INDUSTRY INSIGHT: 
Colored Diamonds
by Julianna Cardarelli
Color Guide
Red, intense purple (amethyst), intense green diamonds
Less than ten stones of each of these precious shades are mined each year. Red diamonds are so rare that most jewelers have never seen one.
$1,000,000+ per carat
Purple red, purplish-red, bluish-green, greenish-blue diamonds
The stones are just as rare as their single shade siblings but are available at a slightly lower price since their double names has given the market a mistake sense of
lesser value.
$500,000 to $700,000+ per carat.
Pink and blue diamonds
Blue diamonds are rarer than nice pink diamonds, but their prices are the same since shades of pink have become quite fashionable.
$100,000 to $250,000+ per carat
Orange diamonds
Pure orange diamonds, which are deep tangerine in color, are quite hard to find.
$35,000 to $75,000+ per carat
Yellow diamonds
Yellow diamonds are relatively common but in high demand as they are easy to incorporate into traditional styles of jewelry and combine well colorless diamonds.
$10,000 to $50,000+ per carat
Cognac diamonds
It’s very unusual to find some of these yellow, brown and dark orange diamonds in large sizes, but they can be purchased for rates much lower than shades such as pink, once again because of market tastes.
$4,000 to $15,000+ per carat.
Olive diamonds
Olive diamonds are a unique shade not to be confused with green.
$4,000 to $12,000+ per carat.
Gray diamonds
Some gray diamonds are as rare as blue or pink shades, can be purchased for
much less.
$3,000 to $8,000+ per carat
Black diamonds and brown diamonds
$1,500 to $4,000 per carat
A diamond has long been a symbol of timelessness and beauty. Traditionally, the more flawless, perfectly cut, and colorless a diamond, the rarer it is, and the more costly. Colored diamonds, however, are even more rare and precious than clear diamonds. Interest in colored diamonds has recently soared; celebrities are increasingly buying them and wearing them, and diamond and jewelry experts are seeking them out to add something unique and dazzling to their collections. Here CSQ presents an introduction to the fundamentals of these exceptional jewels.
Diamonds are formed when carbon atoms experience extreme levels of pressure and temperature deep in the earth, and eventually crystallize and surface. It can take millions of years before a natural colored diamond is formed and surfaces. Only one in every 10,000 colorless diamonds mined is a colored diamond.
Over 300 colors and variations of colored diamonds have been identified, and each shade has a unique origin. Yellow and orange diamonds owe their hues to excessive nitrogen, blue to boron, pure violet to hydrogen, and black to an unusual combination of hydrogen and nitrogen. Green diamonds are the result of millions of years of exposure to natural radiation. Red, pink, purple, and brown diamonds occur when the stone’s structure is abnormally compressed. Chameleon diamonds are unique stones which change from olive green to yellow when exposed to heat or certain kinds of light.
Diamonds also come in infinite combinations of colors. If the color is described as bluish-green, this means that the diamond’s primary color is green with a blue tint. If a diamond is described as blue-green, it means that it displays both colors equally.
Colored diamonds are graded according to hue, (the color of the stone), tone (how light or dark the color is), and saturation (the strength or intensity of the hue). As a general rule, the rarer the color, and the more intense the shade, the more you should be prepared to pay for it.
Colored diamonds which are marketed as natural should be accompanied by a certificate from a respected grading lab (GIA, IGI, EGL) to ensure that they have not been treated. Heat or chemicals can be used to alter shades, producing artificial coloring. Treated diamonds are cheaper and are not sought after by collectors. Their value will not increase over time, and their colors can be unstable.
All of the prices listed can drastically drop if the intensity of the color is faint or lighter. This wide range of prices is precisely what makes colored diamonds so exciting for jewelry lovers. A buyer may prefer a different shade or intensity to another, and although the cost will be sweeter, they are not necessarily investing in an inferior stone. When it comes to colored diamonds, beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder. Purchasing fine jewels becomes less about conforming to a standard of beauty, and more about possessing something rare and precious which reflects the owner’s unique taste. As market tastes for different colors continue to change, the prices will reflect this, and so it is not an exaggeration to refer to a colored diamond as an investment. Remember this and it will help to steel your nerves when you're ready to buy that vivid green or red stone you've been
dreaming of.
