Can a brown-yellow diamond look pink?

[momhappy]

I certainly agree with others perceptions of peach (and/or pink). However, that dialogue has little to do with the actual color of the diamond posted by OP. So many things can affect the color of a diamond and the only way to know what the exact color of this particular diamond is, would be to physically inspect it (and even then, perceptions of color will vary). Again, no matter what the actual color, I think that it's a lovely stone , but I would just caution OP not to try to make it into something it's not…
Keep us updated OP

 

[Sunstorm]

I am wondering if this is scientifically true, whether color perception is subjective, I am personally not sure that is the case or is it just that certain people are more color sensitive than others. I think that some people are able to pick up just a bit of color and then it really is there but those with less good color perception, less color sensitivity do not pick up the color but it still is there regardless. I often find orange or brown in stones when it is really barely there, almost inperceivable. When you see it, you are not imagining it in my opinion but others who do not see it, are less able to perceive minute traces of a hue. Do others agree or disagree? I know that even among diamonds on the color scale I pick up a lot of tint in I stones already. Others see them as almost completely colorless, not to say they are not nice, they are just not almost colorless to me, the tint normally screams at me especially in say a two-carater. It can work out to my benefit because I can find myself loving stones on the lower end of the letter scale since they appear quite yellow (when they are yellow tinted) or as beautiful light browns.

 

[Rockdiamond]

There's no question degree of color sensitivity is very individual- hence the term "color blind".
I believe there's different degrees and permutations of color blindness.
Back in the '70's when I was training at Harry Winston, color grading was done ONLY by ladies- and only earlier in the day, they went home by 3pm...they were pretty darn accurate if memory serves me.....

 

[cflutist]

There's no question degree of color sensitivity is very individual- hence the term "color blind".
I believe there's different degrees and permutations of color blindness.
Back in the '70's when I was training at Harry Winston, color grading was done ONLY by ladies- and only earlier in the day, they went home by 3pm...they were pretty darn accurate if memory serves me.....

LOL, blind as a bat when it comes to near-sightedness, but Wink says I must have lots of cones in my eyes because
I got a perfect score on this Munsell Hue Test.

http://www.colormunki.com/game/huetest_kiosk

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Absolutely, color sensitivity is variable. In fact it is probably a spectrum (pun somewhat intended). If a significant portion of the population are known to have difficulty distinguishing between red and green, you can only imagine that variations in peoples ability to distinguish more similar colors such as yellow, orange and pink.

Another thing I believe from personal experience is that your color sensitivity can change over time- like an acquired taste. Early in my career I remember telling people all the time that I personally saw no reason to pay the premium for anything over H-I in color because the stones look white. But over the years looking at alot of diamonds my eye is now drawn to colorless stones. While I was always pretty good at grading colors with master stones, I didn't really have a sensitivity or appreciation for them until I had been in the business for years. I totally get why people pay premiums for DEF colors now!

 

[partgypsy]

Yeah I got a perfect on that hue test too!

I think the only thing to do, is to look at the stone in person, in different conditions. I agree with the peach (or I call champagne) color in the stone. It is not dull/grayish in color.
Unless you want it re-graded it is really what kind of personal preference you have. I do know if I picked a brown or yellow diamond, I would try to find one that had those pinkish hues in them.

My husband is a redhead (well redhead when a boy, now dark brown hair with red highlights as an adult). My youngest daughter is a blonde. But in some circumstances, her hair has what I would call a pink highlight to it, in certain lightings. It almost drives me crazy wondering if it is really there or not (I mean, who has pink hair?) but my husband has noticed it too. Regardless of what we are perceiving, if she had a drivers license, her hair would be called "blonde".

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Yeah I got a perfect on that hue test too!

I think the only thing to do, is to look at the stone in person, in different conditions. I agree with the peach (or I call champagne) color in the stone. It is not dull/grayish in color.
Unless you want it re-graded it is really what kind of personal preference you have. I do know if I picked a brown or yellow diamond, I would try to find one that had those pinkish hues in them.

