• Know Diamond Cuts and Shapes

• Determine Diamond Carat Weight

• Study Diamond Clarity

• Consider Diamond Colour

• Maintain Your Diamonds

• Jewellery Shopping Checklist

• Find Diamonds and Diamond Jewellery on eBay Australia

• Buy with Confidence

• Need More Help?

• Legal Disclaimer

Know Diamond Cuts and Shapes

Know Diamond Cuts and Shapes

Diamond shapes vary from traditional round brilliant cuts to marquise cut, pear cut, heart cut, oval cut, emerald cut, princess cut and more. Your choice should reflect the tastes of the person who will be wearing the jewel.

A well-cut diamond reflects light to maximise the stone's brilliance. There are three different Cut components:   

• Diamond cut grade: A standard grading report describes cut by the outline or shape of the diamond and the pattern of the facet arrangement (also known as cutting style).

• Diamond cut depth: Diamonds cut too shallow or too deep lose light through the bottom or sides, which cause the stones to sparkle less.  

• Diamond polish: A diamond's brilliance and value can be diminished due to a poor polish, or rough facets.

Determine Diamond Carat Weight

Determine Diamond Carat Weight

The size of a diamond can be measured in carats or points. Larger diamonds are rare and therefore prices rise accordingly as carat weights increase. If your major shopping concern is high carat weight, a moderate downgrade in carat size (e.g. 0.05) can save you a lot of money and still look beautiful.

1 Carat = 100 Points = 200 milligrams

Study Diamond Clarity

Study Diamond Clarity

Most diamonds contain inclusions (tiny mineral traces or flaws) that are often invisible to the naked eye. A diamond's clarity is measured by both the amount and severity of these inclusions. Because flawless diamonds are very rare they are also more expensive. Often, eBay Australia sellers will refer to the industry letter grading to describe the clarity of larger, solitaire diamonds. For example, the International Gemological Institute (IGI) uses the following grading scale for clarity:

Consider Diamond Colour

Consider Diamond Colour

Although most diamonds appear white to the naked eye, they all include trace amounts of yellow colour, with the most valuable diamonds falling in the colourless range. However, a deeply coloured diamond such as a brilliant canary yellow diamond can actually cost more than its colourless counterpart.

Fancy diamonds, otherwise known as Z+ diamonds, are available in a variety of colours including deep yellow, green, pink, orange, red, blue, and black.

Maintain Your Diamonds

Maintain Your Diamonds

Although diamonds are the hardest naturally-occurring substance on Earth, they still can chip. Choose your setting wisely when shopping for diamond jewellery. Four-prong, six-prong, and low-profile channel or bezel settings are more apt to protect your diamonds. Also, prevent your jewels from bumping into one another by storing jewellery pieces individually in soft cloth pouches.

Clean your diamonds

Unclean substances like dust and skin oil can cause your diamonds to lose their sparkle so take protective measures:

• Clean your diamonds occasionally in soap and water.

• Air dry and polish your diamonds with a soft cloth.

• Brushing with a worn, soft-bristled toothbrush from time to time can assist to remove dirt from between crevices.

• For more resistant blemishes, use a weak solution of ammonia and water (about one part to four parts) and a soft brush.

• Treat metal settings gently when you clean your diamonds as gold can scratch.

Regularly ask your jeweller to ensure your diamonds sit tight in their settings to help prevent stones from falling out. Jewellers can also clean diamonds and gemstones with steam or ultrasound, although ultrasound can worsen internal fissures or flaws.

Jewellery Shopping Checklist

Jewellery Shopping Checklist

Buying jewellery can be an extremely fun and rewarding process, but it’s important for buyers to be consumer savvy as well. Buyers should read thoroughly through the listing description of jewellery items, before committing themselves to a purchase. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has published jewellery advertising industry guidelines, and buying from sellers complying with the guidelines makes good sense.

For consumers who would like further information about their consumer rights and how jewellery sellers are required to comply with the Trade Practices Act, visit the ACCC for more details.

