Brown Tones (7.27)
Brown tones are very common and are the least expensive of all the colors. Even the presence of a tint of brown discounts a diamond’s value substantially. Terms such as coffee brown or cognac are commonly used to describe the saturation level of the hue. A strong presence of orange with brown (cognac) can be very attractive and brings higher value, but still worth far less than its colorless or near-colorless counterparts.
The terms TLB, (top light brown), and TTLB, (top top light brown) are used to describe the lighter tones. TLB is generally considered the equivalent of K-L colors and TTLB is generally the equivalent of I-J colors. Misrepresentation is very common among some dealers in these categories due to lack of knowledge, poor grading skills or simply over-grading for higher profits and liquidity.
