Fancy Pink Diamonds
Posted by: | CommentsIf you’re out there looking for the best fancy pink diamond for your money, then please contact me and let me know your budget and what you’re looking for. I’ll sift through the available inventory online and send you a list of 4 or 5 suggested stones to choose from that fit your needs the best. Unlike the other sites, I’m not looking to sell you anything – my advice is objective and in your best interest. The service is free, and there is absolutely no commitment to buy any of my suggestions. You have nothing to lose!
The whole of the fancy color diamond market, perhaps with the exception of yellow (“Canary”) diamonds, has until recently always been something of a small “insider’s club.” Â These ultra-rare gems were sold only in the most exclusive of fine jewelry stores and were the exclusive domain of very serious collectors who were extremely wealthy. Â The rest of us in the world had never heard of fancy color diamonds.
This, of course, has changed greatly in the past 20 or so years. Now, who doesn’t know about natural fancy color diamonds? Â It’s not uncommon these days to read about the greatest celebrities of the day wearing pink, blue, or yellow diamonds down the red carpet. Â Perhaps the most famous fancy color diamond to grace the pages of celebrity gossip magazines worldwide was the 6 carat monster fancy vivid pink diamond that Ben Affleck gave Jennifer Lopez when he proposed to her.
Pink Diamonds – Popular, Yet Expensive
Record Setting Pink Diamond
Since that fateful day in 2002, Pink Diamonds have become increasingly popular. Â To make matters worse, the supply of natural fancy pink diamonds in the world is extremely low. Â In fact, almost all of the world’s pink diamonds come from one mine in Western Australia. Â The famed Argyle mine also produces a large percentage of the world’s brown (aka, “champagne” and “cognac”) color diamonds. Â Before the discovery of this mine in the 1980′s, production of fancy pink diamonds had been scant at best. Â When Argyle went live, it quickly gained the reputation as the only reliable consistent source of high quality pinks in the world. Â Since Argyle had a virtual monopoly of the world’s pink diamond market, they began to invest in marketing them and were responsible for driving demand even further.
As you might imagine, this combination of extreme popularity with extreme scarcity makes for some very pricy diamonds. Â Perhaps with the exception of red diamonds, high quality pinks are the most expensive natural diamond color in the market today. Â In fact, the most expensive diamond every sold at auction was a 5.00 carat cushion-shaped fancy vivid pink sold in a Hong Kong Christie’s auction in December 2009. Â The diamond was sold for $10.8 million dollars and actually set two diamond records. Â This was the most expensive diamond per carat ever sold at auction, and it was the most expensive pink diamond ever sold.
Buying Pink Diamonds
Buying a pink diamond is a major decision that requires much thought and deliberation.
Perhaps the most critical issue that needs to be dealt with first is simply the matter of budget. Â Since pink diamonds absolutely explode in value as their size and color intensity grows, you’ll need to enter into the process with a clear picture of what you intend to spend.
Fancy Light Pink
Secondly, you’ll have to decide on what kind of color intensity you desire. Â This, along with carat weight, will have the greatest impact on the price of the diamond. Â Furthermore, with pink diamonds it makes a slight difference in price whether or not there are modifying colors in the color description (this is as opposed to Orange diamonds which drop in price dramatically if they have modifying colors). Â For example, a stone graded as “Purplish-Pink” will be worth slightly less than a stone graded as “Pink” with no modifiers. Â Take these sample stones from Leibish & Company Fancy Diamonds as an example of these points:
Fancy Pink Diamond
1) http://www.fancydiamonds.net/view_diamonds/3727.htm – This stone is a 0.50 carat Fancy Light Pink pear shape diamond with SI1 clarity. Â It costs $4900. Â By contrast, a 0.50 carat D-Flawless white diamond costs approximately $3500.
2) http://www.fancydiamonds.net/view_diamonds/3724.htm – This stone is a 0.57 carat Fancy Pink pear shape diamond also with SI1 clarity. Â This stone costs $9200. Â As you can see, jumping from Fancy Light Pink to Fancy Pink just about doubles the stone’s price. Â This is a perfect example, because the two diamonds are so similar in every other regard.
Fancy Intense Pink Diamond
3) http://www.fancydiamonds.net/view_diamonds/3352.htm -
Fancy Intense Purplish Pink Diamond
This stone is a 0.52 carat Fancy Intense Pink radiant cut diamond with VS2 clarity. Â The price for this stone is not published, but I have been told it is about $55,000. Â This is where things start getting interesting with pink diamonds! Â The step from Fancy Pink to Fancy Intense Pink is a rather expensive one!
