FANCY THAT

Past Z on the color grading scale are the rare yellows and, more rare still, orange colored diamonds. Along with the far less costly brown diamond family (known as champagnes, cognacs, chocolates, cinnamons), and the brown’s millionaire fashionista cousin, the pink diamond (which will typically cost two to three times its equivalent in yellow), they are the bulk of the fancy colors you will likely run into, either as centers, side stones, or far more often, as pavé accents in jewelry.

Other colors do exist—blues, violets, purples, chameleons, and, rarest of all, greens and reds—but are of such scarcity their prices may well begin in six figures (per carat). Far more common are the fancy colors whose names are preceded by a color adjective or modifier: orangey yellow or purplish pink. Quaint as they all sound, they’re actually scientifically arrived at, and hugely determinant of price. Be prepared for serious sticker-shock.

Still greater rarity and (cost) in a fancy will be signified when the color names are preceded by the words intense, deep, or vivid. They are the top grades a diamond lab will assign to a fancy’s intensity or saturation of color. Fancies are priced per carat, but are valued principally for their color, where rarity truly lies. Flawlessness is as uncommon in yellow as in white diamond, but it carries little of the white’s premium. Cut, while hugely important to a fancy’s performance, will not (typically) affect price as with white diamonds. Rather, cut in fancies applies far more to the diamond’s shape. Almost all fancy colors are fancy shapes (the most common are radiants, emeralds, pears, cushions, asschers, and ovals), as a high return of brilliance actually lessens how well a fancy color will show its color.

The fancy market is driven by specialists. You will not find a bargain, either on-line or at a brick-and-mortar jeweler. If it looks remotely like a buy, it’s not. It’s cultured (created in a lab), treated, irradiated, or it’s “bluffy,” a diamond that shows a bit like one of the costly colors, but is actually much closer to a cheaper color. You will not see the difference between a yellowish green and a greenish yellow, but their value difference may well be a year’s salary.

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