\n<p>\n<strong>Certification matters<\/strong>, but <strong>WHO<\/strong> certifies it matters more!<\/p>\n<p>\nAnd if you want to know whether or not to Buy SI2&#8230; I&#8217;d say &#8220;<strong>Sure, Why Not?<\/strong>&#8221; But&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><h2>Magnify the stone first!<\/h2>\n<p>\nUse a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2Edr9HQ\">microscope<\/a> or a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2kwSI5G\">10x jeweler&#8217;s loupe<\/a> (<strong>10x magnification<\/strong>) and see why it&#8217;s considered an SI2. Compare that diamond to an SI1 diamond and then to an I1 clarity. This way you&#8217;ll understand why it&#8217;s an SI2 and if it&#8217;s right for you.<\/p>\n<p>\nViewing SI2 diamonds under magnification <strong>may sway your decision<\/strong> to purchase one way or the other&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>\nAnd it may just may make you say &#8220;<strong>SOLD<\/strong>!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>\n<strong>It&#8217;s up to you<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>\n<strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Certify<\/li>\n<li>Scope<\/li>\n<li>Compare<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\n<strong>Then make up your mind<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><h2>Invisible or Not?<\/h2>\n<p>\n<strong>Those are the flaws&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nOr you can just take the easy route and buy from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/?a_aid=JSDG\">James Allen<\/a> &#8211; awesome diamonds (<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Shape=round&#038;Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratFrom=0.7&#038;CaratTo=30&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606&#038;ViewsOptions=Images&#038;advancedParameter=CaratSliderBottom&#038;showAdvanced=show?a_aid=JSDG\">best cut, symmetry, and polish you can buy, with pure white color, no fluorescence, and low, low prices<\/a>)&#8230; Use &#8220;<strong>RINGSUM<\/strong>&#8221; at checkout to save an additional <strong>10% off<\/strong> the ring mounting!<\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFF99\" valign=\"top\"><strong>CARAT WEIGHT, CLARITY, COLOR, CUT, CERTIFIED<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFF99\" valign=\"top\"><strong>PRICE<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFF99\" valign=\"top\"><strong>VIEW<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" valign=\"top\"><strong>.70, SI2, F, EXCELLENT, GIA<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"70\" valign=\"top\"><strong>$1,020+<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"50\" valign=\"top\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Shape=round&#038;Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratFrom=0.7&#038;CaratTo=30&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606&#038;ViewsOptions=Images&#038;advancedParameter=CaratSliderBottom&#038;showAdvanced=show?a_aid=JSDG\">VIEW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" valign=\"top\"><strong>.80, SI2, F, EXCELLENT, GIA<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"70\" valign=\"top\"><strong>$1,080+<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"50\" valign=\"top\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratFrom=0.8&#038;CaratTo=6&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606?a_aid=JSDG\">VIEW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" valign=\"top\"><strong>.90, SI2, F, EXCELLENT, GIA<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"70\" valign=\"top\"><strong>$1,970+<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"50\" valign=\"top\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratFrom=0.9&#038;CaratTo=6&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606?a_aid=JSDG\">VIEW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" valign=\"top\"><strong>1.00, SI2, F, EXCELLENT, GIA<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"70\" valign=\"top\"><strong>$2,350+<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"50\" valign=\"top\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratTo=6&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606?a_aid=JSDG\">VIEW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" valign=\"top\"><strong>1.25, SI2, F, EXCELLENT, GIA<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"70\" valign=\"top\"><strong>$3,860+<\/strong><\/td>\n<td style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF\" align=\"center\" width=\"50\" valign=\"top\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jamesallen.com\/loose-diamonds\/all-diamonds\/?Color=F&#038;Clarity=SI2&#038;CaratFrom=1.25&#038;CaratTo=6&#038;Polish=EX&#038;Symmetry=EX&#038;DepthTo=80&#038;DepthFrom=45&#038;TableFrom=40&#038;TableTo=83&#038;Flour=None&#038;RingMatchID=22606?a_aid=JSDG\">VIEW<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p>\n<strong>Cheers! :)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>What are SI2 Clarity Diamonds? Is SI2 clarity a good clarity or a bad clarity? In other words, should you buy SI2 diamonds? These are the questions we&#8217;ll look at and we&#8217;ll also see why <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/si2-clarity-diamonds\/\" title=\"SI2 CLARITY DIAMONDS\">[Read More&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4459,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,29,3],"tags":[538,503,841,498,291,1831,1659],"class_list":["post-4454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-clarity","category-diamond-guide","category-diamonds","tag-certified-diamonds","tag-diamond-clarity","tag-diamond-deals","tag-diamond-prices","tag-loose-diamonds","tag-si2-clarity","tag-si2-diamonds"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4454"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4454"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4454\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}