4) http://www.fancydiamonds.net/view_diamonds/3431.htm – This stone is a 0.44 carat (diamond size categories don’t matter than much in fancy color pricing) round brilliant with Fancy Intense Purplish Pink color and SI1 clarity. Â This stone costs $51,450. Â As you can see, the difference in price between a modified and unmodified pink diamond is very slight. The reason is simply that pink diamonds are only modified by equally rare and desirable colors such as Orange and Purple. Diamonds generally drop in value when they are modified by less desirable “cheaper” colors such as Yellow, Gray, and Brown.
So if you’re in the market for a substantial pink diamond (ie, 0.40 carat or more, Fancy Pink or better), then as you can see, you can save only a bit of money (if anything) looking specifically for a stone with a modifying color. Â Anyway, as you can see in the pictures above, the actual difference in color between the fancy intense pink diamond and the fancy intense purplish pink diamond is very slight, if noticeable at all.
As I recommend in my general article about fancy color diamonds, from my research and experience, Leibish & Co Fancy Diamonds is the best place (internet or otherwise) to buy pink diamonds and other fancy colors. Â They are at the highest rung in the fancy color diamond supply chain and treat their regular customers (in terms of pricing) just like they treat their industry customers.
Hi Ira,
I recently purchased 2 pink pears, 0.16 and 0.18 fancy intense pink, from leibish & co. I am making a 3 stone ring with the center being 0.9 colorless brilliant round, can you suggest the best way to set the stones to get the best color possible. Is it best to set them so lots of light can get in or the opposite.
Thank you
GB
Hi George. For a job like this, you really should only rely on an expert with experience setting pink stones like these. Have you asked Leibish about setting them for you?
Hi, I know the stones in question, I actually considered buying one of them. Whilst both stones are great stones, one is a more significant and higher quality stone than the other and although they could be paired in a pair of earrings, I wouldn’t recommend them in a single piece (ie ring/pendant etc). The heavier stone is actually shorter, leading to a stouter shape and the lighter stone is actually lighter also in colour, despite being also graded Fancy Intense. Chavi, Leibish’s daughter, is a superb jewellery designer and would be delighted to offer an opportunity to design something for you, as far as the design is concerned, she will advise and possibly say that what I said is nonsense, however, I don’t believe these stones belong in a symettrical single piece. Even if the stones are already by you, they could make something and have it shipped to you for final setting at your local jeweller.
Hi I was just wondering if you think $190AU each is a good price for 3point 7p pink diamonds at wholesale price si clarity? And having such light pink diamonds still a good investment? Thanks heaps!
Hi Janet. To be honest with you, I’m not 100% on top of market pricing for small pinks. Your best bet for the correct answer would be to contact Leibish & Co at http://www.fancydiamonds.net and ask them. Their prices are almost always the best around, so you can compare with them.
Thanks Ira I was also wondering if I have to worry about them being clarity si when they are only 3 pointers. I am using 7p diamonds would that be light pink when referring to the GIA grading? I am going by the Argyle grading chart
I am intending to use these pink diamonds in a 18c gold ring with F colour white diamonds. Will you still be able to see a contrast? I am going for a subtle look. I have viewed the pink and white Argyle diamonds and there and there is a obvious difference between the two, but will you be able to tell the contrast when they are set in a ring?
7P is basically GIA Light pink in colour, using Argyles own grading system, 9P is faint, almost white. The smaller the number, the more pink the stone. Last year I bought 7 pointers of the same grade for under $100USD each. On smaller stones like these, double the size could theoretically quadruple the price. So, no, this isn’t a good price. Using more current information, Ira is quite right, Leibish has stock of better quality on his website for sale right now. 10 matched 3 point stones about 2mm across each in Fancy Light (probably 7P-6P) listed as a parcel for $1320USD. Small diamonds like this are not an investment. Despite the possibility of Argyle running out of pink stones during our lifetimes, these smaller gems are used pretty much just for filling out jewellery designs. They are fascinating and pretty, but not an investment. It is always best to use USD when valuing these globally traded goods!
Thanks so much Ira and Paul! I enquired about the fancy light pink .33 point 10 set parcel and they said that fancy light pink equals to 7p? The 7p diamonds that I have viewed looks lighter then those on the leibish website? Do you think the photo is a true indication of the colour? And should I worry about the clarity when buying small coloured diamonds? I am going to use the pink diamonds with F coloured white diamonds also si
PS
Thank goodness for this website!
sorry for my poor typing! I was meaning that I have viewed lighter 7p diamonds in person then those in the .33 set on leibish.
