Colored Diamonds

Fancy colored diamonds are all the rage these days. Gemologists have developed
new ways to create versions that are affordable for the average person - by treating less desirable diamonds. These less desirable diamonds are treated with irradiation followed by intense heat. This turns brown and yellowish diamonds into beautifully colored diamonds that you can afford. This produces stunning greens, blues, yellows, reds, purples and other colors. These colors are considered permanent, but there is a possibility they could change during repairs if a high heat is used.

Treatments like irradiation make it possible for more people to own these vividly colored diamonds. Most natural colored diamonds are rare and also extremely expensive. When shopping for colored diamonds you need to assume that any affordable fancy color diamond has been treated. Ask about the stones origin and request to view a lab certificate to verify authenticity.

Synthetic colored diamonds are another option if owning a colored diamond is
something you desire but cannot quite afford. They are real diamonds, but they are created in a lab.

Natural fancy color diamonds get their coloring from different trace elements present
in the stones, such as nitrogen, which produces a yellow diamond. Diamonds can
be colored by exposure to radiation during its creation. An example of a diamond affected by radiation is a Green diamond.

Another way that a natural colored diamond gets color is by its inclusions. Regarded as flaws and undesirable in a colorless diamond, inclusions give unique tones and brilliant flashes of color in a fancy color diamond. Remember that Natural fancy colored diamonds are very expensive, any colored diamond labeled to be sold as natural should be accompanied by a certificate from a respected grading lab.

A "fancy" diamond is a natural diamond that has color. These colors vary from red, green, purple, violet, orange, blue and pink – and most shades between. Fancy color shades vary from faint to intense.

The most famous diamonds in the world are Color diamonds. The Tiffany Diamond,
which is yellow and the Hope Diamond which is blue are colored diamonds. Color
diamonds have an amazing financial track record. The value has never decreased on
wholesale level in more than 30 years. Blue and pink diamonds have doubled every 5
years of a strong economy. In the 1970’s you could have bought a very high quality
blue diamond for about 50K and today the very same stone would be worth between 2 and 3 million.

Buying Diamonds Online

With all of the potential for scams concerning diamonds, buying diamonds online almost seems unthinkable! However, you actually can purchase diamonds online, without any problems – as long as you are careful.

First, think about your reasons for wanting to purchase the diamond online, as opposed to making a purchase from a local jewelry store. The most common reason is price. Due to low overhead costs, online jewelers and wholesalers are able to offer lower prices. However, you must be careful – sometimes a price that is too low is a sure indication of a scam.

One of the best things about purchasing online is the unlimited selection. When
shopping offline, you are limited to the selection in the stores in your general area. Online, there are no limits. But again, you must use a great deal of care and
consideration before handing your money over to someone that you cannot see and
have never met!

Before shopping, learn as much as you can about diamonds – especially cut, color,
clarity and carat weights. When you are knowledgeable about diamonds, it will be
harder for a con artist to rip you off. Once you know more about diamonds, you will be ready to start shopping.

Take your time. Don’t purchase the first diamond that you see that interests you.
Instead, look for similar diamonds for sale. Do some comparison shopping to find the
lowest prices. Once you have found the lowest price, start doing your investigation.
You know about diamonds, you’ve found a diamond that you love, and you’ve found the
lowest price – but you are still quite a ways away from actually purchasing that diamond!

Ask about the seller’s credentials, such as professional jewelry associations that they belong to. View and print the seller’s return, refund, and upgrade policies. Also inquire about additional services, such as settings and mountings, sizing, and free shipping. Do a search for customer reviews on this particular company around the Internet. Also check with the BBB Online to see if there have been any complaints.

Ask for a diamond grading report from an independent laboratory such as GIA, HRD,
EGL or AGS. You should see this before making a purchase. Finally, use a reputable
escrow service for high dollar diamonds – preferably one that will have the diamond
appraised while it is in their possession. The seller sends the diamond to the escrow
service, and you send the money to pay for the diamond to the escrow service. The
escrow service has the diamond appraised, sends the diamond to you, and sends the
money to the seller. This is the surest way to protect yourself…again, make sure that you use a reputable escrow service!

All About the Clarity of Diamonds

Clarity is an important aspect of a diamond, and it is important to know how to grade the clarity of a diamond before you buy one. It is actually quite easy to learn how to grade the clarity of a diamond. There are basically two things that you must understand: Diamonds with visual inclusions and blemishes, and those that are ‘eye clean’ meaning that there are no inclusions or blemishes that can be seen with the naked eye. From there, the clarity of a diamond is further broken down into subcategories.

Many people mistakenly think that diamond clarity refers to how clear it is. This isn’t so. Clarity actually refers to the internal and external imperfections of the diamond. The best diamonds, of course get a grade of FL or IF – Flawless or Internally Flawless – meaning that it is perfect. A grade of I-1, I-2 or I-3 means that the diamond is imperfect, with a grade of I-3 being the worst.

Other grades are VVS1 and VVS2, which means that the diamond is very, very slightly
imperfect; VS1 and VS2, meaning the diamond is very slightly imperfect; SI-1 and
SI-2, which means that the diamond is slightly imperfect.

About Diamond Weights

Diamonds are measured in Carat Weight. One carat weighs 200 milligrams. If a diamond is referred to as four grains, this also means that it is a one carat diamond. The word Carat comes from the word carob. A carob is a bean that grows on a tree in the
Mediterranean. In times past, if a diamond weighed the same as a carob bean, it was
one carob, or one carat.

However, in the far east, where Carob trees do not grow, rice was used to measure the
weight of a diamond. If a diamond weighed as much as four grains of rice, it was four
grains – or one carat as we know it to be now. The majority of diamond purchases are for diamonds that are 1/3 of a carat.

Beware when shopping for diamonds that are already set or mounted. If more than one
diamond is used in the piece, the tag on the jewelry will give the CTW or Carat Total
Weight – it does not tell you the carat weight of each stone in the piece. You need to ask the jeweler for the total carat weight of the largest diamond in the piece to truly understand what you are buying.