some thoughts on J colour

[abcdefg]

I thought I would talk about my experience in the hopes of helping others who are considering lower colour grade diamonds.

In searching for my e-ring stone on a budget, I spent a lot of time reading PS, and decided to take a chance and include lower colour diamonds in my search. This allowed me to get a larger diamond for my money.

I chose a J colour diamond, because the size was good compared to others within my budget, the price was right, and it had strong blue fluorescence, which as I''ve read can help to make a diamond appear whiter. It''s also the lowest colour grade James Allen sells, which is the vendor I got the diamond and setting from.

I was a bit apprehensive about this, as a lot of people seem to set their colour standard above J, frequently H and up.

When my ring arrived, before I received it, I asked my (now fiance!) to look at it and tell me if it looked yellow at all. He assured me that he didn''t see any yellow at all, but of course I couldn''t be totally convinced before I saw it myself.

Now that I''ve had it for a few weeks, I feel I can confidently assess it!

It faces up perfectly white. Especially in natural light, it looks extremely white. I wouldn''t describe it as ''icy'' (if you desire this, a higher colour may be for you), but it certainly isn''t yellow, either. The only light it has ever looked visibly tinted yellow in has been in rooms of my house that are painted yellow.

Even when I look through the pavilion (where colour is supposed to show the most), it looks white enough that I''m not sure if I see a really slight tint or if I''m just being paranoid because I know it''s a J.

No one has ever said to me that it looks yellow, tinted, etc. It doesn''t look yellow when held against a white piece of paper. Also, this diamond is in a platinum setting, which supposedly makes it look whiter or more tinted, depending on which source you read. In my experience, it looks white.

So, I concede that a) it has strong blue fluorescence, which not all diamonds do, b) larger diamonds may or may not show more colour (mine is 0.76ct) and c) I don''t have any higher colour diamonds to directly compare it to - it may be possible to see a tint if I would do so, so that may be a consideration you''ll have to look into if you''re planning on putting a low colour centre stone in a setting with higher colour diamonds (mine is a solitaire). However, I did compare it to a 1.5ct CZ I have (which I''ve heard are all D in colour), and any difference was faint at best, and the diamond was by far more attractive anyway, due to having many more facets and more sparkle.

So in conclusion: My diamond looks perfectly white to me, and I would not question it whatsoever if I didn''t already know it was a J. Even then, like I said, any remote tint I ever see (never face up) is so slight that I can''t tell if I''m just being paranoid. Considering this, I would definitely recommend that others consider lower colours in order to get a larger size (or clarity, if that''s your concern). I''m glad I made this tradeoff, as it doesn''t seem like a tradeoff at all.

Sorry this is so long winded, I just wanted to share my views!

 

[Maisie]

Thank you for posting your thoughts. Its interesting to hear what other people think about the so called lower colours. I used to have a J and it was perfectly white. I know not everyone loves J''s but for me it was definitely a good buy. Enjoy your lovely diamond!

Have you posted photos in Show me the Ring yet?

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 5/1/2009 11:08:25 AM
Author: Maisie
Thank you for posting your thoughts. Its interesting to hear what other people think about the so called lower colours. I used to have a J and it was perfectly white. I know not everyone loves J's but for me it was definitely a good buy. Enjoy your lovely diamond!

Have you posted photos in Show me the Ring yet?

ditto, can't wait to see your ring pics; great info! congrats

 

[soocool]

I just ordered my yg ring from JA in a 1.5 ct J center stone. I feel confident that I won''t be disappointed.

My yg wb has K diamonds and they are beautifully white.

 

[lyra]

I love my K, but the other day daughter and I were in this one store at the cash register and I looked down and it looked like a fancy yellow!!

I''d never seen that before, I looked up at the lighting, then looked at my RHR which has G-H stones and saw the exact same thing. Whew! I think the cashier might have thought I was nuts! But I''m sure any PS''er would have done the same. I would recommend a well cut J-K anyday!

 

[Winks_Elf]

What color shirt were you wearing? The color from your shirt, yellowish lighting in the store, or even the color of the walls or counter you were standing at can influence how your eyes see the colors.

 

[mrssalvo]

I got to see dee*jay''s J earrings next to her H center stone and would agree that face up they looked the same in all the lighting situations I put them in. I did see a slight warmth in the J from the side but agree they do present a great value and the average person would not be able to detect any color when looking at it face up.

 

[abcdefg]

Date: 5/1/2009 11:54:15 AM
Author: lyra
I love my K, but the other day daughter and I were in this one store at the cash register and I looked down and it looked like a fancy yellow!!

