Colored Diamonds

Fancy colored diamonds are all the rage these days. Gemologists have developed new ways to create versions that are affordable for the average person - by treating less desirable diamonds. These less desirable diamonds are treated with irradiation followed by intense heat. This turns brown and yellowish diamonds into beautifully colored diamonds that you can afford. This produces stunning greens, blues, yellows, reds, purples and other colors. These colors are considered permanent, but there is a possibility they could change during repairs if a high heat is used.

Treatments like irradiation make it possible for more people to own these vividly colored diamonds. Most natural colored diamonds are rare and also extremely expensive. When shopping for colored diamonds you need to assume that any affordable fancy color diamond has been treated. Ask about the stones origin and request to view a lab certificate to verify authenticity.

Synthetic colored diamonds are another option if owning a colored diamond is something you desire but cannot quite afford. They are real diamonds, but they are created in a lab.

Natural fancy color diamonds get their coloring from different trace elements present in the stones, such as nitrogen, which produces a yellow diamond. Diamonds can be colored by exposure to radiation during its creation. An example of a diamond affected by radiation is a Green diamond.

Another way that a natural colored diamond gets color is by its inclusions. Regarded as flaws and undesirable in a colorless diamond, inclusions give unique tones and brilliant flashes of color in a fancy color diamond. Remember that Natural fancy colored diamonds are very expensive, any colored diamond labeled to be sold as natural should be accompanied by a certificate from a respected grading lab.

A "fancy" diamond is a natural diamond that has color. These colors vary from red, green, purple, violet, orange, blue and pink – and most shades between. Fancy color shades vary from faint to intense.

The most famous diamonds in the world are Color diamonds. The Tiffany Diamond, which is yellow and the Hope Diamond which is blue are colored diamonds. Color diamonds have an amazing financial track record. The value has never decreased on wholesale level in more than 30 years. Blue and pink diamonds have doubled every 5 years of a strong economy. In the 1970’s you could have bought a very high quality blue diamond for about 50K and today the very same stone would be worth between 2 and 3 million.

Diamond Certificates

A diamond certificate is also known as a Diamond Grading Report. This report comes
from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), and you should require this report
when you are purchasing a diamond.

With a diamond certificate, you can verify the color, cut, carat, weight, and clarity of the diamond. You don’t have to worry about a diamond dealer telling you anything less than the truth, because the certificate comes from the GIA – not the dealer. You may be required to pay for the certificate, but the cost is usually low, and in many cases, it will help you negotiate a better price on the diamond – or keep you from purchasing a lower quality diamond altogether.

If you buy a high quality diamond, and then later decide to sell the diamond, you will need to have the certificate, or you will have a hard time selling it to someone else. Furthermore, you can use the Diamond Grading Report to look up the wholesale value of the diamond in question. Use the guide that is used by the diamond cutting industry.

With the Certificate, or Diamond Grading Report, there won’t be any doubts when you are trying to purchase a diamond. You can easily find out what the diamond is worth. This will prevent you from overpaying, and it can prevent a seller from under-charging as well.

A copy of the Diamond Grading Report should be given to your insurance company as well, when you insure the diamond. This provides absolute, unquestionable proof of the value of the diamond should it be stolen in the future. Insurance companies cannot argue with the report.

Avoid diamond dealers who seem reluctant to provide a certificate! Also avoid sellers who tell you that a certificate diamond will cost you more – the only additional cost should be the cost of the certificate, which is low. If the dealer doesn’t want to provide
a certificate, then you don’t want to do business with that dealer.

Don’t accept certificates from Gemological Laboratories other than GIA. There are many fly-by-night Gemological labs these days, but in the end, GIA has been established as the most respectable and trustworthy – not to mention oldest – of the lot. So avoid dealers who don’t want to use GIA for certification purposes as well.

Don’t buy an expensive diamond without paying the extra cost of the certificate. If a dealer tries to convince you to make the purchase without the certificate, or if they want to use a company other than GIA, you can be sure that the dealer has probably greatly inflated the price of the diamond – they have something that they are hiding from you.

Selecting Diamonds

Diamonds are graded for certification by laboratories using grading criteria. Four of these criteria are critical to understand when making a diamond purchase or investment. Known as the “Four C’s” these criteria are: color, cut, clarity and carat.

Color is the result of the composition of a diamond and it does not change. When a jeweler is describing the color of a diamond they are referring to the presence or absence of color in white diamonds. Because a diamond with no color allows maximum light to pass through, colorless diamonds are preferred for their sparkle.

Cut refers to a diamonds reflective quality. Most diamonds are cut with 58 facets. The
brilliance of diamonds is heavily dependent on the cut. The different angles and the finish of a diamond determine its ability to reflect light and cause its brilliance and fire. Remember that the cut of a diamond can have an impact on its durability as well as its beauty. Some cutting faults can make a diamond prone to breakage. A diamond
that is cut too thin can also cause light to leak out of the back and the diamond will
lose some of the sparkle and appear not to shine. So, as you can see the Cut is probably the most important of the Four C’s.

During the formation process, inner flaws, or inclusions occur in most diamonds. The
number and size of these inclusions determine what is referred to as the clarity of a diamond. Diamonds that are clear create more brilliance and therefore are rarer and highly priced. To be considered “flawless”, a diamond must have no surface or internal imperfections visible upon being viewed by a skilled diamond grader using 10 power magnifications.

Carat is the unit of weight by which diamonds are measured. One carat is equal to 200
milligrams. A carat is divided into 100 segments called points. 150 points would equal one and a half carats.

When you go to the store to make that all important diamond purchase, do not be shy! Ask questions, get the answers needed to make an informed purchase. Shopping for certified diamonds enables you to make an informed selection. Knowing the “four C’s” allows you to comparison shop and purchase the best diamond at a fair price. But, before making a purchase, shop around and decide what shapes and styles really appeal to you. Enjoy your diamond for years to come!