pics of irridated blue diamonds

[I Love My Sailor]

here is mine

 

[jstarfireb]

Re: performance of irradiated stones...you gals have to tell me where you got yours! I wish mine performed more like a natural diamond. And honestly, most of the irradiated diamonds I've seen are more like mine than yours. BUT I have seen a gorgeous irradiated PINK(!) that looked so much like a natural that I could never tell the difference. It was at the same store where I got my little greenie, but greenie was in the budget and pinkie wasn't.

Here's a better pic of greenie...

ETA: LOL, I didn't realize I have it right over the "G" key...g for greenie!

 

[Rockdiamond]

jstarfireb I believe your prior statement to be true. The depth of color in Irradiated diamonds means they have less "life" than the best Natural Diamonds of the color the irradiated one is trying to be.
A blue made form a brown may have similar sparkle as a non treated brown( not sure about that one though, the treatment might steal little brilliance- even from a brown)

I would be interested in seeing the pink you mentioned.
We carry natural pinks- and I see quite a few.
I never seen an irradiated that comes close....

 

[LD]

Date: 4/8/2009 2:48:50 PM
Author: jstarfireb
Re: performance of irradiated stones...you gals have to tell me where you got yours! I wish mine performed more like a natural diamond. And honestly, most of the irradiated diamonds I''ve seen are more like mine than yours. BUT I have seen a gorgeous irradiated PINK(!) that looked so much like a natural that I could never tell the difference. It was at the same store where I got my little greenie, but greenie was in the budget and pinkie wasn''t.

Here''s a better pic of greenie...

I think you''ve hit the nail on the head! It all comes down to cost! I''ve seen blues that are navy and lifeless and then there are blues that are bright, sparkly and luscious - but the difference you pay is large! The same can be said of yellows. I''ve seen yellows that were more brown and dull but then you find the odd one that knocks you socks off (and the money from your purse)!

It''s the same with greens. Most of the greens I''ve seen have brown or grey undertones and to find a great green took me ages. Strangely though, with greens I haven''t seen such a huge price difference but it was the search to find a good one that wore me out!

 

[jstarfireb]

Date: 4/8/2009 2:59:53 PM
Author: Rockdiamond
jstarfireb I believe your prior statement to be true. The depth of color in Irradiated diamonds means they have less 'life' than the best Natural Diamonds of the color the irradiated one is trying to be.

A blue made form a brown may have similar sparkle as a non treated brown( not sure about that one though, the treatment might steal little brilliance- even from a brown)

I would be interested in seeing the pink you mentioned.
We carry natural pinks- and I see quite a few.
I never seen an irradiated that comes close....

I wish I would have taken a pic of that pink! It was small (about 0.4 or so), but really stunning. ETA: It wasn't a neon color, but a really pretty soft pink. I seriously mistook it for a natural diamond, and then I saw the price (still over my budget, but nowhere near what a natural pink would have cost).

 

[Feralpenchant]

OOOOOOOOOER. RockDiamond that is GORGEOUS!

-steals blue asscher diamond and runs off-

 

[Rockdiamond]

LD- the cost of the treated stone should be based on the cost of the stone they started with.
In the box I posted on the first page - showing all the different shades- the lighter blue diamonds were about 20% more costly than the darkest ones.
Darker browns are less expensive than lighter ones- so lighter treated blues are more than the darker ones.
That''s not to say that sellers don''t jack up the price of stones they feel came out better- but at the wholesale level, it''s based on what they started with.
Sad to say, but from what I''ve seen of the average representation of treated diamonds, many sellers of the irradiated diamonds are not above messing around....


We''ve seen some nice irradaited blue diamonds- but as bright and sparkley as they can be, they simply pale in comparison to a natural blue.
AS LD said, it comes down to cost.
Is it any surprise a half a million dollar blue looks different than a $4000 irradiated?

 

[DiamondExpert]

...here are some melee pinks (0.14-0.18ct.)...the bottom pair is irradiated only and produces a darkish purplish pink...the top pair (same stones, different lighting) is a lighter pink obtained by combined irradiation and HPHT treatment.

 

[Rockdiamond]

To me, the combination HPHT and radiation look a lot closer to natural than the Irradiated ones...

Are the top stones more costly than the bottom ones?

( BTW- it wasn''t exaclty clear in your post- there are two photos of the HPHT and one of the straight irradiation, yes?)

 

[DiamondExpert]

David: Sorry, it was a bit cryptic - the top 2 pair are the same stones (HPHT/irrad) in different lighting - the bottom pair is irrad only.

