Sales of ‘fancy’ coloured diamonds jump
Sales of “fancy” colored diamonds are skyrocketing as yellow, pink, and blue varieties of the rare gems favored by the likes of Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Lopez surge in popularity
- The price of all three colors rose 3.9 percent last year, the data shows
- Colored diamonds make up less than one percent of the diamonds for sale on the market
Colored diamonds are increasingly becoming a girl’s best friend after a jump in sales of rare yellow, pink and blue varieties.
Sales of so-called “fancy” diamonds rose last year while those of traditional white gemstones fell.
Yellow bricks saw the biggest rise in popularity, according to figures from the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF), which tracks trade prices in New York, Tel Aviv and Hong Kong.
The price of all three colors rose 3.9 percent last year, the data shows, with canary-colored stones rising 4.6 percent.
Colored diamonds are still only a fraction of diamonds for sale, making up less than one percent of the market.
Sales of so-called “fancy” diamonds rose last year while those of traditional white gemstones fell. In the photo: Jennifer Lopez
The price of all three colors rose 3.9 percent last year, the data shows
But they’re a celebrity favorite, including Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Lopez, who received a green diamond engagement ring from Ben Affleck last year.
Other famous stones include the blue Hope diamond, while the late Queen Elizabeth II was gifted a 54-carat intense pink diamond when she married the Duke of Edinburgh in 1947.
This was later mounted on a brooch worn on a number of royal occasions.
Diamond expert Paul Zimnisky said the rarity of colored stones was one of the main reasons they are so attractive.
“People like colored diamonds because they are rare and beautiful,” he said. “Very few people can afford to have them.”
He added: “They can also be a good investment, like a piece of original artwork or a vintage Ferrari.”
Zimnisky’s own closely tracked index estimates that white diamond prices fell nearly 5 percent last year, even though they hit an all-time high in early 2022.
He said another reason why prices started falling in some countries last year was due to people tightening their belts amid the cost-of-living crisis.
But colored gems are more immune to this because they are much more expensive to begin with.
Colored stones are created when small concentrations of chemical elements such as nitrogen and sulfur interact with carbon atoms.
There may also be green, brown, black and red varieties.
A number of theories abound as to how pink diamonds are made, and many believe it has more to do with the type of pressure applied to the stone than with trace amounts of chemical elements.