Millions of people know the tune and words of the song made famous by Marilyn Monroe, “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend”, and even more than fifty years later that phrase is still very true. In fact, diamonds have become “everyone’s” best friend with trends indicating their increasing popularity with teens, men and women of all ages. This includes those who are purchasing them to wear as jewelry and those who are looking to diamonds as a good investment vehicle.Diamonds are more popular than ever, in part due to the constant coverage given to celebrities and the fashions they select – which includes their jewelry. For example, Jennifer Lopez received an enormous pink diamond ring from her then fiancé Ben Affleck. Suddenly colored diamonds began appearing everywhere.
Though the jewelry industry has made colored diamonds available to the general public for more than twenty years, it has been in the past few years that their prices and demand have increased dramatically. A good example of the incredible popularity of colored diamonds can be seen along the “red carpet” at many celebrity events. For example, the 2008 Academy Awards ceremony saw everything from Cameron Diaz’s delicate canary yellow drop earrings to Marion Cotillard’s one hundred and seventy carats of cognac and champagne diamonds.
The colorless or white diamonds are also still as popular as ever, with many new trends arising to give them a competitive edge with the colored varieties. For example, media mogul and celebrity Oprah Winfrey focused one of her daily television programs on a brand new product – right hand diamond rings for women who are not engaged or involved in a romantic relationship.
This trend has literally exploded since the program aired, and thousands of diamond rings, similar in appearance to “traditional” engagement rings, are being made available for women to wear on their right hands. Additionally, many jewelry companies and designers have begun implementing unique designs especially for the right hand ring wearers. The popularity for these items comes not only from the unique designs, but because they present the opportunity for a woman to own a luxurious piece of jewelry that she can purchase proudly for herself.
There is also an increasing demand among female teens for “commitment” rings, which are usually purchased by parents for their daughters when they make a promise or commitment to remain abstinent until their adulthood.
Diamonds are also highly in demand among investors. With global markets continuing to head in unpredictable directions, and with the United States housing market weaker than ever, some savvy investors are purchasing valuable works of art and rare or unique gemstones, such as colored diamonds, to strengthen their portfolios.
Some might wonder if diamonds are really a wise investment vehicle, when in fact the industry has shown a more than seventy five percent increase in per carat price in only the past five years. As an investment example, consider a ten carat colorless diamond that sold in 2003 for approximately seven hundred thousand dollars. Today that same stone has recently been appraised at just over two million dollars, which equals a remarkable increase of over one hundred thousand dollars per carat in only five years. This is a percentage that very few investments can deliver.
The trick to such a lucrative investment however is to find and acquire such diamonds – industry statistics indicate that only two hundred stones of such value are discovered each year. When an investor is looking for a colored diamond their chances are even slimmer, since these stones are incredibly popular and the market very competitive. A second consideration for relying on colored diamonds as an investment is the dwindling supplies of diamonds on a worldwide basis. This will only increase the value of any well-cut diamond.
For investors with less significant financial resources, vintage, estate or antique jewelry is also a great way to make excellent profits. When looking at estate pieces it is a good idea only to work with reputable dealers, and to consider market demands. For example, rose and mine cut stones were very popular in earlier eras of jewelry design – roughly the late 1800s through the early part of the twentieth century. Today such stones are in high demand, and a smart shopper will purchase any good examples of such stones when they find them.
In fact, modern jewelry designers are on the constant “prowl” for the vintage pieces since that is the current direction of Hollywood’s red carpet looks. A softer, vintage or glamorous look is making a strong comeback, and again the 2008 Academy Awards offered evidence of the trend.
Most celebrity stylists dressed their clients in classic gowns, with hair and makeup done in a subdued and elegant manner, and diamonds were everywhere! In fact, actress Nicole Kidman – always known for smart fashion sense – drew gasps and caught headlines in a sautoir necklace set with more than seven thousand diamonds, weighing in at a whopping fourteen hundred carats. The attention she won with such a piece of jewelry really demonstrates just how much diamonds really are a girl’s best friend!
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