Memorial diamonds are becoming a very popular way to remember a loved one who has passed away. No longer are you held to a specific place to memorialize them. Instead, now you can turn your loved one’s ashes into a beautiful diamond that you will treasure forever.
Memorial diamonds contain all your happiest and worst moments with your beloved and will last forever.
Memorial diamonds are in every way similar to a natural diamond since they are both created from the chemical element carbon, and they are both capable of the same brilliance, clarity, and sparkles. However, they are not always similar in prices. Here’s how you can decide on the price that fits your budget and how to order it.
How the Price is Determined
Like a natural diamond, a memorial diamond’s price is also based on the 4Cs: cut, color, clarity, and carat weight. The fewer imperfections and less color with more weight and intricate cut significantly raises the price of a memorial diamond.
For a memorial diamond, though, the price is also based on whether you choose a color other than what falls within the normal range that nature gives it. In other words, you have the option of choosing whatever color you wish, and each one has its own bearing on the final price.
The difference in price is due to the varying amounts of purification of the carbon within the ashes plus the extra time, technology, and resources to grow the memorial diamond to the requested size. The range of available color options, beginning with the most basic color, is yellow, green, red, blue, and colorless.
The Cost of Each Color
Yellow. Yellow or amber is the most basic color for a memorial diamond. It is based upon the amount of natural nitrogen within your loved one’s ashes. A yellow diamond has the least amount of technology involved in its growth and there are no microelements or any extra special treatments added. This means that the production costs and the time it takes to turn ashes into diamond are usually shorter, which is why yellow is the most popular color.
Each laboratory charges their own distinct prices, but you can reasonably expect the beginning price to be about $1,600 – 2,900 for a one-quarter carat weight, round cut diamond. The price increases with the weight of the diamond and the type of cut and clarity. A one carat weight, round cut yellow memorial diamond can sell for as high as $13,000 with some laboratories. Higher weights can range up to over $20,000.
A yellow diamond from cremated ashes takes about three to six months to grow.
Green. Green requires slightly more purification, and higher pressure and temperature than the yellow color. The extra processing of the nitrogen contained within the diamond modifies the inner crystalline structure and alters the color to green.
A green memorial diamond’s price begins at about $2,200 for a one-quarter carat weight, round cut diamond and ranges up to $18,000 depending on which laboratory you use. Heavier carat weight diamonds can cost up to $25,000. Green memorial diamonds take about four to seven months to grow.
Red. Next in line are red diamonds. The color is created by applying the light from high-energy electrons through an electron emitter. The crystal is heated anywhere from 500°C to 5,000°C and pressurized from 100kPa to 20GPa. It is then allowed to slowly cool in order to make the diamond stronger. This process causes the nitrogen within the crystal to become vacant within its center, allowing the color to change from yellow to red.
Prices begin at $2,500 for a one-quarter carat weight diamond and up to $8,900 for a full one carat diamond. Heavier diamonds can cost about $25,000.
Blue. Blue memorial diamonds are created by reserving boron atoms inside the purified carbon. Comparing to colorless memorial diamonds, boron helps not only to turn diamond blue, but also to make the growing process faster. It also helps to stabilize the density of the crystal. The result is that its cost is usually slightly lower than a colorless memorial diamond while retaining a very elegant hue.
The cost of a one-quarter carat blue memorial diamond starts at about $2,600 and ranges up to $16,800. It can take five to eight months to grow.
Colorless. A colorless diamond has the highest carbon purity of any of the memorial diamonds at 99.99%. Its carbon content is completely clean and is free of any impurities. Extra, more complex technology is required to produce a colorless memorial diamond, which means the process takes longer and the cost is higher.
Your beloved never left you along by turning his or her ashes into diamonds.
Many people choose a colorless memorial diamond because its appearance is so similar to a natural diamond. Due to the complexity of production process, the price of a colorless memorial diamond is more expensive than a same carat natural diamond, however, most people do not mind paying the extra cost simply because of the special meaning and value a memorial diamond has.
A colorless, one-quarter diamond begins at approximately $2,900 and goes up to more than $17,200 for a one carat weight diamond, which is comparable to a blue diamond. The grow time ranges from six to nine months.
Remember that the total time it takes to produce a memorial diamond can take longer if you choose a size larger than one carat as well as if you have the laboratory also handle setting your diamond.
How to Order A Memorial Diamond in UK
To order ashes to diamonds in UK, follow these four simple steps:
- You will first need to contact the agency and request an order form. You can usually either fill out the form online or print it out and send it to local customer service. If you live in a city where a branch office is located, you might also be able to handle your order in person.
You can choose color, carat weight, and the desired clarity and cut when fill the order form. You might also be asked for your loved one’s personal information for record keeping purposes. Personalized services may be presented in case you wish to have the laboratory handle setting your diamond in a piece of jewelry. If you wish do so, then you may check with a company customer service representative.
- Once your form is received, local branch office will send you a free ashes submission kit along with zipped containers and an order ID for tracking and identification. When you receive your submission kit, you will need to place the proper amount of ashes into the zipped containers. Some laboratories and companies provide a guide to help you know how much of the ashes you should send, such as this submission guide by Lonité, but it is usually about 200grams depending on the size of diamond you are ordering and how many.
- At the time of your order, you will be required to either pay the amount in full or pay a deposit, which may be as much as fifty percent of the final cost. Personal checks or an electronic transferof funds are accepted to settle the payment.
Pay your memorial diamonds by a personal check is a safe way to guarantee the transfer.
- After you have submitted your order form, made a payment of some amount on your order, and submitted the required amount of ashes, all you have to do is wait for your diamond to be created. Depending on what you ordered and how many, you may wait for up to nine months to receive the final piece. Some laboratories will provide you an online to view the status of your order and perhaps even photos of its progress.
Turning Ashes into Diamonds is Easy
Even this service becomes more and more popular in UK, US, Canada, Australia, Germany, and other Christian countries, turning your loved one’s ashes into diamonds has never been easier. With today’s technology, the process is very simple and easy once you have decided what you want your diamond to look like. Memorial diamonds are a truly beautiful way to forever preserve your loved one’s memory and love, one you will always treasure.