FULL GUIDE ON LAB GROWN DIAMONDS VS. NATURAL

Lab-Grown Diamonds: a Socially Conscious Alternative For Fine Jewelry

Are you seeking a diamond alternative for your next big jewelry purchase? Consider laboratory-grown diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds have gained popularity in recent years, becoming an eco-friendly natural diamond alternative readily available in engagement rings, wedding bands, pendants, earrings, and bracelets.

Lab-grown diamonds present a variety of positive attributes to consider when making a fine jewelry purchase. These man-made diamonds display all of the brilliance and fire that natural diamonds exhibit without the strenuous supply chain, high market prices, and other detrimental factors sometimes associated with natural, earth-grown diamonds.

This article will touch on all of the positive benefits that these lab-created diamonds have to offer. It will also serve as an informative guide that can help when making your lab-grown diamond purchase.

What Are Lab-Grown Diamonds?

Lab-grown diamonds, man-made diamonds, engineered diamonds, and cultured diamonds are different trade names that refer to synthetic diamonds, which are specimens grown using the same material as natural diamonds in a controlled environment.

According to GIA, synthetic diamond laboratories use advanced technology to imitate the conditions that natural diamonds undergo when they form beneath the earth’s crust. This process creates a synthetic form of natural diamonds. These synthetic diamonds have identical chemical, optical, and physical properties. They also have the same crystal structure as natural diamonds, which is carbon with a cubic crystal structure.

Lab-Grown Diamonds History

Lab-grown diamonds are made with carbon, crystallized in an isotropic 3D form.

According to GIA, the following is the timeline of when lab-grown diamonds were first developed and later made available on the market.

1950s: Synthetic diamonds were first produced using the high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) method. This method was used for industrial purposes, telecommunications, laser optics, and more.

About The HPHT Method:

With the HPHT method, synthetic diamonds are manufactured in laboratories that imitate the high pressure, high temperature conditions of natural diamond formation in the earth.

HPHT diamond growth occurs at pressures of 5–6 GP and at temperatures of 1300–1600°C.

HPHT Method Interesting Facts: Natural Diamond Improvement

Did you know that lower-quality natural diamonds can be improved? These natural diamonds fall on the GIA 4cs grading scale. They may be considered to be highly included or may display visible color. These lower quality diamonds can be put through the HPHT method, which will improve both their color and clarity.

*Using any processes to improve the diamond’s quality should always be disclosed by the retailer or the jeweler upon purchase. This method to make diamonds more colorless will affect their value.

The HPHT method process can also be used to change the color of diamonds! Turning diamonds into fancy, rare colors such as pink, blue or yellow creates an affordable way to purchase your dream fancy color diamond. This HPHT-treated diamond would then be called a treated diamond. This treatment should also be disclosed.

1970s: The American company, General Electric, created the first gem-quality synthetic diamonds. These synthetic diamonds had acceptable clarity and were appropriate sizes to be set into jewelry.

Mid-1980s: Other manufacturers started growing commercial quantities of gem-quality synthetic diamond crystals. Initially, these lab-created diamonds were small and displayed a yellowish or brownish color. Over time, these synthetic diamond’s quality, clarity, and color improved.

2000s: Diamonds were created using the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method, which requires lower pressure and temperatures in comparison to the HPHT method.

The CVD technique grows synthetic diamonds using temperatures between 700°C to 1300°C and lower pressures. Carbon-infused gas is pumped into a vacuum chamber, depositing onto a diamond seed, crystallizing as synthetic diamond. The size of the synthetic diamond depends on the time allowed for growth using this method.

Mid-2010s: Commercial quantities of colorless lab-grown diamonds became readily available in the jewelry market around the mid-2010s, set into different designs just like its natural counterpart. Both HPHT and CVD continue to be popular methods of synthetic diamond production today.

Lab Diamond Quality: Synthetic Diamonds Are Graded Using The Same 4c’s Diamond Scale As Natural Diamonds

The 4Cs diamond grading scale was developed by GIA and is world-recognized as the method of determining the quality of the diamond. This scale was developed for analyzing colorless diamonds and is used and understood globally. This same 4Cs scale is used to grade Lab-grown colorless diamonds.

