Education

Color

Diamonds are found in all colors of the rainbow, from colorless and transparent stones to ink black ones. Varying degrees of yellow or brown color is common in most of the diamonds and slight difference in color can make a substantial difference in value. A truly colorless diamond is extremely rare and considered the most valuable. It allows most light to pass through the stone and create the most brilliance.

During formation of Diamond from carbon, certain chemicals may have been drawn into the mix and results in added tinge of color in the transparent stone.

Most diamonds appear white to the naked eye, but they all include trace amounts of yellow or brown color. The color scale goes from D to Z (no diamond of color grade A, B or C has ever been found), with D being the most white and Z being the most yellow. The best way to see the true color of a diamond is by looking at it against a white surface.

Diamond Color Grade Table

Color Grade	Description	On Unaided Eye Inspection
	Colorless	Stone looks absolutely clear and transparent, with no hint of color.
	Near Colorless	Stone looks clear and transparent. Color will be noticeable by experts only when compared to diamonds of better grades.
	Faint yellow	Color slightly detectable and will be noticeable by experts only.
	Very Light yellow	Stone shows an increasing yellow tint, even to an untrained eye.
	Light yellow	Stone appears yellow, even to an untrained eye.
	Fancy	Bright, remarkable color - usually blue, pink, yellow, Red etc.

Fancy Colored Diamonds

Although majority of diamonds come in shades of white, there are also "Fancy" natural intensely colored diamonds available in colors like yellow, pink, greens, brown, red, orange, blue etc. These intensely colored diamonds are very rare, attractive and desirable. A deeply colored diamond can cost more than its colorless counterpart. These intensely colored diamonds are known as "Fancy" colored or "Fancies". Fancy colored diamonds are graded in two ways. The first factor is the basic hue, such as pink, yellow, blue, green, etc. The second is the intensity. Both color characteristics form the basis for determining a fancy colored diamond's worth. In fancy colored diamonds, Z+ grade is used for their color grading. Usually, the more intense the color, the rarer and more expensive the diamond will be. For example, a fancy light pink diamond costs less than a fancy vivid pink diamond of equal size, shape and clarity. Though fancy colored diamonds rarely occur in nature, laboratories can easily create them through irradiation and heating. This process can permanently turn a natural colorless diamond into a fancy colored diamond. Treatments have also been developed to make lower-color white diamonds whiter. Irradiated colored diamonds have a significantly lower value than natural fancy diamonds and can be detected in a gem laboratory.

Fluorescent Diamonds

Fluorescence is a form of illumination that is created when a diamond is exposed to low or high wave ultraviolet radiation. Fluorescence up to some extent is common in majority of diamonds. Faint or medium fluorescence will rarely affect a diamond's appearance. Usually fluorescence remains unnoticed by human eyes in ordinary light.