Since immemorial times, diamonds have been considered emblems of love, fearlessness, power and eternity. Diamonds have been a common focus of legends and notable pieces of fiction such as Ian Fleming’s “Diamonds are forever” and Scott Fitzgerald’s “the diamond is as big as the Ritz”. The Hollywood movie industry and its stars too have long had a love affair with diamonds. In the 1952 film “Tarzan’s Savage Fury”, Dorothy Hart who played Jane, wore the Transvaal diamond, a 68ct champagne stone. In ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ (1953) Marilyn Monroe sang ‘Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend’ wearing the Moon of Baroda, a 25.95ct pear-shaped canary diamond.

The glamour stars of yesteryears, Lana Turner, Mae West and Marlene Dietrich, were rarely seen in public without their diamonds. Screen legend Elizabeth Taylor was renowned to have owned more diamonds than any other movie star. During her marriage to Richard Burton, she was offered a diamond-studded Iguana brooch, a flawless pear shaped Cartier, a Krupp diamond, and the Taylor heart, one of world’s largest engraved diamonds. (originally given by Emperor Shah Jahan to his wife Mumtaz).

Towards the end of 20th century, coloured diamonds suddenly began to draw attention. Around the time the Argyle mine in Western Australia began turning out Pink and Champagne diamonds, new cutting styles were bringing more fancy-coloured yellow diamonds into the marketplace.

Diamonds come in a myriad of hues including blue, pink, red, green, orange, purple, violet, yellow, olive, brown or even as the exotic colour changing chameleon diamonds. Naturally coloured diamonds are very rare and dear, but they exude an unmistakable warmth, beauty and sophistication- making them an exclusive way for a woman to express her own unique individuality.

For coloured diamonds, the aspect of colour far outweighs clarity, cut and carat weight in the determination of their value. Therefore, it is important to understand the relationship of colour appearances that affect colour grades and descriptions.

Colour descriptions stress on three attributes: hue (the first impression of a colour), tone (the relative lightness or darkness of a colour) and saturation (the relative strength or weakness of a colour). The colour appearance of a gem is the result of a combination of these three attributes.

Most diamonds used as gemstones are basically transparent with little tint. However, depending on the hue and intensity of a diamond’s colouration, a diamond’s colour can either detract from, or enhance its value. For instance, most white diamonds are discounted in price as more yellow hue is detectable, while intense pink or blue diamonds such as the Hope Diamond can be dramatically more valuable.

The colour of a diamond may be affected by the addition of chemical impurities or structural variations in the crystal lattice. The most common impurity, Nitrogen, replaces a small proportion of carbon atoms in a diamond’s structure to give it a yellowish to a brownish tint.

When pressure compresses carbon, it lends a red, pink or purple hue. While Boron makes a diamond blue, natural radiation deep in the earth gives the colours green or blue.

The universal rating system for colour in white diamonds ranges from “D” to “Z” (with D being “colourless” and Z having a bright yellow colouration). Diamonds with higher colour grades are rarer, in higher demand and therefore fetch a higher price than lower colour grades.

All colours of the spectrum that diamonds exist in are represented in various shapes. Round or brilliant, oval, princess and radiant shapes are in high demand. Also available are fancy shapes as hearts, trapezoids and others.

The colour framing of gold- yellow, white, rose- can enhance the colour of the diamond. Depending on the colour, diamonds can be set in 18k yellow gold, white gold or platinum. Yellow gold is specifically used to showcase yellow diamonds, to enhance the colour effect, and platinum or white gold for all other coloured diamonds.

The cut of a diamond describes the quality of workmanship and the angles to which the diamond is cut. The techniques for cutting diamonds have been developed over hundreds of years, is perhaps the greatest achievements made in 1919 by mathematician and gem enthusiast Marcel Tolkowsky. He developed the round brilliant cut by calculating the ideal shape to return and scatter light when a diamond is viewed from above.

A good cut adds additional sparkle and brings out the most intense colour possible. Like other diamonds, fancy coloured diamonds gain maximum brilliance when cut to the most ideal and accurate proportions. Facets, inclusions, angles and proper visualisation of shapes while cutting can project the gemstone’s best appearance; all play a role in determining the colour of a diamond.

Yellow and pink diamonds are the most sought after fancy coloured diamonds in the world. Celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez and Kobe Bryant have continued to make these colours popular. An increased demand for orange, blue and green coloured diamonds show that these colours are now getting popular.