Chocolate Diamonds in the Rough

The cliché expression “diamond in the rough” is intended to describe one’s potential. Given the chisel of experience or the pressure of training and discipline, one might transcend a rocky, coal-like estate into a shining white diamond. But what if we simply change our perspective on what is technically “rough”? What if the diamond doesn’t change, but everyone else changes their opinion of the diamond? That is essentially what happened with chocolate diamonds.

Since 1976, the Argyle Diamond Mine of Western Australia has produced brown colored diamonds. It is now the world’s largest producer of these rocks. Initially, these kinds of gemstones were regarded as defective and inferior. The reason for this judgment is that in order for a diamond to exhibit color, it must possess trace elements such as boron or nitrogen; or else the diamond has a particular bending in its structure that occurred while it was subjected to temperatures well over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Under this kind of temperature and extreme pressure, carbon atoms can do various things. In other words, the rock is not pure carbon. It has other elements or divergent shapes.

Geologists know why a diamond might be yellow, purple, or blue. They understand the elements and the structural characteristics that produce these hues. However, it is still somewhat a mystery as to why a diamond might be brown or the very rare pink color. Still the hardest substance on earth, though, chocolate diamonds were for many years mined in Australia primarily for industrial use.

Somewhere along the line jewelry designers such as LeVian noticed how beautiful chocolate diamonds were when mixed with white diamonds. They also noticed how well brown diamonds blended with popular earth tones. Suddenly, these “flawed” diamonds started to become as popular as the traditional colorless variety. Now billions of dollars of diamond sales are of the chocolate variety. Argyle Diamond Mine produces over a third of the world’s total diamond supply annually. Even cultured diamonds, the kind made in a laboratory, are turning out brown colored gemstones to take advantage of this fashion trend.

So who is wearing these former industrial rocks? The King of Thailand has the world’s largest faceted diamond, which happens to be of the chocolate variety. The Golden Jubilee weighs 545.67 carats. The next time there is a “red carpet” event, pay attention to how many brown diamonds you see. Chocolate is all the rage in Hollywood. Ask your local diamond retailer how well these brown diamonds sell. Besides their proliferation online and in traditional “brick and mortar” stores, you will see chocolate, champagne, or fancy brown diamonds offered on every television shopping channel and in traditional mail order catalogs.

So it is possible that a “diamond in the rough” is someone that needs to be changed through training and discipline, like an athlete with raw talent, or a musician. It is also possible that the perception of everyone else is “in the rough” and given time and the right circumstances, the right voice, or the right vision; they are the ones who will ultimately change.