People these days are always looking for a unique way to tie the knot. Typically the classic diamond ring was the go-to option of most engaged couples, but popularity has been growing strongly in favor of fancy colored diamonds. These particular types of gemstones are brightly colored and, if naturally occurring, will often times cost more than a regular diamond simply due to rarity. The process through which a diamond obtains color is quite interesting and may even surprise certain people. Color in a diamond is linked to formative impurities in the stone itself. This type of deformation is actually very common, and is why the purest, colorless diamonds tend to be marketed as being of the highest value. Most diamonds have some sort of color or tint present due to the abundance of gases that they are exposed to in nature. The most common of these impurities is caused by the presence of nitrogen in the diamond, giving it a very distinct yellow or brownish tint. Each colored diamond owes its beauty to a specific element. Hydrogen tends to cause a violet tint, while boron causes a blue coloration. A harder color to find such as red or orange, owe themselves to an overexposure of pressure in the formation of the diamond. Finally, the rarest of them, the green diamond gets its color from a very heavy dose of radiation.
Natural vs. Artifical Fancy Colored Diamonds
Naturally occurring colored diamonds can be very pricey, but thanks to advancements in technology, certain applications can be arranged in order to artificially color a diamond. It’s also possible to take a low quality diamond and modify it and increase its overall quality, and potentially apply the coloring process to. These types of gemstones often go by the name of irradiated diamonds due to the radiation application process that converts them from low quality stones into fancy colored gems like fancy yellow diamonds and prepares them to be sold on the market. In most cases the aforementioned process is used to create green diamonds. A certain process known as HPHT (High-Temperature-High Pressure) is also used to create a fancy colored diamond, or in some cases is even used to . Essentially HPHT takes an existing diamond and recreates it through the usage of heat and varying pressure levels, ultimately achieving a specific desired color. If a particular gas is required to reach the color needed, it will often be introduced during the process. This technology as a whole is not entirely new, and has existed for a little over a decade, but great improvements have been made to streamline it, and thus it is much easier to obtain fancy colored gems for a reasonable price now. If you do happen to be looking for a natural fancy colored gem, it is very important that your dealer discloses any treatment histories regarding the gemstones, and should be very clear about whether or not they have been tampered. Price will usually tell you right off the bat if the gemstone is legitimate or artificially modified, but you should make sure just in case.
Artificial Isn’t Bad
If the job is done right, most artificially produced fancy color gems are very difficult to tell apart from naturally occurring gems. Obviously someone who is trained to understand the differences between an artificially treated and natural gemstone, they should be able to differentiate pretty quickly, but at first glance it is almost impossible. As you would expect, non-natural fancy color gems tend to be far less expensive than their natural counterparts. In the end they are still diamonds, and as such they hold an inherent value that really cannot be taken away.