LGK
Ideal_Rock
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2007
- Messages
- 2,975
Erica, I've had a zillion conversations like that too about my M colored OEC. People ask WAY more often "Is that a D color- I've never seen a stone sparkle like that!" versus "Why's it yellow?" I've had maybe two people wonder why it had color and/or say something disparaging about the color, and I have about one conversation with a stranger about my ring per day, or or more. Generally people are gobsmacked when you tell them an M color- like mine- is going to be way cheaper than a colorless stone. People tend to believe sparkle comes from a white color and a high clarity rather than a good cut, so when they see a super sparkly stone, they all assume it has to be colorless.Date: 8/24/2009 6:28:12 PM
Author: ericad
Some people drop down in color as a sacrifice for bigger size, but many others just love the warmth, depth and color play of a lower colored diamond. My own personal sweet spot is K or lower. When I was shopping for an asscher/square emerald for myself I found 2 stones within my budget and size range (I was looking at 2+ carat size), a 2 carat D, VS2 and a 3 carat L, VS2. The D cost a little more than the L but cost and size were not determining factors since both fell within my desired size and price range. But I snapped up the L fast as can be - the D didn't stand a chance. I'm just not drawn to colorless stones. I actually didn't want to go as big as 3 carats, but I made that sacrifice in order to get the color I love
But if I had a dollar for every conversation I've had with non-diamond savvy friends that went like this...
Me: You can try it on if you like.
Her: Wow, it's so pretty and so clear! And why does it look like a rainbow? I've never seen diamonds that look like this. I LOVE the colors! It must be a really high quality...
Me: It's an L/M/N color in an antique cut. That's why it looks different from most diamonds you've seen.
Her: Is L the 'best' color?
Me: The color scale starts at D/E/F for colorless stones, then down it goes until you get into the light yellows. L/M/N has a faint yellow tint. It's just a matter of preference.
Her: [looking puzzled] Oh. So it's a bad quality then, since it has yellow in it?
At this point they usually walk away confused because their eyes are contradicting what they have been conditioned to think. The good news, though, is that these interactions have helped many of my friends learn to simply choose what they love. Sometimes that's colorless, and many times it's warm colors.
One more relevant anecdote. My best friend was getting engaged. She and I had been corresponding for months as I tried to help her narrow down what she wanted. Her highest priority was 'best quality' and after drilling down a bit, I realized that to her this meant whatever is being marketed as high quality (colorless). Until I jumped onto the project, she had only been to mall stores and was begging me to make sure her boyfriend got her a 'clear' stone (she must have seen a lot of heavily included stones in her circle) and something really white.
So time went by as I waited for her boyfriend to make the first move (ask for help) when she fell madly in love with a video clip of a 1.86ct antique rectangular asscher/emerald cut we had. The boyfriend calls me up and wants to get it for her. So I get nervous and try to explain to her that it's an EGL I color, so it has some warmth and won't be the super white colorless stone she told me she wanted. She didn't care, and said she trusted me to make sure she got a diamond she loves and that something about THAT stone was speaking to her. GULP. No pressure!
Anyway, he did end up buying the stone and sent me a mounting he already bought at a B&M store months before (silly rabbit), and by some miracle we managed to fit the stone in this setting (set it E/W - so cool!) and he presented it to her and she lost her mind! She says it's the most beautiful diamond she'd ever seen and couldn't wrap her brain around the gorgeous warm tones it flashed, and said this diamond felt like a living, breathing thing - like it was warm blooded and so different from what her friends had. She ADORED the slight warmth and said she'd have preferred it to be even more 'yellow' and was so thankful that she didn't get the D/E/F she originally thought she wanted. And she loves that her stone is so different from anything she sees around her.
So my point, after all of this rambling, is that many people are clouded by what they are 'taught' to want and forget to just let their eyes and hearts be the judge of what is beautiful, whether that's a D, an M or a Q. Use the reports and specs and all the tools available to us to make a decision about price and cut quality, etc., but at the end of the day let our feelings guide us to what's most beautiful. And for each of us, that will be different. Then flaunt what you got, baby!
So if I was gonna wish for something, this would be it - for people to buy what they love rather than getting hung up on stats. Well, that and world peace
Personally, I would NOT trade my M colored OEC for a coloress stone if I could for free. I like the way it looks. It speaks to me. I just don't love the uber-white look, especially in the antique cuts I prefer. I find the color is more flattering to my skin tone- super pale with yellow undertones, which describes the stone too lol.
We simply didn''t know! I love many diamonds from all ranges of color, however, my favorites are still warm.
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