I have purchased all 15 diamonds comprising of seven 7p si Argyle pinks and eight F si white Argyle whites. Off to the setter my cute little 3 pointers go!! I’m so excited! There is so much to consider. I’m glad that eternity rings last a lifetime because I’m exhausted… Thanks again for the advice!
Wow! Very exciting! Please send us pics when it’s all finished!
I wouldn’t question Leibish&Co, they are usually infallible. However, although they aren’t a direct comparison, I have always thought the first few fancy grades against the Argyle grades go like this, 9P Faint, 8P Very Light, 7P Light, 6P Fancy Light, 5P Fancy, 4P Fancy Intense, 3P Fancy Vivid. In terms of the pictures, in my experience, diamonds from Leibish&Co look like the photos. It is always important to point out, these are natural stones and not vividly coloured crystals. They will look different in different kinds of light, but this is part of their beauty.
Why / how are pictures online of fancy light and pink diamonds of 1+ ct so pink? In person, they look close to colorless until you surround them with rose gold and smaller pink diamonds.
Perhaps you’re confusing Light Pink with Fancy Light Pink?
GIA certs read: Fancy Light Pink (1) & Fancy Pink (2)
Origin on all 3: Natural
Correction: The light pink is an IGI report and it reads: Color Grade Light Pink (Description Natural Diamond)
I looked at a 4th but don’t have the report for it.
Often the feeling that a stone has been represented as having more colour, is simply by virtue of the fact that if you bought it online, the photo will have been made larger in order to show the stone. Also, different lighting conditions produce different colours. My wife has a 1.5 carat Fancy Light Pink on her ring and in certain conditions it is almost colourless and other conditions intense. When properly graded, the stones will follow the scale properly, but bear in mind, with a natural product, part of the beauty of it is its uniqueness and rareity. Some people prefer the subtle lighter pinks (certain Eastern countries, for example) whereas others prefer more vivid colours. Some more light stones can be improved by certain jewellers practices, some of which are frowned upon, others are considered artistic. Putting vivid small stones in a halo around a lighter larger stone using rose gold as the setting, for example, subtley, artistically and honestly enhances the centre (higher value) stone. Dipping a light blue in vivid blue paint on the culet is considered dishonest representation, for example.
I just bought a brownish orangy pink diamond, .47 carats, cut into a heart shape. Looks quite large for a .47 carat. The cut is good thanks to our calculated formula. It’s an SI2 that was graded in-house by Ishay Ben-David. The stone is a nice color, eye clean, but with the loop you can see some carbon spots and lines. Price = $3,850.00. I can get a round brilliant orangy pink, .59 carats, Vs2 or SI1, graded in-house. The round brilliant cut is fair according to our calculations. Price = $3,100.00. Should I keep my brownish orangy pink diamond or go with the round orangy pink diamond? Both are GIA certified. Does color trump cut and clarity? I am confused! Thanks, Dorothy
Hi Dorothy. Personally, I don’t like seeing diamonds with an eye visible inclusion, so I would make the switch.
I don’t see any inclusions or carbon spot with the naked eye – only with the loop. I’m afrad if I go for a Vs2, it’s going to be quite costly. Probably an arm or leg cost!!! Ha Ha!!!! These pink diamonds have certainly increased in price. I do love the color of this diamond. Beautiful pink!!!! Buying on line is not the easiest thing to do. DBL is a good place to start because David shows you thoroughly what’s inside the diamond. He is meticulous about clarity and I appreciate him for that! Thanks for the info. Dorothy
If you can’t see the inclusions with the naked eye, then that’s all that matters in my book!
Ira is right, most people don’t look at diamonds with a loupe, I look at all my stones with the naked eye and recently meeting with a well known diamond dealer, he told me he does just the same… Therefore if you can’t see the inclusions, that is more important. Either way, I am confused slightly with your comments though. Are they in house graded, or GIA graded? Brown in any certificate reduces the price on two otherwise identical stones, even if it is the first word and only ‘brownish’. In fancy diamonds, colour always trumps everything else – but I am an insane colour minded collector, so you might not want to believe me. I would buy a 2 point chip if it was vivid green… Based on what you said, the second stone is bigger and has a better colour.
Hi,possibly found a good/great deal on a pink diamond. Carat weight is .62. The color looks to be a fancy or maybe an intense with a modifier color of purplish. It is a cushion cut and does not look to be polished. The broker is sending it off to EGL, even though I only like GIA to grade my diamonds. The diamond is $695.00, and the broker thinks the dimaond is an I2 or I3. Will not buy it, if the clarity is I3. I’m here in Austin, where color diamonds do not sell well and many people think diamonds are only colorless or yellow. Should I jump on this diamond if it’s an I1 or I2?
