I was out shopping with a good friend of mine and we came across a ring that had black diamonds. I don't know a whole lot about jewelry but I was wondering if they are as valuable as white diamonds? Apparently they aren't very sought after according to the SA at the store, could this be true that any diamond isn't sought after?
I am intrigued and would love to know the reason.
They are not as valuable as white diamonds because they are not rare. Most diamonds are black and grey/smokey due to the lack of clarity / the many inclusions (graphite). Most dark diamonds are used in industry and it is only recently that jewelers are cutting and polishing the black diamonds for use in jewels.
Also because in nature the black diamond is not uniform in color due to the inclusions, in order to be uniform and aesthetically pleasing they treat it (I think with radiation).
I also think I've read somewhere the origin is not the same as white diamonds, white diamonds are coming out of volcanic ground while the black diamonds came in earth through asteroids. They are both carbon crystals of course but there are differences in the crystal structure, thus the whites reflect the light and the blacks absorb the light.
The value depends on the treatment it went under and usually your dealer doesn't even know if it was treated a lot or little etc, as it is generally not very important, but hypothetically speaking a natural uniformly dark diamond is rarer than one that needs a lot of treatment. In reality all the black diamonds you see used in jewelry are treated. Also the value depends on the weight/ct size. Cut etc are are non important, because these are factors important in clear diamonds as they aid the reflection of light.
One of the big challenges of cutting and polishing a black diamond is that because of the many inclusions it can crack easily.
My best friend is a huge fan of black diamonds she has quite the collection. Lower prices and "modern" cool look of black are quite the incentive.
I think the popularity has risen after the SATC movie where Big gave Carrie a black diamond ring instead of the traditional white.
Finally they are not "fancy" and should not cost the same as rare colored diamonds because they are not.