I'd never seen that before, I looked up at the lighting, then looked at my RHR which has G-H stones and saw the exact same thing. Whew! I think the cashier might have thought I was nuts! But I'm sure any PS'er would have done the same. I would recommend a well cut J-K anyday!

Yup, this is a good point. I think surroundings influence perceived stone colour more than actual colour grade. To a point, obviously.

As a test, I just went and held my diamond and my CZ together against a white background in natural lighting. Face up, I'm not sure I could tell any difference - I would describe the diamond as more robust, not so much yellow. I think it's because of the larger number of facets. Face down I could tell a colour difference, but I never look at my diamond like that. Looking through the pavilion from the side, I could see a slight tint in my diamond - mainly just in the girdle reflection, actually, not the entire stone.

Awhile back on PS, someone compared diamond colour to paint swatches, and I really liked that. Several shades of white will appear "white" (not identifiably yellow, just shades of white) when alone, and you don't notice anything beyond that until you see all the shades together there on the card. When I look at my J, I see a white diamond. When I compare it with my CZ, I still see a white diamond, just a less stark white, I guess.

I would consider a well-cut K after this experience, as well!

 

[rickster123]

I viewed in person some G,H,I, J''s last week and picked the J cos I couldnt see any difference at all when faced up. Got a bigger rock for the same money. The only time I could see any difference at all is when they were upside down and right next to each other and I was REALLY looking for the difference. A casual glance from a stranger would never be able to tell. J works. (As long as the cut is excellent that is............

 

[hearts-arrows_girl]

Your post is great! It exactly spells out what having a J with strong fl. is like. It was like reading a Consumer Report test. My friend at work has a J princess solitaire that always looks white. And you even stated that you weren''t sure how the color would be in larger sizes, so that people would know your testing criteria. Your post was informative and very professional for the average Joe to read.

 

[emeraldlover1]

I have a J and I totally agree with a lot that is being said here. I''m glad that I own one and I think it looks super white face up.

 

[Black Jade]

Some people can see the difference and some people can''t.

I''m one of the people who can''t. Or not very well. I have three colors of diamonds. I have an engagement ring appraised as H/I in yellow gold, probably a very good cut, .33 carats; I have a solitaire that I got for anniversary ring, F color in platinum, AGS0 idea .65 carats; I have a pair of diamond stud earrings, H color in white gold, ACA hearts and arrows, .90 carats each. I can see that my F is whiter than the H/I with the very good cut (that''s not idea), but I''m not sure that I''m really seeing that, I may just be seeing less sparkle. I can see that my F is whiter than my H earrings, but only if I stand in the sunlight, hold them both about 5 inches from my eyes, stare and compare. I''d never notice a difference if I didn''t know there was a difference. I ordered a J color AGS0 recently, .33 carat and compared it to the others and found that THAT didn''t look very different to me, to my surprise. I really could only see any yellow in the J when looking from the side. It looked white to me.

From the side, I CAN see that the F is, not whiter exaclty, but much more transparent than the others. It looks like an ice cube from the side. But how often do you look at your diamonds from the side?

HOWEVER, I have a friend that I showed these diamonds too (she''s thinking of buying the J). I didn''t have the J particularly close to my F colored ring. Right away she said, from feet away, ''that''s much yellower than your ring''. She didn''t know it was a J yet, nor did she know my ring was an F. She wasn''t like, turned off or anything. After seeing this, she wanted to buy the J, which she thought was just beautiful (she has a lot of diamonds, but is not familiar with ideal cut). But she did see the color difference right away.

I was startled, because as I said, it''s not at all obvious to me. But then I thought that it must just be true what I''m always reading on this forum--that there are some people who are ''color-sensitive''--though I''m not one of them.

It''s not having older eyes either--she''s about my age and she needs reading glasses, too.

I also have another friend who can look at your diamonds, set in jewelry face up and tell you the color within a grade every time. I think he had some training as a jeweler, though. He says, however, that he was unusual while he was being trained, as nobody else being trained with him could do this, without having them face down and comparing to the master set, etc. etc.
I have to say that I think this is a liability for him. He only likes D color diamonds (and he can tell an F from a D)--and he can''t afford D color diamonds.

