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Diamond Colour

Many people confuse the colour grade of a diamond with the category of diamonds that are referred to as fancy coloured diamonds.

Fancy coloured diamonds are naturally coloured diamonds outside the normal color range. They are either yellow or brown diamonds that have more colour than a Z master stone or exhibit a colour other than yellow or brown. Only 1 out of every 10,000 diamonds possess natural colour and are graded on a separate colour scale.

Conversely, a diamond’s colour typically refers to the GIA’s Color Grading Scale.

 

 

Under this scale, diamond colour actually measures the degree of a diamond’s lack of colour.

It does so by comparing the diamond under controlled lighting and precise viewing conditions. A trained gemmologist will compare the diamond against a master-stone whose colour grade is well-established and known.

Colour is more visible in large diamonds. This represents an opportunity to strike the right balance between colour and carat weight in optimising the value of your chosen diamond.

Some fancy-shaped diamonds hide colour better than others and can cost significantly less than a round-cut diamond.

Colourless

 

These are the highest-grade and rarest diamonds. For this reason, they are significantly more expensive than lower-grade coloured diamonds.

The differences between these grades are very small, and only identifiable by a trained expert.

For this reason, if going for a colourless diamond, it may be prudent to go for a ‘lower-grade’ colourless diamond (eg. ‘F’ instead of ‘D’) to save money. All colourless diamonds will still be considered a high-grade colour.

These diamonds look excellent when paired with white gold or platinum settings.

Near Colourless

 

These diamonds are less rare than their colourless siblings. Because of this, they are easier to source and are less expensive.

These diamonds have either a very slight warmth to their tone, a faint yellow hue, a slight yellow tint or a light yellow tone. All of these features are difficult to detect by the naked eye and can typically only be seen when compared side-by-side with diamonds of a higher colour grade.

Near colourless diamonds pair well with yellow gold ring settings.

Faint Colour

 

These diamonds are a good option as you consider diamonds of larger carat weights as they can provide great value.

Their faint colour is often hard to differentiate even when compared to lower-grade near colourless diamonds.

Very Light Colour

 

These diamonds have a slight color that can be seen by the naked eye.

They have a much lower price point than higher-grade diamond colours, and are usually deemed undesirable because of their inferior qualities.

Light Colour

 

Light colour graded diamonds have a warm tint that is visible to the naked eye.

They are generally deemed undesirable for making jewellery and are rarely used when making diamond engagement rings.

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