My husband is a redhead (well redhead when a boy, now dark brown hair with red highlights as an adult). My youngest daughter is a blonde. But in some circumstances, her hair has what I would call a pink highlight to it, in certain lightings. It almost drives me crazy wondering if it is really there or not (I mean, who has pink hair?) but my husband has noticed it too. Regardless of what we are perceiving, if she had a drivers license, her hair would be called "blonde".

So that's how you get "strawberry" blonde.

 

[Sunstorm]

I will have to try this test, it must be fun! Yes sure I know what you guys mean, I think what I was saying was misunderstandable. Of course I know color blindness and individual color sensitivity do exist, what I did mean is whether color itself is a fact and not subjective, some people may be wrong or may not be able to differentiate but regardless the color is either there or not. Ok I may not be explaining it right again but what I do mean is that as you were saying some people cannot distinguish between a D and say an I but it does not mean that they have the same color or absence or presence of tint. That is pretty objective (although definitely not absolute), some people just cannot see the tint. Despite that the tint IS there. Ok, not sure anyone can follow me or if I am making sense but for example whether pink is there or not should perhaps be a fact, or not? Question is who decides? If e.g., you David see pink in the stone you brought up as an example then I am positive that you are right, if you see it, you are not imagining it, it has to be there, some people are just not able to see it and perhaps that was the case when the stone was graded. Now I feel that I am approaching some murky waters because is it really objective whether pink is there? It is considered to be pretty objective that a D is a D because of the absence of color, tint, whatever we want to call it and a K is a K because it is tinted to a certain degree which matches the intensity of the tint of the K masterstone (ok, here we can already think it is not that objective whether a stone really is a K) BUT in the case of fancy colors there is a lot more disagreement. Ok, I tried but not sure I succeeded in showing my personal logics here.)

 

[chrono]

The hold-up for the OP to view the stone in person are due to import/custom taxes, otherwise I would have suggested seeing the stone in person back on Page 1.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

I will have to try this test, it must be fun! Yes sure I know what you guys mean, I think what I was saying was misunderstandable. Of course I know color blindness and individual color sensitivity do exist, what I did mean is whether color itself is a fact and not subjective, some people may be wrong or may not be able to differentiate but regardless the color is either there or not. Ok I may not be explaining it right again but what I do mean is that as you were saying some people cannot distinguish between a D and say an I but it does not mean that they have the same color or absence or presence of tint. That is pretty objective (although definitely not absolute), some people just cannot see the tint. Despite that the tint IS there. Ok, not sure anyone can follow me or if I am making sense but for example whether pink is there or not should perhaps be a fact, or not? Question is who decides? If e.g., you David see pink in the stone you brought up as an example then I am positive that you are right, if you see it, you are not imagining it, it has to be there, some people are just not able to see it and perhaps that was the case when the stone was graded. Now I feel that I am approaching some murky waters because is it really objective whether pink is there? It is considered to be pretty objective that a D is a D because of the absence of color, tint, whatever we want to call it and a K is a K because it is tinted to a certain degree which matches the intensity of the tint of the K masterstone (ok, here we can already think it is not that objective whether a stone really is a K) BUT in the case of fancy colors there is a lot more disagreement. Ok, I tried but not sure I succeeded in showing my personal logics here.)

Yes, murky water indeed! First you have physiology of the perception with rods and cones and whether they are working properly and how well calibrated they are in the observer. Then you have this whole other part involving the communication of what is perceived. I think you can expect more than a few variances given all those moving parts! I guess that is how a thread like this can go on for pages. And that is what makes colored gemstones so intriguing.

But I am bummed. I did lousy on the hue test. And all this time I thought I had a good eye for color. So take everything I said earlier in the thread with a grain of salt.

