This is an open letter to why we love lab grown diamonds and you should, too. The diamond industry was taken by storm in the last 5 years with the innovation, marketing, mass supply, and thriving sales of lab grown diamonds.
YOU MAY BE ASKING YOURSELF:
But what are they? Are they real diamonds? We had some questions, too. So we ordered one in to inspect it.
Some things we’ll investigate:
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Are they “real diamonds?”
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“Are they as valuable?”
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“Why should I buy a lab grown diamond?”
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“What should I look for in a lab grown diamond?
I’ve looked at lab grown diamonds under my trusty GIA Mark VII microscope, and was amazed. Clear, crisp, and visually appearing the same as natural diamonds.
The inclusions are very similar, for the most part. Occasionally, I do find that cloud inclusions in lab grown diamonds can be black in hue and appear like smoke winding through the diamond. However, even if occurring, the cloud inclusions are often not dense enough to be seen with the unaided eye.
Amazing, from a first look!
Lab grown diamonds are often manufactured overseas in India and China, although there are certainly more US-based manufacturers joining the ranks. The location of manufacturing doesn’t impact the quality of the diamond, in my current opinion.
Lab Grown diamonds are chemically the same as natural diamonds. Formed from carbon in the presence of another proprietary elemental mix, these diamonds also contain the typical “impurity” elements we find in natural diamonds, such as boron and nitrogen. However, since the growing process is highly contained, it is possible to grow diamonds with almost no impurities.
Lab Grown Diamonds are made using large machines, which utilize high levels of energy to transform the elements into a plasma state (CVD) or to melt a carbon starting material (like graphite in HPHT), which deposit onto a diamond “seed”. Depending on the type of manufacturing, diamonds can be grown in as little as 2-3 weeks and might take as long as a couple of months.
Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) is a method of forming lab-grown diamonds, arguably the fastest and cheapest way to form a lab-grown diamond currently. Average grow time is 2-4 weeks.
CVD diamonds are fast-growing, which also means that the potential for spotty color or internal graining (disruption in the crystal growth structure) is higher. These diamonds are commonly treated post-growth with High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) to improve color and remove the internal graining. Some CVD diamond manufacturers are increasing boron in the “mix” to offset some of the brownish/yellowish hues seen in CVDs, creating a bluish tint.
This treatment isn’t always disclosed on the lab report (as seen in some IGI graded lab-grown diamonds), but is neither a positive or negative impact on the diamond’s beauty or pricing in the current market. In cases where the diamond has developed spotty color, of course HPHT treatment would be a positive thing! However, if you want my .02, I suspect that CVD diamonds with no treatment will eventually outpace others in desirability and pricing.
When a CVD diamond has not been treated, you will see the report note, “As Grown, No evidence of post-growth treatment.”
- One Growth Direction
- Fast to Produce
- Creates Colorless Crystals
- Can show some strain, often abated with HPHT treatment
- Can sometimes phosphoresce when exposed to heat.
No worries, this is less common nowadays. And the original color resumes after 30mins to an hour at most.
- Can sometimes display strange fluorescence patterns.
No worries, you won't see your diamond glow strangely in normal UV light sources. Near X-Ray frequencies can detect a HPHT lab-grown.
High Pressure High Temperature is a method of forming lab-grown diamonds of larger sizes and purity, requiring specialized equipment that compresses carbon starting material onto a diamond seed crystal through a complex flux material.
HPHT lab-grown diamonds require significantly more time to form, and use equipment that is more expensive to build, maintain, and use during the process. Conversely, HPHT diamonds are often yellowish and brownish in color, although improved growth methods have routinely produced colorless crystals.
This method of growing synthetic diamonds does produce rough that has less “strain” when viewed in specialized light. Because of the intense pressure, the crystal line up is neat and orderly.
Comparing finished diamonds from both methods from a consumer standpoint, I find them extremely similar.
- Multiple Growth Directions
- Slow to Produce
- Creates Colorless Crystals
- Rarely shows strain
- Sometimes has unusual fluorescence patterns
No worries, you won't see your diamond glow strangely in normal UV light sources. Near X-Ray frequencies can detect a HPHT lab-grown.
- Also used to create fancy colors
Due to the way lab grown diamonds are formed and then graded for color/clarity, I have key tips for selecting the right one.
Labs that grade lab-grown diamonds are still catching up in standardizing their grading guidelines.
In fact, GIA (Gemological Institute of America) just began assigning single-grade color (ex: H) and clarity (ex: VS1) to lab-grown diamonds in November 2020.
- CUT GRADING: Same as natural
- SYMMETRY/POLISH: Same as natural
- COLOR GRADING: Same as natural
- CLARITY GRADING: Different! Inclusions are instead called "Growth Remnants"
- CUT GRADING: Not quite as stringent as GIA
- SYMMETRY/POLISH: Same as natural
- COLOR GRADING: Less stringent / Offset color desired by one grade up
- CLARITY GRADING: Same as natural, just as or more stringent.
