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Fancy Colored Diamonds
Topic Started: Dec 11 2010, 09:24 PM (858 Views)
kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Posted Image

In that other thread about the diamond planet Blondie and KB mentioned colored diamonds . . .

Here's a pic I took yesterday of my 4 FCDs (fancy colored diamonds) sitting on a stainless steel guitar pick.
Per GIA, all four are natural minded diamonds, not man made in a laboratory, and have color that is of natural origin, not the result of manipulation by man.

Diamonds come in all colors and different colors have different origins.
The color in the purplish pink's is believed to be from deformation of the crystal lattice structure when it was formed underground millions of years ago.
Steve Hofer, leading colored diamond guru, describes the crystal lattice deformation of pinks as similar to what happens when you push on the top of a deck of cards.

A side view of this Fancy Deep Purplish-Pink diamond reveals what is called graining, or lines of color. (Pic below)
To maximize the face-up color the cutter must orient the graining at 45 degrees with respect to the table, the top.
The clarity of this stone is VVS1, one step below Internally Flawless, the only flaw being a natural on the girdle.

The blues get their color from boron, as KB said.
This is a Fancy deep blue, and is pure blue with no color modifiers.
The hope diamond has a grey modifier which lowers the value.

Yellows contain nitrogen. (I don't have a yellow yet.)
Lab grown stones and mined natural diamonds that have lab-modified color cost a tiny tiny fraction of what these natural wonders command.

Green is the result of the diamond crystal being surrounded by radioactive material over a long period of time.
Green is the most difficult color for labs to verify to be of natural origin because it's easy for man to turn a diamond green by putting it next to radioactive stuff.
When polishing a green diamond they leave some of the natural rough skin on the final product because the brown/green stains in these "naturals" are where GIA looks to verify natural origin of the color.
This round green is graded Fancy Intense Green with no color modifiers.
The cut itself is a style from around 100 years ago with that open culet (the circle in the center).

The Pear shape is a Fancy Intense Green-Blue.
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Here's are those "graining" lines.
They are only visible in a side view of the purplish pink diamond.
Face up the color is smooth, continuous and even.
Please pardon the Q-Tip hair. :$

Also notice near the top of the surface nearest the camera (the girdle) what looks like a little chip?
That is a natural, the only flaw.

Posted Image

Below are those important brown radiation stains, intentionally left on the girdle of my round green.
If they were polished off the diamond would loose perhaps 95% of its value since the color could not be proven to be of natural origin.
The rough surface is part of the diamond crystal's original skin.
Many diamonds will have naturals because polishing them all away lowers the weight.

Posted Image
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Take this one with a grain of salt.
Well, more than a grain.
The stones are resting on table salt. LOL

Notice the left edge of the green is sort of flat.
That's the natural unpolished surface they intentionally left.

The tiny specs you see on the stones are gunk from the salt.
Photographing gems is very challenging and keeping them clean is tough.

Posted Image
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brenda
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..............
Lovely, kenny! Expensive to collect? Will you ever have them made into jewelry?
“Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them.”
~A.A. Milne
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sue
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HOLY CARP!!!
Have I mentioned how happy I am that you have joined us again, Kenny?

That deep blue is magnificent. Oh but the pear shaped one is too. Fascinating about the green, and the 'naturals'.
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Mark
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HOLY CARP!!!
Awesome macro work!
___.___
(_]===*
o 0
When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Set them into jewelry?
I don't even like taking them out of the safe deposit box.

If Larry is right and stocks tank they will still be worth something.
Sure they're not as liquid as gold and you do loose some $$$ when you drive them off the lot (retail value vs. wholesale) but I consider these part of a diversified portfolio, not baubles to wear.

I have learned tons and suspect I've made very shrewd transactions.

If anything makes it into a ring it will be the green.
The light performance is astonshing.
The antique cut adds to the rarity.
Modern round cuts look totally different.

FCDs are cut to strengthen the color, not to optimize the light performance.
That's why most FCDs perform very very poorly with light.
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sue
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HOLY CARP!!!
Isn't that a shame though? Like putting great works of art away in safe room, instead of letting yourself (and others) enjoy them.

I understand the good investment part, but it seems a crime to hide such beauty away in a box.
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KlavierBauer
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HOLY CARP!!!
Kenny - those are absolutely gorgeous!
That dark blue diamond could be a super conductor!
"I realize you want him to touch you all over and give you babies, but his handling of the PR side really did screw the pooch." - Ivory Thumper
"He said sleepily: "Don't worry mom, my dick is like hot logs in the morning." - Apple

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apple
one of the angels
wanna date?
it behooves me to behold
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Thanks, but I just ate.
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Piano*Dad
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Bull-Carp
apple
Dec 12 2010, 08:45 AM
wanna date?
:lol2:
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Piano*Dad
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Bull-Carp
You do very good work with a macro lens. Nice collection, too!

