What is a colored diamond, and how do diamonds become colored?

In recent years, as the popularity for nonconventional engagement rings has grown, the demand for colored diamonds has gone through the roof. Celebrities are seeking the rarest and most special diamonds for the engagement rings, to make their proposal truly unique.

But what is a colored diamond, and how do diamonds become colored?

A pure and structurally perfect diamond would be totally transparent with no hue, or color. However, in reality almost no any natural diamonds are absolutely perfect and they may be affected by chemical impurities or structural defects.

Just like colorless mined diamonds, colored diamonds (also referred to as fancy diamonds) are formed naturally from carbon within the earth, but due to these changes in their chemical structure as they form  (happening only in 0.1% of all diamonds so very rarely) they might occur in a wide variety of amazing shades like steel gray, white, blue, yellow, orange, red, green, pink to purple, brown, and black.

Depending on the hue and the intensity of the coloration, this can either decrease or enhance its value. When the color is rare, the more intensely colored a diamond is, the more valuable it becomes. Another factor that affects the value of Fancy-Colored diamonds is fashion trends. When a celebrity is spotted on a red carpet with an eye-catching fancy colors diamond engagement ring (yellow, pink or recently even green color), that usually fetches diamond prices immediately after.

WHAT ARE THE RAREST DIAMOND COLORS?

- Red Diamonds are the rarest and most mysterious of all colored diamonds, in the entire world, only a few diamonds with a pure red hue are found in an entire year. The primary source of those red diamonds has been the Argyle mine in Australia. The exact cause of the red diamond’s color is still debated among experts, but according to GIA analysts the cause of the red hue is similar to that of pink, which is a disturbance in the atomic structure of the diamond’s lattice composition.

- After natural fancy red diamonds, natural green diamonds are the second rarest, found only in South America and Africa. Their Green color comes more frequently from natural irradiation (while they were underground in rocks that contained small amounts of radioactive material such as uranium or thorium), however, green color can also be caused by structural defects in the diamond's crystal structure, caused by the presence of nitrogen, hydrogen or nickel atoms. 

- Also incredibly rare are blue diamonds, which have only been found naturally in mines in South Africa, India, and Australia. The color most often connected to royalty and prestige they are are often sought after by celebrities. These elegant stones get their signature hue from the element boron, which replaces carbon in the diamond crystal structure during the growth process.

- Pink Diamonds are similar to Red diamonds in terms of the cause for the color. It is not completely clear what the cause is but it is believed that deformities in the crystal lattice are what create the red hue. The difference between "red diamonds" and "pink diamonds" is one of color intensity, a diamond with a weak to moderate saturation, accompanied by a light to medium tone, will be called a "pink" diamond. The name "red" is reserved for diamonds with strong color saturation and a medium to dark tone. Pink diamonds are no rarer than the blue diamond, but they are often more expensive due to their romantic nature and cherished in many celebrities engagement rings (Blake Lively, Jennifer Lopez...etc)

- Yellow diamonds are still rare, but they are priced lower to reflect their wide availability. Yellow diamonds occur due to the element nitrogen, which absorbs blue light and reflects a beautiful yellow color. Diamonds in this style come in a range of secondary colors. However, the most desired are Canary Yellow Diamonds, pure yellow fancy diamonds that are more costly than other yellow stones. 

- Brown diamonds from light ‘champagne’ diamonds to darker ‘cognac’ diamonds are among the more affordable fancy color diamonds because there are so many available. As a general rule, if you’re looking for a gorgeous colored diamond, but aren’t interested in breaking the bank, brown diamonds are an excellent option to consider.

 

- Black diamonds also called “carbonados,” are one of the toughest forms of natural diamond. They are formed the same way as natural colourless diamonds, but they have an extremely high amount of inclusions, clusters of graphite inside of them to the point that they simply appear black. Black diamonds are said to have a deep spiritual meaning and often used as protection from evil. They are an original alternative for engagement rings and fashion jewellery alike, especially when compared with white diamonds of the same carat weigh, black diamonds are considerably more affordable.

 

ARE THERE LAB GROWN COLORED DIAMONDS?

Colorful natural diamonds are rare and quite costly. Today with ethical implications associated with diamond mining,  lab grown diamonds became an affordable alternative for those who love the look of a colored diamond but aren’t too crazy about the price tag or are more concerned about environmental footprint. Lab grown diamonds are real diamonds as they consist of the exact same chemical makeup as natural diamonds and can be available in shades of blue, pink, red, green, yellow... just like natural diamonds.