Diamonds and Colors - Heart In Diamond

How Do Diamonds Get Their Colors?

You may be surprised to know that diamonds have color due to their chemical impurities. Whereas the purest diamonds, ones made of solely carbon, are entirely transparent, the color of a non-transparent diamond is determined by which elements have laced themselves between the diamond’s carbon atoms. However, while entirely clear diamonds are the technically considered the rarest and most pure, there is always a demand for diamonds of every hue, shade, shape and size. Diamonds come in nearly every color of the rainbow, from blue to yellow to pink to black to entirely see-through.

2 orange colored and 1 white diamond, all three round brilliant cut

Fancy Colored Diamonds

While impurities suggest flaws, they actually give diamonds their deep color and exquisite beauty. Fancy color diamonds can have secondary hues as well. A diamond that has a yellow-green color contains a small amount of nitrogen mixed in with the carbon. So, instead of ending up green, the diamond has a secondary shade. The deeper the color of the diamond, the more valuable and rare it is.