I'll bet you could do good work with my grandmother's 1930s marquise cut stone. It's a true antique. It comes to a full point, not the chopped off marquise cuts of today.
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Piano*Dad
Dec 12 2010, 09:06 AM
You do very good work with a macro lens. Nice collection, too!

I'll bet you could do good work with my grandmother's 1930s marquise cut stone. It's a true antique. It comes to a full point, not the chopped off marquise cuts of today.
Thanks y'all.

PD, what do you mean by, "my grandmother's 1930s marquise cut stone. It's a true antique. It comes to a full point, not the chopped off marquise cuts of today"

I've looked around and can't find anything resembling a chopped off marquise.
You got me curious.
Do you mean oval?Posted Image Marquise cut is on left, oval on right.

Marquise is currently out of style.
People pick them up on eBay or in pawn shops, recut them to ovals and sell them at a nice profit even with the weight loss.
They'll be back in style some day.
Right now they just remind 20-somethings of their grandmothers.

Asschers were popular a generation or two before marquise became the rage.
Now asschers are back.
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sue
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HOLY CARP!!!
kenny
Dec 13 2010, 10:17 AM
Marquise is currently out of style.


Interesting, I didn't know that. I really like them; there's a classic elegance to them that really appeals to me.
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
"In style" only applies to people who give a crap about that.
I don't.

The sales numbers don't lie though.
Also princess cuts are not selling like they were a decade or two ago.
It seems like the more intensely popular something is the farther (or is it further?) the pendulum swings the other way.

Gold-colored gold is less popular than white gold and platinum now.
I remember discussing getting a ring made a couple years ago.
JonNYC said something like, "Just so it's not yellow gold :puke: "
I say just wear what appeals to you.

Halos are white-hot now.
They give the appearance of larger bling for a fraction of the price of a larger single diamond.

Posted Image
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sue
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HOLY CARP!!!
ok. I like this
Posted Image

and this design (not the yellow, though. needs something else )
Posted Image

and this is kind of fun
Posted Image


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Mikhailoh
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If you want trouble, find yourself a redhead
My sort of adopted mom has a real high quality 5.6 ct marquise. That monster is always in style.
Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a gorgeous redhead - Lucille Ball
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Sue, you are lucky you like them because you can find lots for sale at attractive prices in the "previously-owned" market.

If you do shop for a marquise some day (or pear or oval) look for one without bowtie.
Bowtie is a dark region on the left and right side of the middle resembling a bowtie.
See your first pic.
The others are not shot head-on, which may conceal the bowtie.

Preventing bowtie requires cut angles to be maintained within a very narrow range.
Unfortunately diamond cutters usually cut for maximum weight retention of the rough since most customers only understand and care about size.
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Piano*Dad
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Bull-Carp
Kenny,

It's like the stone on the left, pointed at the end of the long axis. The ring is from the 20s or 30s, so it earns it's "out of fashion-ness" legitimately! :lol2:

When I say "chopped off" I mean in depth. This ring comes to a full point at the bottom. Thus it doesn't look as large, visually, as many a 2 carat diamond because a substantial portion of its weight is in that bottom.
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Here's a good pic of bowtie. Posted Image
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
Piano*Dad
Dec 13 2010, 11:27 AM
Kenny,

It's like the stone on the left, pointed at the end of the long axis. The ring is from the 20s or 30s, so it earns it's "out of fashion-ness" legitimately! :lol2:

When I say "chopped off" I mean in depth. This ring comes to a full point at the bottom. Thus it doesn't look as large, visually, as many a 2 carat diamond because a substantial portion of its weight is in that bottom.
So you are referring to the depth, which is only visible in the side view like this . . .?

BTW this comes to a full point on the bottom as you describe.
I believe all modern marquis do.
A long culet, as in an emerald cut may be what you're thinking about.

Posted Image

If so, yes deep stones don't appear to be as large face up.
Asscher is a shape that is deep and bulky in a side view so they look 30% smaller face up than a round.
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sue
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HOLY CARP!!!
kenny
Dec 13 2010, 11:32 AM
Here's a good pic of bowtie. Posted Image
That's fascinating. Is this just with diamonds, or anything in a marquise cut?
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Piano*Dad
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Bull-Carp
Yes, except mine is actually deeper than that (I think). The angle in this stone seems more shallow.

I have noticed no "bow tie" in this stone. It was appraised at a hefty amount quite a number of years ago. I hesitate to think what the 5.6 ct monster Mik describes is worth.
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kenny
HOLY CARP!!!
sue
Dec 13 2010, 11:37 AM
kenny
Dec 13 2010, 11:32 AM
Here's a good pic of bowtie. Posted Image
That's fascinating. Is this just with diamonds, or anything in a marquise cut?
I don't know but I can find out.
Diamond has the highest Index of refraction of all gems.
This means bends the light a lot (changes the angle) when light passes from air to diamond.
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