Exclusive:
When Holly Ramsay announced her engagement to Adam Peaty, Instagram went wild for her stunning yellow diamond. So are coloured diamonds the latest social media wedding must-have? And how much will it cost you to keep up with the celebs? Diamond dealer to the stars Neil Duttson gives his verdict….
Holly Ramsay – a 24-year-old model and influencer and daughter of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay – took to Instagram to announce her engagement to her fiance olympic swimmer Adam Peaty this week showing off a stunning engagement ring. “I am marrying my best friend,” she wrote on Instagram, alongside photos of her wearing the engagement ring on her finger. Now, a renowned international diamond dealer and expert on coloured stones who has made rings for Frank Lampard, Serena Williams and Emma and Matt Willis has given his verdict on the 2-carat oval-cut light yellow diamond.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Neil Duttson of Duttson Rocks says: “It’s a classy looking stone – really pretty. What I love about Holly Ramsay’s ring is the halo and I’m glad there’s no diamonds in the band as they tend to fall out when they get knocked.” And he reckons the ring is high end and probably worth a pretty penny. “It looks like its good quality so I’d say it’s probably worth anything from £25,000 to £50,000,” he adds. “Coloured diamond stones are becoming more popular. And it’s not about how big a diamond is but the colour and clarity of the stone – quality over quantity is the way forward.”
“Natural yellow diamonds are the next step up in rarity from white diamonds. The reason is that the element of nitrogen would have entered the atoms at creation one to three billion years ago! There are 17 hues of yellow with Fancy Intense and Vivid being top of the tree and commanding a different level of cost.
“Other colours are rarer – violet/purple, red, pink, green and blue.. Different elements create these colours and there are so few on our planet that these diamonds are ‘ultra’ rare. Normally only seen in museums they become a superb ‘store of wealth’ as well as incredible jewellery.”
Neil may work with wealthy clients but he’s surprisingly down-to-earth, so how does someone become an international diamond dealer or a jeweller to the stars? “I always had a fascination with my mum’s jewellery growing up and in 2001 I went to diamond school in Antwerp,” he says. “Now I source the diamonds and we have a workshop where we make the jewellery. I’ve made many of my friends’ engagement rings – some of them for their second marriages! And now their children are getting married. My wife wears a really pretty 1920s-style square emerald cut diamond ring – she’s not blingy at all.”
For Neil, diamonds aren’t just a declaration of love, they are a way of passing on wealth. “Putting your wealth into a rock knowing that it will – with good advice – only go up in value is a really good idea,” he explains. “Just as people buy wine or paintings, I’ve sold some of the Picassos of the diamond world to clients around the world. Diamonds are on the up – a ring like this can be passed down and sold if needed to buy a house or something. If you’re spending a significant amount of money you have to get it right and get good advice from an expert.”
Adam’s choice of engagement ring has certainly made Holly a very happy lady. Sharing her news on Instagram, Holly adds: “I truly cannot put into words how I am feeling right now… Thank you for letting the little girl inside of me feel loved, seen and happier than ever. I love you & I cannot wait to be your wife.” Now all that remains to be confirmed is if dad Gordon Ramsay will be doing the catering.