 

[chrono]

So what happens if the OP sees pink but we don't? He/she will be wearing it so if he/she sees pink and is happy and pays a fair price, all is good, right? What happens if we see pink but the OP doesn't? If the pink isn't seen by GIA under the standard light conditions enough to grade it pink, I'd put more trust in that than the seller's word, which tends to be more favourable/biased.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

So what happens if the OP sees pink but we don't? He/she will be wearing it so if he/she sees pink and is happy and pays a fair price, all is good, right? What happens if we see pink but the OP doesn't? If the pink isn't seen by GIA under the standard light conditions enough to grade it pink, I'd put more trust in that than the seller's word, which tends to be more favourable/biased.

No, if we don't see the pink the OP will have to return it. I know it's a bit harsh, but rules are rules.

Oh yea, I forgot. At least one of us flunked the hue test. Maybe we will have to ammend the rules.

 

[diamondhoarder]

Ah! I just did the test and scored 15. And the colors I had problems with discriminating between were pinks/ oranges/ browns !!!!!

So maybe color is quite subjective after all? This little fact may allow me to enjoy wearing a "pink" diamond, but at the cost of a far less expensive one After all they do say beauty is in the eye of the beholder...............

 

[Sunstorm]

ROFL, you guys made my evening. Bryan flunked the test and now we have to throw out all advice he has given us so far though I must admit that I agreed with him, so now that means I will flunk the test too, well, to be honest, so far I could not even get it to work, so I did worse than anyone else for the time being. OP, hey you are a cheap pink diamond lover, think about the positive side! Now I cannot wait to see your stone, one piece of advice, if the gemologist sees no pink in it, do not worry, you will anyhow.)

 

[momhappy]

Sometimes, people see what they want to see… If OP likes the stone (whether or not she sees a hint of pink), then that's all that matters. I don't see pink, but that could be my computer, lighting, my perception, etc. Really this all comes down to OP seeing the stone in person and making a decision about whether or not she likes it. How anyone else perceives it is irrelevant.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Ah! I just did the test and scored 15. And the colors I had problems with discriminating between were pinks/ oranges/ browns !!!!!

So maybe color is quite subjective after all? This little fact may allow me to enjoy wearing a "pink" diamond, but at the cost of a far less expensive one After all they do say beauty is in the eye of the beholder...............

15 is darn good right? Isn't the closer to 0 the best? That's a whole lot better than I did. And I swear, they were all lined up perfectly on my monitor. It must be the monitor.

I think you have the right idea about the stone, and I also think if you take OV's suggestion and set it in a head of rose gold, it will enhance any pinkish or peachy colors that might be present quite nicely.

 

[Sunstorm]

I tell you guys I thought I went blind by the end of this test, I felt that I was no longer able to see differences between hues, that is in line with the results as I had no problem with the first half but got a couple wrong differentiating between green and blue, violet and blue, and violet and pink. I got 11 but I was sure I messed some things up by the end and hurried through. You cannot trust me either, I am in the less than perfect group. I better call it a night.

OP, I hope you end up happy no matter what stone you decide to purchase.

 

[momhappy]

I got a 13 - missed some mostly in the yellow/green/blue range (and a little bit of purple).

 

[partgypsy]

I will have to try this test, it must be fun! Yes sure I know what you guys mean, I think what I was saying was misunderstandable. Of course I know color blindness and individual color sensitivity do exist, what I did mean is whether color itself is a fact and not subjective, some people may be wrong or may not be able to differentiate but regardless the color is either there or not. Ok I may not be explaining it right again but what I do mean is that as you were saying some people cannot distinguish between a D and say an I but it does not mean that they have the same color or absence or presence of tint. That is pretty objective (although definitely not absolute), some people just cannot see the tint. Despite that the tint IS there. Ok, not sure anyone can follow me or if I am making sense but for example whether pink is there or not should perhaps be a fact, or not? Question is who decides? If e.g., you David see pink in the stone you brought up as an example then I am positive that you are right, if you see it, you are not imagining it, it has to be there, some people are just not able to see it and perhaps that was the case when the stone was graded. Now I feel that I am approaching some murky waters because is it really objective whether pink is there? It is considered to be pretty objective that a D is a D because of the absence of color, tint, whatever we want to call it and a K is a K because it is tinted to a certain degree which matches the intensity of the tint of the K masterstone (ok, here we can already think it is not that objective whether a stone really is a K) BUT in the case of fancy colors there is a lot more disagreement. Ok, I tried but not sure I succeeded in showing my personal logics here.)