The 4 Cs Of The Diamond:

This is a brief overview of the 4C’s that are used to assess either a lab-grown or synthetic diamond.

• COLOR

  The color or lack of color is graded on a scale from D to Z. D are colorless diamonds. Z grade diamonds have a noticeable yellow hue.

• CUT

  This refers to the shape of the diamond. Some examples include round brilliant cut, marquise, princess, and radiant, etc.

• CLARITY

  The clarity of the diamond refers to inclusions (imperfections inside the stone) and blemishes (imperfections outside the stone). This scale ranges from F (flawless, very rare) to I3 (very very included with noticeable inclusions).

• CARAT WEIGHT

  The carat weight refers to the weight of the diamond. The weight can be taken by several different mathematical methods by measuring the stone.

Benefits Of Purchasing a Lab-Grown Diamond

There are so many benefits to purchasing a lab-grown diamond! They are socially conscious, eco-friendly, cost-effective, and brilliantly beautiful. Lab-grown diamonds can look identical to a natural diamond, unlike many other options, such as colorless sapphire, white topaz, or rock crystal quartz, for example. Although other diamond alternatives are stunning, they appear remarkably different from natural diamonds.

Lab-grown diamonds are just as hard as a diamond, rating a 10 on the Mohs hardness scale, giving them durability perfect for frequent wear. Choosing a lab-grown diamond jewelry design has never been so effortless! An abundance of glamorous designs featuring fine metals and remarkable craftsmanship makes lab-grown diamond jewelry the ultimate choice for something truly unique.

Lab-Grown Diamonds: a Popular, Luxurious Diamond For Your Dream Bridal Ring

Lab-grown diamonds have become a vital part of the jewelry industry. There are many labs and jewelry companies that focus on lab-grown diamonds as their main stone. Lab-grown diamonds have become a popular alternative for a natural diamond for several reasons.

Lab-grown diamonds present an easier way to build and customize the engagement ring of your dreams with the carat weight you have always wanted without the price tag. Lab-grown diamonds are budget-friendly alternatives that go undetected as the synthetic counterpart of the natural version.

Customizing Your Engagement Ring

Picking out your lab-grown diamond has never been easier and more transparent. Barkev’s Jewelers features an immersive lab-grown diamond inventory chart with current market prices so you can choose your perfect lab-grown center stone. Barkev’s offers lab-grown diamonds in all of the popular shapes and sizes so you can fully personalize your dream engagement ring or anniversary ring. Lab-grown diamonds can be set in white metals (platinum, white gold), rose gold, yellow gold, and two-tone gold settings sprinkled with diamonds, black diamonds, or set as a solitaire.

To make things easier we've made a preset lab grown diamond solitaire engagement rings section here featuring our budget friendly picks, or you can simply head to our lab grown diamond search and find the perfect diamond for your custom ring.

Commonly Asked Questions About Lab-Grown Diamonds - FAQ

Have questions about your lab-grown diamond purchase? These are some FAQs regarding lab-grown diamonds.

Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Real Diamonds?

Lab-grown diamonds are the synthetic version of natural diamonds. They possess the same optical and chemical properties. Lab-grown diamonds are the real man-made version of natural diamonds.

Do Lab-Grown Diamonds Retain Any Value?

Lab-grown diamonds do retain value, although it is not as high as the natural version of diamonds. They are also budget-friendly, which helps to offset any cost associated with the initial purchase.

Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Cheaper?

Lab-grown diamonds are the perfect alternative to the natural version because they are available in an abundance of sizes and qualities. You can purchase your dream diamond engagement ring at a fraction of the price. A lab-grown diamond will go undetected to the naked eye and is even difficult to tell under the microscope or jeweler’s loop.

Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Good?

Lab-grown diamonds showcase the same stunning brilliance, scintillation, and fire that natural diamonds display because of their identical crystal structure. They can be cut and faceted the same way to enhance their sparkle, just like natural diamonds.

Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Fake?

Lab-grown diamonds are not fake. They are the synthetic version of natural diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds are not cubic zirconia or moissanite, which are different stones with different optical properties.

Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Ethical?

Lab-grown diamonds are a socially conscious, eco-friendly alternative to natural diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds do not use the same strenuous supply chain that may occur during the production of the natural diamond process.