Diamonds 101 begins with four C's: cut, color, clarity and carat. When it comes to diamonds, bigger is not always better. The other 3 C's have a huge impact on the quality and value of every diamond.

Cut

When a diamond is cut properly it will reflect light like a mirror. Don't confuse cut with shape: that is, whether the gem is round, emerald, princess shape, etc.

Diamond cut is often considered the most important of the four C's, having a great impact on the physical appearance and value of a diamond. A good cut (ideal proportions, angles and finish) gives a diamond its brilliance - that irresistible shimmer and brightness that makes diamonds the king of all bling.

Color

While most people assume that diamonds are white, the majority of diamonds are yellow, brown, and black - these stones find their way into industrial purposes, used as drill bits, saw blades, etc. The rarest of all diamond colors are white (or colorless).

The closer a diamond is to being colorless, the more valuable it will be. The Gemological Institute of America (G.I.A.) grades color alphabetically from D (totally colorless) to Z (yellow). For a diamond to be considered "colorless," the G.I.A. requires that it be a D, E, or F - the average grade of diamond engagement rings in North America is G to H.

Context counts: If you plan on mounting a diamond on a platinum or white gold setting, consider a diamond in the D-G range. Yellow gold will be much more forgiving to a less than colorless stone, but regardless of the setting, the diamond will start to appear yellow if the color is lower than J grade.

Fancies

We all remember J. Lo's pink diamond engagement ring; even though that engagement was short-lived, the trend of colored diamonds is still going strong. You can get diamonds in almost every color imaginable but the most popular colors are yellow, blue, and pink. Again, all diamonds have a tint of color, but there are a select few that exhibit a strong, pure hue. These colored diamonds are sometimes called "fancies" and are extremely rare, making them all the more sought-after.

Ethically mined certified Canadian diamonds - extracted from Canada 's Arctic - are bloodshed and conflict free.

Clarity

As with people, diamonds have natural blemishes; the smaller and fewer the blemishes, the more valuable the diamond will be since flawless gems are extremely rare.

Many of the blemishes that reduce a diamond's value are invisible to the naked eye and discernable only by experts equipped with a 10X loupe (a strong jewellery magnifying glass).

Carat

The carat of a diamond is simply the weight; the larger the gem, the greater the carat. Large diamonds are very rare; hundreds of tons of rock and ore must be processed to uncover a single one-carat gem quality diamond. Since a carat refers to weight and not size, two diamonds of the same carat may appear to be different sizes depending on how the diamond is cut.

The Fifth C: Country of Origin

While the vast majority of diamonds bring essential jobs to hundreds of thousands of law-abiding citizens and enormous economic value to many countries, the sale of diamonds has also funded brutal civil wars responsible for violence and atrocities in many African nations including Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire), Sierra Leone and elsewhere.

More consumers are exercising their political and ethical beliefs by choosing to purchase diamonds only from suppliers who offer the piece of mind that they are not endorsing bloodshed.

Canada: A Source of Ethically Mined Diamonds

Ethically mined certified Canadian diamonds - extracted from Canada's Arctic - are bloodshed and conflict free. For more information and suppliers: Canadia Diamonds, De Beers Canada, Sirius Diamonds, Aurias Diamonds

Johneen Manning is the Editor in Chief of http://www.GKFA.com, a hip, savvy & fresh online women's magazine for the 'Sex and the City' generation.