(Content, trademarks and brands referred to and contained in the third-party links provided in this section are the property of their respective owners, and eBay has no control over and accepts no responsibility for their content).

Find Diamonds and Diamond Jewellery on eBay Australia

Find Diamonds and Diamond Jewellery on eBay Australia

Once you know what type of diamonds you want, go to the Jewellery, Gems & Watches portal and start searching for items on eBay Australia.

• Categories: The categories list on the left hand side of each page will help you narrow down your listings by item type. For example, under Rings in Fine Jewellery, you'll find links to Diamond, Gold, Sterling Silver and Other. Under Necklaces in Fine Jewellery you'll find links for Diamond, Gemstone, Gold - No Stone, Pearl, Sterling Silver and Other. As you dig deeper into the site you'll also be able to narrow down your choice further by item type.

• Keyword search: Search eBay Australia listing titles for specific words. For example, if you want to find a diamond solitaire ring, type "diamond solitaire ring" (without quotation marks) into the Search box. Click "Search title and description" to expand your results. Visit eBay Australia's Search Tips page for more tips on searching with keywords.

If you can't find exactly what you want, try shopping eBay Stores, tell the eBay Australia Community what you want by creating a post on Want It Now, or save a search on My eBay and eBay Australia will email you when a match becomes available.

Buy with Confidence

Buy with Confidence

Before making your purchase, make sure you know exactly what you're buying, research your seller, and understand how eBay Australia and PayPal protect you.

Know your purchase

Carefully read the details in item listings.

• Figure delivery costs into your final price. If you spend a lot of money, make sure the seller will insure the item when it ships.

• If you want more information, ask by clicking the "Ask seller a question" link under the seller's profile.

• Always make sure to complete your transaction on eBay Australia (with a bid, Buy It Now, or Best Offer). Transactions conducted outside of eBay Australia are not covered by eBay Australia protection programs.

• Never pay for your eBay Australia item using instant cash wire transfer services through Western Union or MoneyGram. These payment methods are unsafe when paying someone you do not know.

Know your seller

Research your seller so you feel positive and secure about every transaction.

• What is the seller's Feedback rating? How many transactions have they completed? What percentage of positive responses do they have?

• What do buyers say in their Feedback? Did the seller receive praise?

• Most top eBay Australia sellers operate like retail stores and have return policies. Do they offer a money-back guarantee? What are the terms and conditions?

Buyer protection

In the unlikely event that a problem arises during your transaction, eBay Australia and PayPal are there for you.

• Pay safely with PayPal: PayPal enables you to pay without the seller ever seeing your bank account or credit card numbers. In fact, PayPal protects buyers 100% against unauthorised payments from their accounts. Plus, with PayPal Buyer Protection, your purchase can be covered up to $1,500.

• eBay Australia Security & Resolution Centre: Visit the Security & Resolution Centre to learn how to protect your account and use eBay Australia's quick and efficient resolution tools.

Need More Help?

Need More Help?

Visit our help pages or start a thread on one of our Community Discussion Boards - If you have a quick question that needs answering, try posting it on our community Answer Centre - there's bound to be a seasoned eBay Australia veteran with just the information you're looking for!

Legal Disclaimer

Legal Disclaimer

Buying Guides are intended merely as a guide or review for members when considering what products or services they may be interested in bidding on or purchasing. eBay does not make, and nothing in these Buying Guides is intended to constitute, any warranties, guarantees, representations or assurances about the accuracy of the information or content contained in these Buying Guides. Furthermore, eBay does not make, and nothing in these Buying Guides is intended to constitute, any warranties, guarantees, representations or assurances about the nature or performance of the products or services appearing in the Buying Guides. Content, trademarks and brands referred to and contained in the third-party links provided are the property of their respective owners, and eBay has no control over and accepts no responsibility for their content. eBay is not affiliated with nor does it endorse the use of any particular product or service.