Grading Colored Diamonds

GRADING COLORED DIAMONDS

Fancy colored diamonds have achieved the highest prices in the gemstone industry because of their rarity, beauty and prestige. Amongst collectors and connoisseurs, nothing is more prized than a top quality colored diamond. For every 10,000 carats of diamonds mined, only 1 will be a fancy colored diamond. Among natural colored diamonds, the rarest shades are red, green, violet, blue and pink. Beautiful yellows and deep cognacs are more prevalent but are still a small percentage of the overall diamond market. When buying colored diamonds, the four C's are still important but each category must be viewed from a different perspective in order to ensure you acquire the right stone for you.

Color

The most important determinant of a colored diamonds value is the rarity, saturation and beauty of the color. Various diamond laboratories have different grading systems, but the most recognized is a 9-tiered scale developed by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). The GIA grading scale ranges from Faint and Very Light, which is barely visible color, to Fancy Intense, Fancy Deep and Fancy Vivid, where the richness and vibrancy of the color evokes images and emotions seen in the colors that affect us in our everyday lives. The terms strawberry, pumpkin and canary no doubt create images of dazzling shades of red, orange and yellow. Likewise, the highest grades of colored diamonds will possess these beautiful and rare colors captured within these beautiful works of art. These truly rare pieces not only have a richness and vibrancy of color, they also have an even color distribution throughout the entire stone.

CUT

The artistry involved in cutting a fancy colored diamond requires the master cutter to maximize the saturation of the color while still maintaining the consistency of the shape
and cut. The angles, dimensions and facets are designed to extend the
path of light traveling through the stone. As rays of light pass through
the stone, the more it will pick up the inherent color and intensify
that color. Cutters must often create slightly modified proportions
of width, length, and depth from traditional standards in order to
guarantee a maximum amount of color saturation.

The typical round brilliant cut diamond that is most prevalent in colorless diamonds does not always provide the optimal shape with which to transmit this light. Consequently, fancy colored diamonds will tend to be cut in a wider variety of shapes. Square and rectangular radiant, pear, shield and kite shaped are some of the more exotic cuts used to maximize color saturation. We have selected a set of beautifully crafted pieces in some of the more unusual cuts to help you visualize the painstaking effort required to sculpt a piece of rough into the magnificent jewels you see before you.

Clarity

The clarity of a colored diamond is a secondary issue when acquiring and valuing colored diamonds. In fact, slight inclusions within a stone can actually help the color reflect within the stone itself and consequently make the color appear more vibrant. It is important to note that a stone with heavy inclusions visible to the eye can detract from the value. However, slightly included stones (SI1-2) have tiny inclusions only visible when viewed under 10X magnification. Which means the human eye cannot detect these microscopic infractions within the stone.

An inclusion is a small cut or scrape within the stone.

IF Internally Flawless-No flaws on the surface or internally

VVS1-2 Very Very Slightly Included-Minute inclusions absolutely invisible to the naked eye.

VS1-2 Very Slightly Included�tiny inclusions difficult to locate.

SI1-3 Slightly Included � Inclusions seen only under 10X magnification

I1-3- Inclusions which may be seen by the naked eye. The flaws will generally detract from the brilliance.

Carat Weight

Although some one of a kind pieces do appear in larger sizes, Fancy colored diamonds tend to be smaller stones, often weighing less than a carat. Larger stones obviously sell for prices out of the reach of the average buyer. It is not uncommon to see colored diamonds selling for millions of dollars at the worlds famed auction houses. This is because the odds of finding a stone in this category are in the millions. They say you have more luck winning the lottery than you do finding a large, rare colored diamond.

However, the highest price per carat paid at auction was for a 0.95 carat Red diamond, which sold for approximately $926,000 per carat. This is because of the rarity and desirability of the color red. This further illustrates the point that anyone wishing to acquire a colored diamond must never sacrifice richness of color for a larger stone. The prized pinks from the Argyle mine, where there are only a few hundred a year, see only a small number of stones over one carat come out of the mine every year. In fact, at their annual tender, collectors and connoisseurs pay hundreds of thousands of dollars per carat for stones in the ranges of a half a carat. Collectors and connoisseurs of the colored diamond market recognize that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.













Please feel free to contact an experienced Colored Diamond Exchange Employee for personal service and assistance in locating the perfect diamond for you.