Diamonds and the brilliant colour that they radiate is by far one of the eye-catching traits of any coloured diamond ring, necklace or pedant. You walk into a room with a rich green coloured diamond, and you are sure to turn heads left, right and centre! It is one of those diamond traits that anybody can make out even half a mile away!
But an interesting piece of trivia is that the most valuable diamond colour is not the blue hue of the Kohinoor diamond nor the orange spectacle that the Pumpkin orange diamond is, but those diamonds that have no colour at all! Yes, colourless, white diamonds are considered the most rare, as you will understand in a moment. We will be taking a run through the various gradations of colour and what it means. Read on…
Diamond Colour: One of the 4C’s
Colour in a diamond occurs as a result of impurities and compounds embedded in the lattice, which in turn impart their colours when exposed to visible light. Colour is an important characteristic with cut, clarity and carat weight being the other three. The gradation is set in place by the GIA or Gemological Institute of America. The grading ranges right from D all the way to Z.
The grade D colour diamonds are those that are absolutely colourless. These are of high grade and are of extremely rare quality. The Cullinan diamond is the largest colourless gem quality diamond ever found. Others in the list also include the likes of Excelsior and The Taylor-Burtons.
The grades from G-J are those that are near-colourless diamonds, but are of great quality nevertheless. While those in the K to Z have faint to strong golden yellow colourations and are budget friendly.
Colour Is More Visible When The Diamond Is Large
The things that you must take care of when buying a coloured diamond engagement ring with a prime focus on the colour, is that you might be better off taking a diamond that is larger or having a greater carat weight. If it is below a carat, then it is best you stick to I, J or K colour grade. If you are beyond that, then best go for H grade or higher.
The setting is equally important and so is the colour of the precious metal that holds the stone. A yellow gold precious metal colour will go best with faintly coloured diamonds, and will cast a warm glow. A platinum or white gold band will make a colourless diamond look even sharper.