Hi Dorothy. A stone like that is almost certainly not natural. That’s probably why he won’t want to send it to GIA – they’d be able to detect it.
Hi Ira, Not even EGL can detect a real diamond from a fake? I know EGL is not the best lab to test fancy colored diamonds like GIA or IGI, but I thought all labs could detect a real diamond. I know getting a I2 or I3 is not sound judgement, and $650.00 is like throwing your money away, but I have seen large, rare, diamonds in the intense and vivid on Leibish in the I1 range. You would not believe the I1, I2, and I3s on E-Bay. I think I saw where someone brough a red diamond .92 carats in the I- range for mega bucks, but it’s a RED for goodness sake.
EGL can obviously tell whether a diamond is fake or not, but they might not necessarily be able to tell whether a diamond is color treated or not.
Hi Dorothy,
A 62 point intense pink stone has a $100K per carat value. There is a little wiggle room for poorer clarity stones, modifying colours etc. Even a pinkish brown (ie a brown stone with the least modifying amount of pink) in the light scale (ie 3 steps down the ladder from intense) is worth about 10 times as much as the diamond you are describing, which is asking $1K per carat (100 times less than its value if it were correct). Natural purplish pink hues are almost completely the exclusive material of the Argyle mine, with other mines (such as Golconda in India) producing noticeably different hues. Stay away from this stone, its a pup.
To correct a previous statement, pink diamonds can have either grey or brown modifying colours and this affects the values a bit more (lower, but not very low). Since brown stones are so coloured due to similar tremendous crushing pressure deep in the earth as pink stones, it is actually quite common to see the brown modifying colour. This is also why you will rarely see an internally flawless pink stone (I have seen one and know of another) because the effect causes striations (graining) in the stone which appears as inclusion.
are pink diamonds only mined in Australia? How do you know whether they are geniune…do all pinks come with certificates regardless of size? How can you tell heat treated dimaonds from authentic ones with the naked eye? Is it the colour only?
I’m interested in finding 1 or 2 pointers for a ring
thank you
More than 90% of the world’s production of natural pink diamonds come from the Argyle mine in Australia. There are wonderful diamonds produced extremely rarely from the Golconda mine in India and the largest red on record comes from Brazil, which is over 5 carats (red and pink are essentially the same diamond, with the red being even more phenomenally rare and coveted – this comment is contentious however).
It is quite easy to see a treated diamond with the naked eye – if the diamond is really vivid pink and cheap, it is treated. Of course, I am being flippant here! Seriously speaking, 1-2 pointers are never graded, there simply isn’t any point grading them. Fancy grade stones at this size are worth less than $100, which is less than the certificate.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Paul!
I was wondering what your opinion is regarding fluorescence in pink diamonds? I’m currently looking a .93 fancy intense pink stone from IBD which has a strong blue Fluorescence but I have little idea of this condition will affect price and quality.
Thanks,
Scott
Hi Scott. Thanks for writing in. Many Pinks (especially Argyle Pinks) have fluorescence. Usually, it does not affect the stone negatively. It’s quite common in Pinks, but before you really see the stone it’s hard to tell. As you’re probably aware, the market for Intense Pinks is not very large. I spoke with a friend of mine in NY who is in the fancy color trade, and he said that he knows the stone in question (the 0.93ct) and said that in this case, the fluorescence actually shows itself and the stone’s lustre suffers as a result. He suggested this stone instead which he said he’s seen recently and says it has a much nicer color:
http://www.fancycolordiamond.net/search/fancy_colored_diamond_details.cfm?id=5708P
Hi there, I was wondering is there really anyway of telling if a pink diamond is natural colored or irradiated without sending the stone into an appraisal company. ie. I’m being told from a jewller in their 30+ years of diamond selling experience they believe that the stone is of natural color. How much weight would such a statement have? With that being said I’m looking a a diamond advertised as a fancy light brown pink intense 1.3 cts Elizabeth cut SI2/SI3 (or I1 as I’m in Canada) with a tag of $12000. Does this sound legit?
Hi Lawrence. It’s possible because it’s a lower clarity stone and it’s a brown pink.
I recently purchased a 1.85 carat fancy pinkish brown certified stone for about half that price. The last colour in the certificate is the important one, in your case ‘PINK’ in my case ‘BROWN’, despite having a pinkish hue. So I would say that the price is OK but not cheap for retail with setting, considering that although smaller and lighter, your stone has a better colour than the stone which I bought. Leibish has a 1.13 carat Fancy Brown Pink available recently for around $9K.