- CUT GRADING: Not quite as stringent as GIA, more stringent than IGI
- SYMMETRY/POLISH: Same as natural
- COLOR GRADING: Less stringent / Offset color desired by one grade up
- CLARITY GRADING: Same as natural, just as or more stringent.
The simple math: Endless supply = Falling Prices.
As the technology improves and more manufacturers enter the lab-grown diamond game, prices will likely fall. They have already fallen since introduction.
However, let’s be honest here:
NO DIAMOND IS A GOOD INVESTMENT
The truth is: Unless you’re buying wholesale as a dealer or bought your diamond on the resale market for an insane price, you will never recoup the original price you paid for a diamond. You will be fortunate to recoup 50%-60% if sold to a dealer.
And after all? If you sell it to an individual/end user, they won’t want to pay full retail either, right? (There are some rare exceptions, very rare.)
For lab grown resale market, you’ll be lucky to find a jeweler who would be interested in paying for a pre-owned lab-grown diamond.
If you do, the resale offers have varied wildly. Most pre-owned lab grown diamonds are sold on pre-owned marketplaces by private owners.
Ultimately, it’s your choice whether to purchase a lab grown or natural diamond…or something completely different! Here are the top three buying traits I see for my Client Friends who choose one over the other.
See if these resonate with you.
If you have special heirlooms from late family members, you know how cherished those items are. There is something nostalgic about holding your grandmother's engagement diamond, or maybe you have a pocketwatch from your great-great-grandfather.
If "passing down" your diamond is key for you, natural diamond is the way to go.
Ok, there's no question that holding a crystal formed over millions of years is pretty darn cool. The Earth is an amazing place, and imagining this little sparkler coming from ancient times is fascinating.
Yes, some diamonds are rare. It takes a lot of coordination, machinery, and planning to bring that octahedron to the surface. For those who want to be obtuse, are diamonds "really rare?" Well, no, the earth is definitely full of them. However, the expense, planning, and profit/loss of getting them to the surface is greatly considered. Some mines just aren't profitable in material or dollars to continue on. (steps off soapbox.)
Well, let's clarify: both natural and lab-grown diamonds are DIAMONDS.
However, if the idea of cooking up a diamond in a gargantuan machine seems less-than-romantic to you, I think buying a natural diamond is the way to go.
Hey, if a diamond is a "status symbol" to you, I think you know that Natural is the way to go.
Let's put it this way: if you love carrying around your authentic Chanel bag that you purchased new from the boutique, instead of the well-made-but-not-Chanel Kate Spade version, then you might be a natural diamond buyer.
Ok, let's clarify: all natural diamonds that enter the commercial diamond market now are Kimberly Process certified, and dealers who import without such documentation are in hot, hot legal water. It's extremely rare to see a non-Kimberly natural diamond since 2003.
OK! However, conflict-free in the traditional sense of "this diamond was not mined to fund wars in Africa": you're a lab-grown leaner. Of course, lab-grown diamonds were not taken from the ground, and therefore cannot be claimed to fund arms or wars.
That's good!
It's no secret that mining strips the land of natural resources and creates disruption of the area ecosystem. Google any mine to instantly see the gaping hole that mining creates. Mining companies are required to produce plans and projections of these impacts before mining, but it's never quite enough. We know.
Lab grown diamonds are made in HUGE machines that are housed in HUGE warehouses. Let's not kid ourselves in imagining that these sparklers are cooked up in microwave-sized machines, here. And agencies have not yet the data to report on the waste produced by growing diamonds in labs.
However, the silver lining is: no gaping holes in the Earth. Good.
Well, let's clarify that many traditionally poor countries and communities have been completely transformed by mining. Example: Botswana
However, mining is hard, expensive, and strenuous. Not every artisinal mine is the same, of course. Not every miner is appropriately taken care of or compensated when a big find is made. (This translates even more in the gemstone mining industry...that's a whole other post...).
Lab Grown diamonds, quality for quality, and size for size, cost about 1/3rd the price of a similar natural diamond. That's a BIG DIFFERENCE in size.
For instance, a 1.00 ct natural round H color VS2 clarity retails for about $4500.
A Lab Grown version, same specs? About $1500.
Whether you're ballin' on a budget (we all are) or simply wanting a diamond the size of a spaceship, lab grown diamonds may be for you.
Ugh, did you lose your original sparkler? And now you're faced with shelling out that money again to get a diamond on your hand?
If spending $20,000 to put a 2.00 ct round back on your hand seems daunting (and insane), then lab-grown diamonds would get you there for about 1/3rd of the price. If you don't care about an heirloom diamond anymore, then you know what to do!
Some people use "lab grown diamonds" as a dirty word. Silly, silly folks.
If you want that rock of your dreams, and you simply don't care if folks know that you have a lab-grown diamond, then why not go this route? If a diamond is not a signaler of wealth/status to you, then lab-grown diamonds might be for you.