Yes, the combined treatment makes for a lighter, more natural color - think the HPHT tends to "heal" the disruptions in the crystal structure that the irrad produces.

There are also coated stones which result in even lighter, more natural colors.

 

[stone-cold11]

Date: 4/8/2009 4:47:12 PM
Author: DiamondExpert
David: Sorry, it was a bit cryptic - the top 2 pair are the same stones (HPHT/irrad) in different lighting - the bottom pair is irrad only.

Yes, the combined treatment makes for a lighter, more natural color - think the HPHT tends to ''heal'' the disruptions in the crystal structure that the irrad produces.

There are also coated stones which result in even lighter, more natural colors.

So what kind of price difference will an extra process of HTHP do these melee, if you can give a ball park number?

 

[DiamondExpert]

Prices are about the same for melee with irrad compared to HPHT/irrad. The price of coated is considerably less than irrad/HPHT or irrad...I''ve heard that the coating may not stand up well to repeated steaming, but don''t have any direct experience...in any event, the comeback to that is - they''re cheap enough, so you can just replace them.

By the way, larger, beautiful pinks are not cheap, except in relation to natural pinks

!

 

[John P]

David & Gary - cool info and photos.

 

[aayushk]

i deal with treating diamonds for jewelry manufacturers overseas all the the time. the color you start off with and the color you would like to end up with is all a consideration as to the price and quality. for instance, when you start with brown shades and try to turn them blue, you have to reach an intensity of blue higher than the brown. therefore making those "irradiated" blue diamonds look over saturated with color. however the diamonds that i process are practically white, like F-G colors which end up with a perfect balance of brilliance and color saturation.
the diamonds processed in America are guaranteed stable, overseas they do not always use the same procedures and sometimes can be unstable. Like the blue topaz incident where they were still emitting radiation while sitting in showcases throughout the world.
hpht is a process that works only on type IIa diamonds. Which are rare to find. Also they are used primarily to intensify the existing color, not to change but within the same spectrum range.

natural color diamonds look better because Mother Earth made those, but a properly treated diamond can display up to 95% of the same beauty as naturals.

 

[cutechick0021]

thank you for all the responses!

 

[emeraldlover1]

I''ve really learned a lot from this thread. Still a little confused about the whole process and why one would take a perfectly good white diamond and irradiate it but I''m not in the market for one anyway so I don''t need to know right now.

RD...I''ll take either or both of those natural blues off your hands if you need someone to store them for safe keeping???

 

[DentD]

Fascinating topic!

I''ve been dreaming of getting a semi-eternity band for awhile, possibly doing alternating white diamonds and peridots, however peridots likely couldn''t take the abuse. I wonder how much it would cost to alternately get irradiated or natural green diamonds that look similar in color to peridots. Is that even possible? I''ve seen green diamonds online before, but usually they are not bright "granny smith apple" in shade. Also, if I wanted to buy irradiated diamonds online, where would I look? What reputable vendors carry them?

 

[Rockdiamond]

Date: 4/8/2009 2:23:07 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds

motownmama - yes the process is stable if irradiated.

jstarfireb - I have a number of irradiated yellows that perform EXACTLY like natural yellow diamonds and in fact when I had them appraised (by a very very experienced appraiser) I had to confess they were irradiated!!!

David - since we on the hunt for information ......... can you find out what colour this would have been prior to irradiation please? I understand that having a red/deep pink irradiated of this colour is extremely difficult to find. Paler pinks and pinky browns are more the ''norm''.

LD- Sorry I missed this post yesterday.
We''re bringing in a few pinks to look at.
There''s an irradiated stone that also had HTHP, and a coated one coming in a few moments. The Irradiated stone''s price surprised me, it was a lot more than a treated blue.
In terms of the color necessary to end up pink, or the color of the very pretty stone you posted, it''s a crapshoot. There''s no rule as with the blue diamonds.
NO question a stone the color of the one you posted is rare- even in treated.
I''d love to see what you''re talking about with the yellows.
The ones we''ve seen were quite obvious to be treated, especially for someone familiar with natural yellow diamonds.
Aayush- interesting info!

EM1- I''ll hold the natrual blue stones for you- you can have them if you can somehow pry them out of my fingers- which is highly doubtful ( have you seen my hands?)

John- Nice to see you!
You''re quite welcome


DentD- Forget about natural green- if the color is pure greeen ( as opposed to greenish yellow for example) green is among the rarest of all colors in diamonds.
The photo I posted shows the range of irradiated green melee( small diamonds) we can offer.
I''m sure Gary (DiamondExpert) is a good source for such stones as well.

