Does Yellow Gold Band change Diamond Color?

[chasetringale]

I was told a yellow gold diamond band will have a slight effect on the diamond itself --- that a diamond with even a grade D will have a tiny tint of yellow when closely looking at it. Does anyone know if this is true? If so, would a grade G look the same in a yellow gold band that a D does?


I have never purchased a diamond ring and am in the market to learn (and soon buy) a diamond engagement ring. Any info that can be offered would be a huge help -- thank you!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Usually, you'd have the diamond set with a white gold or platinum head/prongs and then the band of the eng ring would be yellow. My ring is 14K yellow gold, G colored diamond with a platinum head (as in the prongs are white metal). Looks VERY white!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I agree. When the shank/band is yellow gold, usually the head/prongs are white metal. That way you don't have yellow prong tips reflecting in the diamond.

 

[kenny]

Another factor is cut quality.
If the diamond is very leaky and windowing you will see right through it to what ever is underneath.
If gold is under the leaky diamond you will see the gold.

 

[GemFever]

I'm very curious about this too because I'm thinking of potentially bezeling a diamond in YG (in the distant future)... I did a quick search and one of the first threads that came up is this one:

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-ring-with-yellow-gold-prongs-diamond-looks-yellow.151571/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/diamond-ring-with-yellow-gold-prongs-diamond-looks-yellow.151571/[/URL]

It's got lots of good info, and interesting links to YG-set diamond rings.

 

[oldminer]

The eyes are not discreet color grading tools. When you look at a diamond set in yellow metal you will have some yellow in some of the receptors in your eyes that would not be yellow if the diamond was set in a white metal. The diamond's color certainly can appear different set in different metal colors, but the only color grading which works takes the diamond away from any other colors surrounding it. Most round diamond from H to D color look quite similar when they are set. Few people could easily discriminate the slight color differences face up in any color set of prongs. A few people could, no doubt and some stones, such as vrey thinly cut ones, may leak color right to your eye from the metal beneath them.

 

[chasetringale]

The eyes are not discreet color grading tools. When you look at a diamond set in yellow metal you will have some yellow in some of the receptors in your eyes that would not be yellow if the diamond was set in a white metal. The diamond's color certainly can appear different set in different metal colors, but the only color grading which works takes the diamond away from any other colors surrounding it. Most round diamond from H to D color look quite similar when they are set. Few people could easily discriminate the slight color differences face up in any color set of prongs. A few people could, no doubt and some stones, such as vrey thinly cut ones, may leak color right to your eye from the metal beneath them.

so...a VG cut diamond that is 1.5ct round and set in yellow gold ---- are you saying the eye cannot tell between H or D color? is it too close and therefore there is no reason to get a D color diamond over an H ... aside from the actual value/price of the diamond?

 

[diamondringlover]

I have a 3 stone emerald cut diamond ring the diamonds are set in 14K white gold, they are all H in color, SI1's, I have a 5 stone they are actually set in 18K yellow gold and they are well cut diamonds F color VS1....unless you are really looking my H's almost looks whiter then the F's, it maybe what olderminer said about what the eyes see, but it has convinced me that all diamonds should be set it white metals to get the full impact of the color (my E-ring is set in white gold prongs and yellow band its an I, I barely notice any color at all) of course this is just my perspective.

 

[Christina...]

When a diamond is in it's setting its very difficult to differentiate one color grade to the next, when they are loose and placed upside down on a white background it becomes much easier to see. GH colors are a sweet spot for many people because of there value. They face up extremely white and are difficult to tell about from DEFs. However many people will notice body color through the pavilion of the diamond, looking through the side of it. I had an I and could see a very very slight tint in some lighting conditions through the side. My J is much easier to see the warmth through the pavilion in more lighting conditions.

I noticed you mentioned that the cut was VG, this is important because as Kenny said if there are areas of leakage it is going to be possible to see through the diamond to whatever color is beneath it because of leakage, and VG cut diamonds could have this problem, Cut is the most important aspect of the diamond, it creates the beautiful sparkly and light that diamonds are known for, therefore you should be looking at Excellent and Ideal cut stones from GIA and AGS.

 

[kat08]

I just got a ring in yellow gold with yellow gold prongs. The main diamond is an I color, and I don't notice any yellow tint to the diamond at all (I wouldn't have minded if there was a hint of warmth). Theoretically, the yellow gold will throw a slight tint onto the diamond as light is reflected off the yellow metal onto the diamond (the light bouncing off the metal takes on a slight yellow hue). But in real life, our eyes are so used to "color casts" caused by light reflecting off different colored materials, that our eyes tend to adjust and not "see" the color cast, especially when it's subtle. With yellow gold, you can go a little warmer in color with a diamond. Because the diamond has so much less yellow than the yellow metal, the diamond will appear whiter in contrast. It's easier to see warmth in a diamond set in a white metal because the diamond is the only thing that has yellow, so by contrast, the yellow stands out more.

 

[chasetringale]

I noticed you mentioned that the cut was VG, this is important because as Kenny said if there are areas of leakage it is going to be possible to see through the diamond to whatever color is beneath it because of leakage, and VG cut diamonds could have this problem, Cut is the most important aspect of the diamond, it creates the beautiful sparkly and light that diamonds are known for, therefore you should be looking at Excellent and Ideal cut stones from GIA and AGS.

I didn't make a purchase.....are you saying that I need a better cut Christina? does the Ct size show more or less of the color?? If it is an Excellent cut 2ct diamond ---- will a J show more 'yellow' than a 1ct diamond?

does the Excellent cut with I color show less yellow than a VG cut with G color?


please share more thoughts on this topic if you can explain -- thank you!!

 

[AGBF]

I noticed you mentioned that the cut was VG, this is important because as Kenny said if there are areas of leakage it is going to be possible to see through the diamond to whatever color is beneath it because of leakage, and VG cut diamonds could have this problem, Cut is the most important aspect of the diamond, it creates the beautiful sparkly and light that diamonds are known for, therefore you should be looking at Excellent and Ideal cut stones from GIA and AGS.

I didn't make a purchase.....are you saying that I need a better cut Christina? does the Ct size show more or less of the color?? If it is an Excellent cut 2ct diamond ---- will a J show more 'yellow' than a 1ct diamond?

does the Excellent cut with I color show less yellow than a VG cut with G color?


please share more thoughts on this topic if you can explain -- thank you!!

The issue isn't that a larger carat diamond shows more of the color and a smaller carat diamond shows less of it if that is what you are asking. (I am not quite sure what you are asking, chasetringale.) I think that people are telling you that a well cut diamond will be more brilliant than one that is not well cut, and that, therefore, it will appear to be of higher color than it actually is.

I want to chime in and say that I love yellow gold and that most of my diamonds are set in 18K yellow gold. (One is set in 24K gold.) As you have been told by other posters, it helps to have the head made of platinum when the shank of a ring or the piece holding a diamond in a pendant will be yellow, however. The heads of all the pieces I have made in yellow gold are platinum.

Some people are more sensitive to color than others. Most of us see color more when one diamond is held against another, though. If I see an I or a J colored diamond by itself the stone usually does not look yellow to me. Only if I see it against an F colored stone does it start to look less white. As others have said, when you get from the colorless range into the G range, however, the human eye gets into new territory. Why it perceives what it does, I don't know. But apparently the G range is where the human eye starts to have trouble sorting out color differences efficiently. (I am going to have to go back and read up on why that is. I have forgotten why completely!)

In my opinion, the bottom line is that you should never be afraid to set a diamond in yellow gold; that you should buy a diamond with good cut; and that if you like high color, that you should factor that into your price calculations, too!

Deb/AGBF