Coloured Diamonds
Around only one in every ten thousand diamonds possesses natural colour and is referred to as a fancy colour diamond. For this reason fancy colour diamonds are purchased almost exclusively for the intensity and distribution of the diamond's colour. Unlike the criteria used to purchase a colourless diamond, when considering a fancy colour diamond clarity becomes much less important.COLOUR
The depth, intensity or richness of colour is the single most important consideration when choosing a fancy colour diamond. The more intense the colour, the rarer and more valuable the diamond will be. Fancy colour diamonds are gradedin oreder of increasing intensity from Faint, Very Light, Light, Fancy Light, Fancy, Fancy Intense, Fancy Vivid, Fancy Dark, and Fancy Deep.
CARAT WEIGHT
After colour grade, carat weight has the most impact on price for the fancy colour diamonds. When diamonds are mined, large gems are discovered much less often than small ones, making the large diamonds much more valuable. For this reason the diamond prices for fancy colour diamonds rise exponentially with carat weight.
CLARITY
Due to the nature of fancy colour diamonds, clarity is less important than it is in their colourless counterparts because inclusions tend to be masked by the diamond's colour.
CUT
Fancy colour diamonds are primarily cut to emphasize their colour. This contrasts with colourless diamonds which are cut to maximise their sparkle and brilliance. The reason for this is that in some instances these to characteristics can detract from the natural colour present within the stone. While fancy colour diamonds still exhibit brilliance, colour is the most important characteristic considered when they are being cut.
SOURCING
It is important to note that many fancy colour diamonds are cut into shapes that will best enhance their natural colour. Due to the rarity of these diamonds, a specific shape in a specific colour may not always be available at any given point. If you wish to incorporate one of these beautiful works of nature into your planned piece of jewellery, it is important that we first find the right stone and then design around it.