I got my F on advice from my brother, who listened to the choices within my budget when I was buying it and said to go with the whiter diamond, since it was a only a couple of mm. smaller than the lower colors available. But now, having got the H earrings and having seen the J diamond, I would say that FOR ME, I wouldn''t hesitate to buy a J color AT ALL. And in fact, I''d be curious to see K''s and L''s in real life (I''ve seen them on the computer screen, but I don''t trust that that is necessarily the same thing.)

 

[Alexiszoe]

I am one of those unfortunate people who can see color straight away. I used to own a 1.5 carat J, no fluorescence (see avatar) - it''s a pretty stone, but under certain lighting conditions it absolutely bugged me, and when placed next to my aunt''s H marquise my J looked distinctively yellow too. I think J is really a great value for money, but now i would look at the stone in all lighting conditions before i decided.

 

[tigian]

I have a J and it looks pretty darn white to me in all lights and against all colors. Maybe not the icy white I've seen, but not at all colored. I'm afraid the longer I'm on PS and the closer I look at diamonds, I will be able to tell detect a warmth to it.

 

[HornAround]

I can pick up a different color almost right away. I don''t know if my girlfriend can but I didn''t want to make the mistake of finding out too late so I went with a higher color. It is often very tempting to say to yourself,"hey, why not drop the color a couple grades and go bigger"? The problem is I haven''t been able to do it yet an don''t think I will.

 

[Rockit]

This is a great thread. Yes, there are always folks who place a premium on high-colored diamonds. I get it, and that''s swell. And, if you are "collecting," especially top-notch material, it is especially important. But for me – especially because my budget is limited – the cut, size, shape, clarity, crystal and performance of a diamond ALL come before color. And, I am very sensitive to color, I just don''t mind it at all in a well-cut diamond. And, really, the warmer diamonds are more flattering to my coloring. I''d never made a "list" before, but, after reading this thread and taking stock of my own diamonds, I have not only J, but also, K, L, O-P and more below, as well as I and F. And, although many people have complimented my jewelry, even the diamonds themselves, no one has EVER said anything regarding the off-color of a mid-alphabet stone. Funny too, as it turns out, the high-color F''s are my LEAST favorites, for all kinds of reasons. So, I''d take an exquisitely cut and performing lower-colored diamond over a "nice" high-colored stone any day.

Now, if I could afford it, and one showed me an "exquisite" high-colored diamond of the same size, I could be convinced, I''m sure, to go with that over a lower color...

But, as it is, I routinely look for beautiful diamonds that are I-J-K- and even L-colored, and I am usually thrilled with what I can find, especially considering the savings in cost versus a higher-colored stone. It is all about priorities, isn''t it?

 

[Phoenix]

To me personally, diamonds in the D-E-F range are more about mind-clean issues, although I consider myself fairly colour-sensitive. I do love the whiter diamonds (because this is what I've been brought up to believe - that they're "superior"/ more socially acceptable in the Asian culture) but in reality I-J-K coloured diamonds are much better value for money. You can go up in size or get the size you've been longing to have without having to spend a ton more moolahs. I have K colour studs which I'm upgrading to J coloured ones, but only because BGD just happen to have these incredible J coloured diamonds that are within my budget. I never imagined that I could upgrade both in colour and size, but that's exactly what i'm doing!

.

It's really great that incredible cuts make J-K coloured stones much more acceptable. My K studs face up as white as can be and no-one IRL know that they're K, except me!

. Also, most of the time, people can't see the very slight tint even from the side unless you place them right next to F-G.

I can't imagine what everyone is going say now that I'm going up one grade in colour to J! J absolutely rocks!!!

 

[Rockit]

Actually, you bring up a good point, and one that I completely overlooked... there ARE cultures where high-colored stones are clearly more "socially acceptable," as you say. And, that makes the issue of higher-colored vs. lower-colored diamonds even more pertinent. Good post.

 

[elle_chris]

I have a G for my e-ring, a K for my pendant and I''s for my earrings.
I can easily see the color differnece but it depends on the lighting. Sometimes my K can look colorless. More often than not though it doesn''t.

To be honest, I prefer higher color diamonds and would not sacrfice my G e-ring for a lower color, larger stone. In fact, if I ever "upgrade" it''s going to be for an E. This isn''t because of mind clean issues but more of I don''t want to see a tint in any part of the stone in any type of lighting. Unless of course it''s just reflecting it''s surroundings. I also love the crispness of colorless stones.

I''m not in the camp that believes bigger is always better. It''s just a preference.

If I were a guy ready to purchase and e-ring, I''d make sure that my SO was ok with going down to a J and lower for size. I wouldn''t just assume it. It''s not always about get the biggest for your buck.