Most jewelry connoisseurs have heard of the four C's of diamonds: cut, clarity, color, and carat. Jewelry designer, Richard Alan, takes the grading process a step further for us in his article, The educated jewelry buyer, Part III: "Clarity, to me, is one of the most important factors in the process of choosing a diamond. This "C" is basically how internally clean (or in some cases, externally clean) or full of inclusions, imperfections and/or flaws the diamond or gem possesses. You will find I constantly refer to the G.I.A. (Gemological Institute of America) charts for the grading of diamonds because they are simply the best and I have trusted their expertise for over 25 years."