 

[LD]

Thank you for the compliment David. My red/pink took about 5 years to find and I've only ever seen one other of a similar colour - most tend to be brownish or more pink!

This is one of the yellows that I was talking about. It's not a great photo and the colour is a bit more subtle in real life. It's a truly gorgeous diamond however. You deal in yellows every day so I wouldn't be surprised if you realise straight away that this is irradiated.

 

[LD]

DentD I agree with David - unless your wallet doesn''t have a bottom, forget about natural greens. You can get irradiated greens BUT they can be too yellow, too brown and too dark. It''s possible to get lovely green irradiated diamonds but you may need to search for a while!!! I bought all of these as loose stones (apart from the flower ring) and had them set but it took me ages to find the colour I really liked.

 

[diamondringlover]

I never understood why people wanted colored diamonds, only here lately have I figured it out, I have learned alot from this thread

 

[Rockdiamond]

Another aspect is that the larger the diamond, the larger the risk.
I am not happy with the pinks that were sent over.
At a half carat, maybe I asked for too large a stone.
The coated one, shown here, is the livelier of the two.
I'm afraid to touch it too much.
It came with an instruction sheet. There's a list of "Do's and Dont's"
Heat is a problem- such as when a ring is worked on.
Ultrasonic , and steam cleaning- no-no's.
Abrasive cleaners a problem.
Get this- "Open settings like a Tiffany" or Tension set"
The above statement was in the in the "Dont's " column from the company that did the coating of the diamond.

That kind of stuff really puts me off coated stones....all due respect to those who honestly represent these, and to those who own them
It is a actually very lively stone.


The hue is quite interesting- but not similar to any natural pink, or pink brown- any natural diamond- I've ever seen.
Since I never really took the time to look more closely at the treated stones- this has been interesting to me.

BTW- We're not dealers of these type of diamonds- but we are part of the NYC diamond dealer community. It's relatively close knit- so we do know who we're dealing with when calling in these stones.
I trust the pricing and the forthright nature of the disclosure of treatment.
But for sure there's a lot of people doing treating all over the world.
As LD said- she searched for years to find the red she has.

I'm sure a stone like that goes for a pretty penny today.

 

[LD]

Date: 4/9/2009 9:01:22 PM
Author: Rockdiamond
Another aspect is that the larger the diamond, the larger the risk.
I am not happy with the pinks that were sent over.
At a half carat, maybe I asked for too large a stone.
The coated one, shown here, is the livelier of the two.
I''m afraid to touch it too much.
It came with an instruction sheet. There''s a list of ''Do''s and Dont''s''
Heat is a problem- such as when a ring is worked on.
Ultrasonic , and steam cleaning- no-no''s.
Abrasive cleaners a problem.
Get this- ''Open settings like a Tiffany'' or Tension set''
The above statement was in the in the ''Dont''s '' column from the company that did the coating of the diamond.

That kind of stuff really puts me off coated stones....all due respect to those who honestly represent these, and to those who own them
It is a actually very lively stone.


The hue is quite interesting- but not similar to any natural pink, or pink brown- any natural diamond- I''ve ever seen.
Since I never really took the time to look more closely at the treated stones- this has been interesting to me.

BTW- We''re not dealers of these type of diamonds- but we are part of the NYC diamond dealer community. It''s relatively close knit- so we do know who we''re dealing with when calling in these stones.
I trust the pricing and the forthright nature of the disclosure of treatment.
But for sure there''s a lot of people doing treating all over the world.
As LD said- she searched for years to find the red she has.

I''m sure a stone like that goes for a pretty penny today.

OMG that''s reason enough never to buy a coated diamond!!!! You''d have to set it under glass to protect it from the sound of things! Thanks for the heads up David.

 

[Rockdiamond]

LD- I owe you an apology.
Before, when you mentioned better quality color enhanced diamonds- and in general- I have scoffed at that idea.
Today, I found some that really do prove your point. higher quality irradiated diamonds do exist.
It really has to do with a lot of factors.
The quality of the stone you start with is a huge factor.
Since the treatment makes the stone a lot darker, things like quality of cut and imperfection are harder to see. That's probably why a lot of cruddy stones are used.
But more important is the color of the stone they start with.

Another factor is the skill of the person doing the irradiating.
Someone who's very good at the process would allow more confidence - making them more likely to use more expensive ( lighter brown) stones to start with.

The stone in the photo is about 50% higher, on a per carat basis compared to the blue pear shape I posted.
The difference between the stones is marked.

I'm not saying it looks like a natural one- but it looks a lot less unnatural than I would expect.