Diamonds, the Four C's-Color

There are four main things to consider when considering buying a diamond; Cut, Clarity, Carat and Color. Here we are discussing the color of a diamond and what that means for you the buyer. The color of a diamond is very important to some people and they spend a long time looking for just the right color; sometimes they even go through several shades of the same color before they are truly happy. A true diamond is in fact colorless, which may surprise some people. It is in fact an impurity that causes it to become a different color entirely. The color depends on where the diamond is from. The actual color and intensity of that color will enhance or detract from the cost and rarity of that diamond. If a diamond is slightly yellow, the diamond is then devalued; however, if it is strongly yellow, the cost of owning it sky rockets. Pink and blue diamonds are considered very expensive and a red diamond is the rarest and most expensive. So what colors are available on the market? There are white, grey, orange, blue, yellow, purple, pink, red, brown, green and even black diamonds.

Color in diamonds can be classified in grades and are dictated by the London Diamond Syndicate. The scales of color grading ranges from D (colorless/clear white) through Z (yellow/brown). If the color classification is deeper in color than Z, then they are classified as a fancy color diamond. How they decide on a color grading is based upon a master set of colored diamonds that each color classifier has. They do this by using a light box which is fitted with pure daylight lamps so that they can see fully the true color of the stone in question. The diamond has to be unset and in its loose form to be able to color grade it correctly and the set of master diamonds often contains the five main grades of E, G, I, K and M.