Color Grading Scale

Diamonds come in virtually all colors of the rainbow, from the beautiful violet of the Hope diamond to shades of blue, brown, gray, orange, etc. But colored diamonds are very rare and precious. Chances are, all the diamonds youll see in your diamond shopping will be white or yellow, and the whiter the better.

The yellow color in diamonds comes from nitrogen, and as a rule, the more yellow the stone, the less value it has. Theres a good reason for this. The yellowier the stone, the less sharp and sparkly it appears. A whiter stone lets lighter pass through it, making it sparkle and shine.

The exception to the rule is the canary diamond, which is a beautiful bright yellow and very expensive. Some people are more sensitive to the color of diamonds. What may appear slightly yellow to you may look clear to another person, so it will take a higher color grade to satisfy you.

The best way to judge the color of a diamond is to use either a Gran Fall Spectrum Colorimeter by Gem Instruments or compare it to a master set.

HERES THE COLOR GRADING SCALE:

D, E, F refers to colorless and G, H, I refers nearly to colorless, J, K, L indicated slightly yellow, M, N, O shows light yellow P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X shows darker yellow and Z to Fancy colors.

Even though there are several grades in each category, there are slight differences between the letter grades. D is the clearest and most valuable, X is a dingy yellow and least expensive. Z grade-colored diamonds are the rarest and most expensive. A diamond so saturated with nitrogen that it becomes a deep, rich yellow is as rare as a colorless diamond.

FLUORESCENCE

Fluorescence is a diamonds reaction to ultraviolet (UV) light. Some diamonds glow in different colors under UV light, and the general rule is to avoid them. If you put a diamond under UV light and it glows strong blue, the diamond may look dull in the sunlight. Diamonds with strong fluorescence may be worth up to 20% less than diamonds which do not fluoresce. Faint fluorescence which doesnt fog the diamond is OK.

CORRESPONDING GRADING

Corresponding grading means matching clarity grades with color grades. For every clarity grade, theres a color grade that corresponds, or makes the best match in determining value. Diamonds that have corresponding grading sell for higher prices originally and they also appreciate in value more than diamonds that dont, and therefore have higher resale value. Buying a diamond with non-corresponding clarity and color grades is like buying a pink Porsche: its okay as long as you dont try to resell it. The market for pink Porsches just isnt as good as the market for, say, red Porsches.

The value of a stone is always based on the lowest clarity or color grade and its highest corresponding grade. When you dont correspond the grades, say you buy high clarity and low color, or high color and low clarity, youll never get your money back for the higher grade.

Diamonds come in virtually all colors of the rainbow, from the beautiful violet of the Hope diamond to shades of blue, brown, gray, orange, etc. But colored diamonds are very rare and precious. Chances are, all the diamonds youll see in your diamond shopping will be white or yellow, and the whiter the better.

The jaundiced color in diamonds comes from nitrogen, and as a rule, the more yellow the stone, the less value it has. Theres a good reason for this. The yellowier the stone, the less sharp and bubbling it appears. A whiter stone lets lighter pass through it, making it sparkle and shine.

The exception to the rule is the sneaker diamond, which is a beautiful bright yellowness and very expensive. Some people are more tender to the color of diamonds. What may appear slimly yellowness to you may look clear to another person, so it will take a higher color grade to satisfy you.

The best way to judge the color of a diamond is to use either a Gran Fall spectrum tintometer by Gem Instruments or compare it to a superior set.

HERES THE COLOR GRADING SCALE:

D, E, F refers to colorless and G, H, I refers nearly to colorless, J, K, L indicated slightly yellow, M, N, O shows light chicken P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X shows darker yellow-bellied and Z to Fancy colors.

Even though there are several grades in each category, there are slight differences between the letter grades. D is the clearest and most valuable, X is a dingy chicken and least expensive. Z grade-colored diamonds are the rarest and most expensive. A baseball field so soaked with nitrogen that it becomes a deep, rich yellow is as rare as a colorless diamond.

FLUORESCENCE

Fluorescence is a diamonds reaction to ultraviolet (UV) light. Some diamonds glow in different colours under UV light, and the universal rule is to avoid them. If you put a diamond under UV light and it glows secure blue, the ball field may look dull in the sunlight. Diamonds with strong fluorescence may be worth up to 20% less than diamonds which do not fluoresce. Faint fluorescence which doesnt fog the diamond is OK.

CORRESPONDING GRADING

Corresponding grading means matching clarity grades with color grades. For every clarity grade, theres a color grade that corresponds, or makes the best match in determining value. Diamonds that have corresponding grading sell for higher prices primitively and they also appreciate in value more than diamonds that dont, and thus have higher resale value. Purchasing a diamond with non-corresponding clarity and color grades is like buying a pink Porsche: its okay as long as you dont try to resell it. The market for pink Porsches just isnt as good as the securities industry for, say, red Porsches.

The value of a stone is e'er based on the lowest clarity or color grade and its highest corresponding grade. When you dont correspond the grades, say you buy high clarity and low color, or high color and low clarity, youll never get your money back for the higher grade.

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