“Champagne diamonds have a warm, golden appearance, whilst Cognac diamonds are more brownish in appearance. Both Champagne and Cognac diamonds can be yellowy, orangey, reddish or sometimes even have a greenish tint.
Champagne and Cognac diamonds are graded on a colour scale that has seven levels. The Cognac end is the darkest at C7, then the scale gets progressively lighter. The lightest colour at the Champagne end of the scale is C1.
Champagne Diamonds.
C1 is what is called a “Light Champagne” colour. As we go up the scale the colour deepens and becomes richer. Diamonds that are graded to be around C3 – C4 are still considered to be “Champagne” diamonds.
This Ellissi ring was set with a 3 ct C2 round brilliant cut diamond. The bezel rim in 18 ct yellow gold to enhance the champagne colour.
Of the fancy coloured diamonds, Champagne is the most commonly found and therefore does not command the very high prices that other rare fancy colours do. This fact makes them a very good option for those who like the colour and would like to gain some additional size for the budget to hand.
Cognac Diamonds.
Cognac diamonds are rarer than the Champagne colours and therefore tend to be a bit more expensive, weight for weight. The C1 -7 grading scale puts them from C5 – C7, with C7 being a very dark burnt orange brown and highly prized for those who favour this colour type.
Popularity of “Chocolate Diamonds”.
The marketing of these beautiful gemstones as “Champagne”, “Cognac” and “Chocolate diamonds” by the Argyle mine helped greatly to awaken the world to the beauty of these gems.
Coloured stones have been used in jewellery since early Roman times, but in the modern day and age they were largely used for industrial purposes only. This was a great shame, as they are truly beautiful diamonds. This is especially the case when set against high colour white diamonds as in the rings above.
These days consumers have come to appreciate the intrinsic beauty of the stones, and Argyle does not need to promote them for use in jewellery so much any more. They are especially popular in the US, where a whopping 40% of Argyle’s sales in these colours occur. They are also becoming increasingly popular in China and India for engagement, dress rings, pendants and earrings.
More Ellissi rings with these stunning gemstones can be seem in our Coloured Stone ring pages.