Info On Diamond Color

Diamonds come in variety of natural colours but basically can be divided into several groups or family of colours.

These are the yellow, pink, blue, green and brown. We then talk about the hue of the diamond in terms of say pinkish brown, yellow brown or pinkish purple etc. Then there is the intensity of colour which emanates from the diamond. These 'intensities' are identified as follows:

A/ FAINT, B/ Very LIGHT, C/ LIGHT, D/ FANCY LIGHT, E/ FANCY, F/ FANCY DARK, G/ FANCY INTENSE, H/ FANCY DEEP and I/ FANCY VIVID.

This order of intensity determines the value of the diamond so a FAINT intensity is much cheaper than the FANCY LIGHT which in turn is much cheaper than a FANCY DEEP and so forth.

Also the purity of colour is important in determining value. For example the redder the pink the more expensive it becomes the red diamond being the rarest and most expensive of them all. The same goes for the blues and the greens, however this does not apply to the yellow and browns as the yellower a diamond becomes, without colour intensity, the less rare they are and cheaper they become as does diamonds of the brown family.

Certain 'labels' are given to coloured diamonds ie, 'canary', 'champagne' or 'cognac' to mention the most common.

The clarity of a fancy coloured diamond is of lesser importance as long as the imperfection remains 'eye clean' and does not alter the beauty of the colour or hinder the light refractive qualities of the diamond itself. Most 'fancy coloured' diamonds are found within the VS to I1 clarity range but many are also within the IF to VVS range.

A diamond cutter confronted with a fancy coloured rough diamond will look to cut the diamond in order to retain the largest looking diamond taking less into consideration the imperfections found within it. This is not the same motivation as with white diamonds where the clarity will play a far more important role.

The most popular shapes are the round, princess, radiant and oval type of cuts with cushion and Asscher cuts following.

The weight of a fancy coloured diamond also adds to its value so a 1ct weight size, on a per carat basis, will cost far more than a 0.30ct weight size.

It is very difficult to establish the value of a fancy coloured diamond and it is most important that you purchase them, especially as there are a multitude of much cheaper 'enhanced' coloured diamonds on the market, from a reputed diamond supplier. A certificate from either of the main laboratories , HRD, EGL, IGI and GIA are helpful but more importance should be put on the professional integrity of the supplier for obvious reasons.

Should you require more information on this subject a good source of information can be found at www.JewelleryWebShop.co.uk where a very experienced expert can be found always happy to answer any further questions you may have.

by: George Ziadmann

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