Yes, murky water indeed! First you have physiology of the perception with rods and cones and whether they are working properly and how well calibrated they are in the observer. Then you have this whole other part involving the communication of what is perceived. I think you can expect more than a few variances given all those moving parts! I guess that is how a thread like this can go on for pages. And that is what makes colored gemstones so intriguing.

But I am bummed. I did lousy on the hue test. And all this time I thought I had a good eye for color. So take everything I said earlier in the thread with a grain of salt.

Duh- that's what it's called (strawberry blonde) but very subtle. It's funny a neighbor was complimenting her saying her skin was very pretty that instead of peaches and cream it was strawberry and cream. She is very fair. - sorry for the threadjack!
Basically if someone consistently sees more pink, it may be their their perception is shifted to more reddish hues, or it could simply be a difference in the way people describe (some people see salmon, some see peach, others see pink, etc). find this interesting.

 

[diamondhoarder]

So apparently the gemmologist has so far reported seeing brown, orange, yellow and even some green ?!? in this stone. How does anyone get green from this stone? But there is some confusion over whether that description relates to this stone or another similar one which he also reviewed which looked a lot colder and more brown in the videos.

I get to speak to the gemologist on Tuesday (whilst he has the stone in his hands) so that should give me some more information. But should I get him to take the Munsell test first

 

[Texas Leaguer]

So apparently the gemmologist has so far reported seeing brown, orange, yellow and even some green ?!? in this stone. How does anyone get green from this stone? But there is some confusion over whether that description relates to this stone or another similar one which he also reviewed which looked a lot colder and more brown in the videos.

I get to speak to the gemologist on Tuesday (whilst he has the stone in his hands) so that should give me some more information. But should I get him to take the Munsell test first

Do you have a copy of the GIA report or know the report number?

 

[Sunstorm]

OP, this sounds like a pretty exciting stone, I think the orange is what we perceive as pink on the pic perhaps because of the photo but I have a feeling this stone may look nice IRL. Cannot say for sure of course. Green? Really? Have her take the test ROFL. Honestly I see orange, brown and pink with a small amount of yellow but green? I have a bit of a hard time imagining that as it appears to be a warm stone. Again we could be all wrong based on the photo. Are you going to potentially order this stone after speaking with the gemologist? I am very curious what it looks like IRL I must say.

 

[diamondhoarder]

Yes, my plan is to buy the stone, as long as the gemologist doesn't tell me something really off-putting. If I go ahead with the purchase I will, of course, post photos and let you know how I think it looks in person (albeit through my rose-tinted vision).

 

[Huldak]

I scored a 4. Does that mean there is a job for me in the diamond industry that lets me go home by 3?

 

[Texas Leaguer]

I scored a 4. Does that mean there is a job for me in the diamond industry that lets me go home by 3?

Probably not, but you might be able to score a job at home depot sorting paint samples.

 

[chrono]

Do you think that perhaps the colour(s) seen is reflection off something else (the GG's outfit)? Green is a surprising one.

 

[Sunstorm]

ROFL Bryan, my evening wine fix is now all over my monitor. I doubt that the poster was hoping for this answer.

 

[diamondhoarder]

At the risk of sounding stupid - What does ROFL mean?

 

[chrono]

ROFL = Rolling on the Floor Laughing

 

[diamondhoarder]

Oh, hang on - my evening whine fix has already pickled my brain, Must be Rolling On Floor Laughing?

(Thought it might be some special gemology term about people who see pink in diamonds where no pink exists )