Diamonds Are Forever...

At what point is an item no longer worth buying even at thrift store prices? When is so beat up and tattered you're better off leaving it on the rack? Yes, believe it or not I have limits like that and I'd almost reached mine when I spotted this sweater. Sure, it looks great now, but when I bought it, it had 50 million little moth eaten holes in it. Well, maybe not 50 million, but at least 20. I lovingly mended each and every one. This also included the extra effort of changing the thread color four times. Now, even I can't tell where the holes were. It was a diamond in the rough. And all diamonds are graded by the four C's.

Clarity: Meaning how many flaws or inclusions does it have. A diamond is a natural thing and inclusions are also natural and not always necessarily a deal breaker. In the case of this sweater it's an I-3, very heavily included.

Cut: The cut ensures the diamond shows of maximum brilliance. I'm going to rate this as a 3 which is "good". It's slightly slouchy, just the way I like my sweaters to be.

Color: Graded from no color at all "D", which is most desired, to "Z". Anything beyond a Z, and it's a  colored diamond. I guess mine is a ZZZZ.

Carat: There are 5 carats in a gram. The word carat is derived from the seed of the carob tree pod. This sweater has got to be at least 10 carats. It's pure Merino wool. I'm rich!

Sometimes the stars align and the 4 C's are all high scale. Sometimes people are willing to sacrifice one thing for another, such as a little
sub par cut for more carats. Decisions, decisions...
I'm happy with my diamond sweater even though it's not flawless and I'm walking over to Patti's Visible Monday  and Monday Mingle to show it off.

Please note: judging by the 4 C's (color, weight, brilliance, lack of flaws) only apply to diamonds and sweaters - not people.


Remember the Swap party is coming up this week. I'll open the link this Thursday, September 20th - Saturday September 22nd.  See you there!