Accidents happen all the time. There’s no point in crying over spilled milk. If there’s a problem, we should immediately take action; that’s what we believe in, anyway. And that is especially the case when discussing diamonds.
Oddly enough, there are several situations where diamond owners seek help from their trusted jewelers. As soon as they notice that their precious diamond has broken, they immediately rush to their jeweler, hoping that they can repair the diamond.
Let’s be honest here: Diamonds can’t be repaired, regardless of how much damage they have sustained. Because of that, the first thing that comes to mind is as follows:
Are broken diamonds worth anything? And if so, how much?
Depending on how badly you’ve cracked it, the gem’s value will drop accordingly. Despite all odds, though, it’s still possible to somewhat take care of a broken diamond.
How is that possible? What are the best ways to save a broken diamond? Are all fractured diamonds capable of becoming valuable again? In which situations are diamonds most frequently broken?
Here’s a quick teaser: In most cases, people themselves break their diamonds in half while attempting to check their overall hardness. Do you know what people use when they test that out?
Continue reading this article to find out more about that – and the overall value of all broken diamonds!
Diamonds Are Always Valuable!
Before you start to despair about your broken diamond, you should stop and think about a couple of things.
First things first, regardless of their shape and appearance – diamonds always have a set value that can only be lowered if we mishandle them.
Despite what most people think, broken or cracked diamonds are ever so present in nearly all jewelry.
Sooner or later, there’ll come a time when an individual will drop their favorite piece of jewelry that’s embedded with a diamond, and that diamond might crack or break immediately on impact.
Second, even if you have an accident with your diamond, where it sustains any kind of damage – there will always be a solution to that problem.
Let’s make one thing clear: Diamonds are the hardest substance on Earth.
Because of that, you’ll need to be highly unlucky even to witness a diamond that’s cracked or broken. As the name suggests, the strongest material isn’t something that can easily crack or break, regardless of how badly you handle it.
Despite all odds, there are cases where people pay a visit to their local jewelry shop, searching for a solution for their broken diamond. And they fear that their diamond will lose its initial value immediately after sustaining any kind of damage.
Sadly, they are right.
But, even if you manage to break your diamond – it will still be highly valuable. Just think about this for a second: Diamonds are extremely costly on the free market. It’s virtually impossible to stumble upon a single-carat diamond that costs less than $2000.
Because of that, you can expect to possess a diamond that still has a high price. It just won’t be nearly as high as before. People usually have a hard time accepting the fact that their broken diamond loses value. But there isn’t a way around that.
Most – if not all – things lose value the moment that they sustain any kind of damage.
The main difference between most other materials and diamonds is the fact that you can repair most of them. Heck, for most materials out there, there’s plenty of methods that can be used to fix them.
Learn More:
Keep Your Diamonds Safe At All Times
Diamonds aren’t that forgiving when they break, as it’s impossible to repair a broken diamond. But the definition of “repair” is essential here. When we say that it’s impossible, we’re referring to the ability to restore the main appearance and characteristics of a diamond that’s broken.
If you manage to break a diamond, it will remain in that form forever – or rather, as long as you handle it appropriately and make sure that it doesn’t sustain any kind of additional damage.
No glue, tools, or any kind of invisible duct tape can repair a broken diamond. We know that it’s undeniably hard to hear this. But, you shouldn’t lose hope!
Other alternatives can help us out when we encounter a broken diamond. What we’re saying is that when you accidentally break one of your diamonds, there are several approaches to fixing it, where the diamond can be partially rescued.
What does that mean?
As we previously mentioned, broken diamonds are a pretty common occurrence, especially in jewelry shops. There are many cases where people mishandled their diamonds, resulting in all sorts of cracks and breakage.
In those times, people usually seek help from their trusted jeweler.
Here’s a fun fact: In most cases, people who visit their trusted jeweler, seeking help with their newly broken diamond, come to see them with an odd explanation as to why their diamond was damaged.
It turns out that many people think that it’s a great idea to test their diamonds’ hardness by smashing them with a hammer. In most cases, people will usually test that with a wooden hammer.
As you’ve probably guessed – that’s futile.
On the other hand, some individuals aren’t pleased with that result and chose a different approach. Without any concern or warning, they pick up their trusted steel hammer, and with one swift swing, they hit their diamond, forcing it to crack – or even break.
As fellow diamond-enthusiasts, it hurts us deeply when people have those stupid ideas.
Here’s a quick tip: Never try to test the hardness of a diamond with a steel hammer! In nine out of ten tries, you’ll either crack it from the inside out or break it entirely.
If you wish to learn more about how diamonds fare against hammers, we’ve got you covered: Just click on the link here, and you’ll learn the connection between hammers and diamonds!
Back to the topic: Diamonds should always be handled appropriately. That means that no hammers or other tools should be used as a test for diamonds. On the off chance that you played with your diamond, and it broke – here’s what you need to know.
