The H.Samuel Diamond Buyer's Guide - Diamond colour

Diamond Colour

Diamonds appear colourless but actually contain subtle shades of yellow or brown. The closer a diamond is to having no colour, the more valuable it is. This is because the light can shine through it freely to make it truly sparkling.

You can also buy Diamonds in what are known as 'fancy' colours. These are extemely rare and include yellow, pink, brown and blue.

Coloured diamonds are also increasingly popular. These are diamonds that have been coloured through a process, the most common are black and are very fashionable at the moment.

Diamond colour scale

At H.Samuel, we use the GIA (Gemological Institute of America) scale of colour. On this scale, diamond colour is graded from D, classed as colourless, through the alphabet to Z, which has a light yellow colour. Truly colourless diamonds (D) are treasured for their rarity and can only be afforded by Hollywood stars or Royals.

Subtle diamonds

The colour differences between diamonds are very subtle. It can be hard, for instance, to tell the difference between E and F diamonds and it can take years of experience and training to fully appreciate the differences. If you want to see the difference for yourself, however, ask a diamond specialist at your local H.Samuel store to compare diamond engagement rings side by side.