The Plots Thicken (op-ed with Ted)

While the industry trend is to get away from diagramming a diamond’s inclusion pattern -
known as plotting, NGL will not only continue to include a center diamond diagram with our fine
jewelry appraisals, but do so through an improved system. It took a while to find a method
with the same precision as our hand-drawn diagrams, but now we offer just that - hand drawings, but digitally rendered and saved for future reference. Rather than use computerized conventions as does GIA, ours have the quality and “feel” of the diamond’s actual inclusion
pattern.
The diamond plot is a valuable tool to identify your diamond and is more conclusive than a surface inscription. Unfortunately, many of the big labs don’t like to plot because it takes time and expertise their people may not have. It also requires the jeweler to explain “those little red
marks” that represent the diamond’s inclusions to their customer. Heaven forbid we jeopardize a sale over the education of our clientele! Additionally, not all jewelry appraisers provide plots and some that do charge extra. One respected colleague charges $50 for a diamond plot. At NGL, it’s included at no extra charge.