Warm Or White Diamonds?

[missy]

DBL as I'm sure you know has or had some light yellow newly cut antique diamonds on the site that are stunning. I saved pictures of these on my iPhone along with lots of other eye candy.

I'd take a light yellow in a heartbeat.

I'm interested in the fact that many people seem to put G and H in the same category. I'm saving to buy SO studs. He likes white diamonds. I can't decide on F, G, or H.

Hmmm. this is so subjective. I am color sensitive and to me GIA H seems slightly tinted so my cutoff point for color is G. All other things being equal that is (excellent/ideal cut etc). If your SO likes white diamonds find out when he starts to detect color and then go from there.

Love DBL's beautiful yellow antique diamonds. Gorgeous.

 

[ksinger]

I voted "Either/Or" because I am an extremes sort of gal.
In step cuts, I prefer colorless.
In old cuts, I prefer very low, M+.

Side-by-side, I'm consistently drawn to very low colors in non-step cut fancies. Anything up in the D-H range looks pretty comparable to me, and I never like them as much as the warm fancies. The IJKL range starts to look off-white to me, not warm, and I don't particularly like the off-white effect, and then we start to get warm in the M+ and .

ETA:
I read the additional question asking what I'd prefer if all colors cost the same. I'd still prefer the lower colors. When it comes to big purchases like diamonds, I like to get exactly what I want. If I hadn't been able to afford the size AND color I wanted, I would have waited until I could afford it. For me, this is not the area for compromise. I'd rather compromise when it comes to far less important things, like which car to drive where I buy my socks.

You and I are pretty much the same in this, although I also like the range that you find off-white. I saw a 5 carat L cushion not too long ago, and thought I'd swoon it was so gorgeous. It was just off-white enough to look...like cream somehow. Hard to describe, but a true stunner.

Yeah, I love me my warm stones.....

 

[Tuckins1]

My engagement ring is a D, and my RHR is an L-M. Both are gorgeous in my eyes!!

 

[stargurl78]

I think it depends on the stone. For old cuts, I prefer a little bit of warmth, maybe the I,J,K,L range. But for all of the more modern cuts, I prefer icy white, I think F is my sweet spot.

 

[Jennifer W]

Pondering a little more on this, and on Kenny's follow up question - if they were the same price would you pick the warm or the white diamond...

The warm one. I've thought about this all day (really - it's an advanced form of procrastination) and while I like icy white in theory, in reality, the stones I fall for in practice are almost always warmer.

It might be because of my skin tones (I'm not white so much as pale blue) or it might just be that I prefer creamy, warm tones over cool white tones in general. A quick glance round my house confirms that - I also realised that loving the contrast between white melee and a warm centre stone is carried over into my decorating. Cream walls, with white accented plaster and woodwork in at least three rooms. I think I just like warm tinted colours in general, rather than just in diamonds.

 

[sunheds]

I like whiter diamonds better

 

[Phoenix]

I prefer D-E-F but my pocket/ bank balances prefer I-J-K!

 

[manderz]

I want to like warmer diamonds... but I just don't. Luckily for me, I am not very color sensitive, and don't start to see tint until the J-K-L range.

I am in the PS minority in that I like inclusions. I find them charming, depending on the type and placement. I would rather save money with an I1 or I2 than with a J or K diamond.

Interesting! I hate inclusions.

I like them as well. I find comfort in being able to recognize my diamond by looking for that little spot that's just off center, and it doesn't affect the sparkle, so I find it quite endearing. Not only do I love the way my diamond looks, we saved A TON of money going with a non-certed diamond.

As far as color is concerned, I can't tell the difference between an H/I stone, and a E/F stone, so I'm happy to go with the near colorless range. I think that a much warmer color looks good for certain older cut diamonds, but I don't like the way very warm looks on me. I wear yellow gold as well, so that just makes a warmer diamond look all the more yellow. I think that I need a little more hands on experience with different colors to really know where my preferences lie, however.