Color - D? E? F? G???

No, there is no ABC!

The whitest a diamond can get is D.


"Dawn I'm clueless what color i should get for my proposal ring!"
The standard proposal ring is using 18kt white gold or Platinum. Some girls like Yellow gold. So what diamond color is suitable for what ring color?

(Applicable for ideal cut diamonds)
White Gold / Platinum - D, E, F ,G, H(This is the bare minimum my eyes can take)
Yellow Gold - I, J,K,L,M

If you have a low colored diamond, say a K color on a white gold/platinum setting, the contrast between your diamond and the ring would cause your diamond to stand out very yellowish. This looks extremely ugly.

However, Low colored diamonds are suitable for yellow gold. The colors between the diamond and the band is blended, and makes the diamond less yellow than it actually is!

How Cut & Shape affects the diamond color

Super ideal / Ideal cuts, make diamond's yellow tinge less obvious than a poor cut diamond because of it's greater light return and scintillation. So if say your diamond is not such a well cut one, your tolerance for white gold should be higher than H color. Go for a G minimum.

Fancy shapes tend to also look more yellowish when it's in the lower colors due to their nature of poorer light return and scintillation.

"Why is my diamond slightly brownish and not slightly yellowish???"

Look at these 2 diamonds I took a picture of... Both AGS Certified (Same Issue with GIA) Both Ideal Cut, H Color, VS1. Carat size 0.43 and 0.37 Here's the thing, They are both different colored! One is Greyish Brown(looks obviously darker and uglier), One is Faint yellow....

color is based off: Hue & Tone Hue is one of the main properties of a color, the degree to which a stimulus can be described as similar to or different from stimuli that are described as red, green, blue, and yellow. Tone is the lightness or darkness of a color. So now, there are yellow, brown, grey even pinkish diamonds which can fall under the GIA category of H color, some of you who have bought H and below might be even holding onto a brown diamond. If Diamonds are graded with HUE, Why is it that we can still find other colored diamonds graded as H?

The problem with the diamond grading system... is the fact that every diamond is graded upon it's TONE. The lightness and darkness of the diamond, not on it's color. So lets say.... H light yellow tinge .......H Light brown tinge I Slightly yellowish tinge........ I Slightly brownish tinge J Moderate yellowish tinge..... J Moderate brownish tinge K Yellowish tinge........ K brownish tinge Get what i mean? Next you'll ask,

"Dawn, then why can't they factor in colors which look more horrible?"


Gemologists from gia and ags argue the fact, is a Fancy colored Blue diamond or a Pink diamond nicer? It's to each person's preference of course. So how can we say a Brown diamond is worse than a yellow one?

Rule of the thumb is that a yellowish diamond goes well with yellow gold a brownish diamond goes well with rose gold and a grey diamond with white gold pink diamond with..... hmmm pink gold? (it is possible... less copper in the alloy produces a pinkish tone to the gold)
The Problem

But in the diamond market, anything besides a yellowish tinge diamond is always cheaper than normal... but lots of retailers sell it at the same price! Do consumers have the right to know? Of course! but in the first place, those salesmen and saleslady at that specific shop, do you think they even know much about diamonds? They're there to tell you the basic 4 C's. And smile. And collect your money. And wave Sometimes even the Bosses don't even know this, with an exception of a few good jewelers in Singapore.

How do you know that your diamond is a brown diamond? with untrained eyes it's very hard... but having a good jeweler and recommendations from friends helps you get on the right track. Even some brands... reputable brands are ignorant of this fact. Like someone mentioned this before on this forum, diamonds are for the mathematical, technical, knowledgeable and romantic diamonds are not like clothes. Branded clothes speak for itself. Unless of course you don't mind buying a diamond for the sake of it and not knowing what you're buying, 3/4 of the jewelery industry are like this. And that is why the market is known for such huge profit margins.

FLUORESCENCE

The Bad Effect( blue fluor)
Fluorescence causes Colorless Diamonds such as D,E,F,G,H to look appear more "cloudy"(Stay away!)

The Good Effect ( blue fluor)
Fluorescence causes Low Colored Diamonds such as I,J,K,L,M to appear less yellow! The tinge counter balances the yellowish effect, causing the diamond to appear whiter! (Worth considering)

Fluorescence may also come in a yellow tinge, on the certificate it would be stated as; fluorescence: slight/medium/strong yellow(Stay away!). Causes a greater yellow tinge to the diamond