Learn More: Diamond Care: How To Take Care Of Your Diamonds
All Diamonds Can Be Saved
When you notice that you have a broken diamond – or when you intentionally damage one of your diamonds – the first thing that you should do is to contact your jeweler.
One thing to consider when making an appointment is that jewelers have a tight schedule. Sure, there’s a chance you might catch them without any current work, but more often than not, their schedule will be packed.
And that means they might not be able to start working on your diamond right away. A bit of patience will go a long way here.
You’ve probably told them before why you requested an appointment. But it would be wise to remind them once more when you arrive exactly why you came. Take your broken diamond out of your bag and put it on their desk.
On that note: Make sure to bring and present the entire diamond to your jeweler. They need to see all of its pieces to further determine what happened and what can be done to save the diamond.
The good idea is to wrap the diamond in a large tissue and put that tissue in a highly secured box made from either wood or any kind of metal. It would be embarrassing to lose your diamond – or a part of it – while traveling towards the jewelry shop, wouldn’t it?
With that in mind, open the box, take your broken diamond out of the tissue, and hand it over to the jeweler. As soon as they take it, they will begin to examine the diamond.
To further determine the most optimal solution, they will need to keep the diamond for several days. As for now, the jeweler will provide you with a preliminary answer.
Just to be safe, you should leave the diamond there, as it might take time to find the best solution.
Once you leave the diamond with your trusted jeweler, you need to realize that it’s currently in the best hands – and that the jeweler is doing everything possible to save your broken diamond.
There’s no need to stress about it too much.
That being said, you can expect a call from your jeweler in a couple of days. When they contact you, they will explain what your best options are as far as diamond repair goes.
In most cases, they will suggest one of the following three things.
Re-Cut The Diamond
Re-cutting a diamond is a standard procedure that serves as one of the best solutions when trying to save – somewhat, at least – the value of your diamond.
It might be challenging to accept that solution, but hear us out: Would you rather have a broken diamond or a smaller but more valuable stone?
We can agree that this question shouldn’t require too much debating when coming up with an answer. Broken diamonds will become more valuable if they are re-cut rather than leaving them damaged.
It might be odd to think that a smaller diamond is worth more than a larger diamond. However, in terms of determining the value of a diamond, one of the crucial things is to look deeper into the diamond’s 4 C’s.
The 4 C’s of diamonds stand for clarity, cut, color, and carats.
If you wish to learn more about the 4 C’s of diamonds, you can click on the link here. That article possesses the necessary pieces of information on the matter at hand!
Long story short: Re-cutting your diamonds is, in most cases, the best solution to save and raise the overall value of your broken diamond.
Learn More: Can You Make A Diamond Into Smaller Diamonds?
Re-Certify That Diamond
Regardless of what you decide regarding your broken diamond, you should always try to re-certify it.
Why should you do that? As it turns out, re-certifying a broken diamond is necessary if you are searching for a solution to raise the overall value of that diamond further.
Here’s a healthy reminder: It might be tricky to re-certify a diamond that’s broken.
You might ask yourself why. But the answer is pretty obvious: Although natural diamonds must have a certification that validates them, a broken diamond that already has a certificate, in the eyes of many, doesn’t necessarily require recertification.
As long as you possess all of the parts of a broken diamond, it will be easy to determine the origin of a broken diamond. Just by looking at the exterior crack of a diamond and comparing it to the other half, it can be determined that the diamond is, indeed, genuine.
A safe way to re-certify a diamond is to re-cut it first. Unfortunately, it all comes down to the decision of whether you want to re-cut your diamond or not.
Re-Polish The Diamond
This procedure is blatantly obvious – but we still wanted to cover it a little bit.
As soon as you break a diamond, it’s both highly advisable and necessary to re-polish that diamond. In most cases, if you leave a broken diamond unattended, it will further deteriorate over time.
Re-polishing the diamond is one of the safest and easiest ways to save – and increase – the overall value of that diamond on the free market.
Final Words
You might be surprised to learn how often people mishandle their diamonds, resulting in them breaking. Regardless of how it happened or how difficult it might be to accept that reality, you should act immediately because – well, preserving the value of a broken diamond is extremely important.
All of this begs the question: Are broken diamonds worth anything?
Unfortunately, as soon as you break a diamond, it can never regain its initial value. The damage is tightly related to the diamond’s overall appearance, weight, and cut. And all of these will lower the price of a diamond if they negatively affect the stone itself.
On the other hand, just because you’ve managed – intentionally or unintentionally – to break one of your diamonds, that doesn’t ultimately mean that the diamond isn’t worth anything.
As soon as you realize that your diamond is broken, you should head to your trusted jeweler and hand it to them for further examination. Regardless of how bad the diamonds’ breakage is, the jeweler will offer you one of the following solutions:
- Re-cutting the diamond
- Re-polishing the diamond
- Re-certifying the diamond
All options will help with increasing the overall price and value of a broken diamond. Pick carefully and try to accept what happened – move forward and learn to appreciate your old diamond, even if it doesn’t look the same!
See Also: Are Diamonds Really Worthless?