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As much as you may think you know what you are doing, guessing your partner’s finger size is one of the hardest things to do. I personally never recommend a size for clients looking to surprise their partner. It is simply too difficult for anyone other than the wearer to determine the right size. You only need to be out by a fraction of a size and the whole ring needs to be resized again. An increase of one size usually equates to 1 mm in the circumference of the circle – which, if you are not familiar, is about the thickness of a credit card. If you do choose to try to pick the ring size without your partner, my general rule is to go for a standard size – for women, this is in the range of L to M. (In Australia, as well as Ireland and the UK, ring sizes are specified using an alphabetical scale.)
The ideal tactic, however, is to take your partner in for a fitting prior to the proposal. At the fitting, your partner can keep in mind the following tips to help you pick the perfect size:
Try to make sure your partner’s fingers are a comfortable room temperature. When our hands are hot, they can generally swell up, and can be as much as a ring-size larger. Likewise, when we are cold, our fingers shrink, which usually explains why a lot of people lose their rings around water activities when the water is cold. Making sure your partner’s hands aren’t too hot or too cold will help ensure the ring size is correct. (The best way to see how hot or cold your partner’s hands are to feel their fingertips.)
Work out whether your partner’s finger changes in size from one season to the other. Some people’s hands can change as much as a full size from summer to winter. One way to find out if your partner’s hand fluctuates with the seasons is to look at the rings, they may be wearing on one of their other fingers. One of their other rings feeling tighter than normal at the time of sizing is agood indication that their hands may be at the upper end of their sizing spectrum at that time.
If your partner’s hands do change significantly when they are hot or cold, try to choose a size that is in the middle. The aim here is to avoid a ring that will be uncomfortably tight in summer and one that is falling off in winter. If having the ring too loose is a worry, you may need to consider changing the shape of the ring – covered in this section.
When sizing a hand, you want to see the ring grip the finger a little. But the ring shouldn’t be so tight that it looks like a napkin ring squeezing the napkin and making it bunch up. This can really detract from the aesthetics of the ring. The second thing is that when you turn the ring, it should grip the finger slightly and then release. The ring gripping the finger and not releasing is a good sign that the ring is too tight. Likewise, if the ring spins without grabbing the finger at all, it is too loose. When trying to work out the perfect size, it is usually a good idea to go past the size you think you are, and then go back one (just to rule the incorrect size out).
Wide rings take up a lot more surface area on the finger and, there- fore, will generally feel about half to one size tighter than a standard ring. A standard ring is usually around 3mm wide. The store your partner is having their finger sized in should have a separate set of sizing rings for rings 5mm and wider. If choosing a wider ring design, this set should be used to ensure the ring size is correct.
Thin rings are usually around 2mm in width and will feel about half to one size looser. Getting the size wrong for a thin ring will mean it will tend to flop and spin around more – which is likely to be extremely annoying to your partner. This means you may need to have the ring a little tighter if the band is super fine.
This is one of the hardest hands to size, because the ring needs to be big enough to get over the knuckle, but not so big that it will flop around when it is on. The best thing you can do here is to make sure the ring is as tight as possible when it is going on over the knuckle. If this doesn’t solve the way it sits, you may need to consider having the ring shaped or choosing a hinged ring.
This is a technique for special cases where the resizing of the ring hasn’t helped the way it sits on your partner’s finger. Changing the shape of the ring involves flaring out the bottom corners of the ring. This will make the inside shape of the ring look like a triangle, with the flat part being on the bottom of the finger. The flat bottom then helps keep the ring upright. But don’t worry, the shape will hardly be noticeable from the top, but it will certainly make a difference to the way the ring feels and looks.
Rings with inside comfort fittings need a special set of sizing rings. While the comfort fit feels more comfortable, taking the inside edge of the ring out means there is less surface area to grip the finger. Depending on the width of the ring, the comfort fit can make the ring feel half a size looser compared to a flat bottom ring, so you will want to choose a size that is a little tighter.
The trick to sizing rings with a hollowed-out head is to go more on feel than the actual size. When you put on a ring with a hollowed out top, the top part of your knuckle fills the void, making it feel bigger than you imagine. The best way to pick the correct size is to choose the ring size on the normal ring sizing set that feels the most comfortable. The jeweller should then take that sizing ring into the workshop when they are ready to start the resize, cutting out only as
much as needed to create the same feel on the finger as the sizing ring that your partner tried on.
If some of the preceding options haven’t worked, or your partner has injured their finger badly in an accident, a hinged ring may be your only other option. Much like a hinged bangle, the ring needs to be crafted with a hinge that allows it to open and close. For a hinged ring, the hinge allows the ring to open only as much as needed to get over the knuckle. The hinge can then be closed and locked in. Crafting the hinged mechanism is incredibly difficult and time-consuming, so this is usually a last resort if all other options have failed.
Tips for taking off a ring.
A chiropractor once told me that before an adjustment I should wiggle my toes. The effect of this actually has nothing to do with your feet – it just forces you to take your mind off what is happening to another part of your body. I often see the same kind of distraction tactics with clients when they are trying to take off a ring that is a little too tight. It is often quite funny to watch – it almost appears as if they are trying to pull their whole knuckle off. Twisting and turning, holding their tongue to one side and jumping on one foot are all common techniques I have seen – and all of these will prob- ably hurt your finger more than help you remove your ring.
The first simple thing to do is relax. By relaxing you allow all the tendons and muscles in your finger to go down. The second step is to bend your finger slightly. This helps remove all the excess skin from the top of your knuckle, which tends to bunch up when you straighten your finger. The third step is to push up from the bottom of the ring with your thumb. Then, using your index finger on the top of the ring, gently rock it over your knuckle as you are pushing up with your thumb.
The ring only needs to be out a fraction of a size for it to have to be resized, but almost any ring can be sized up or down three sizes. So, although the chances of you getting the size spot-on without your partner are pretty slim, getting it more than three sizes out is even more unusual. My advice is to go for an average size – between L and M for women. If their hands and fingers are particularly small, maybe go down one size to K. Likewise, if you are worried that your partner won’t be able to get the ring on during the proposal, you might want to go a little bigger to be on the safe side. From a jeweller’s perspective, going down a few sizes is a little easier than going up.
If you have spoken about getting married, but still want to maintain as much surprise as possible, have your partner go to a local jewellery store to have their finger sized. Again, depending on when you plan on proposing, try to do this as early as possible, and give away as few details as possible, so as to maintain some element of surprise.
The only ring that will be helpful in determining the engagement ring finger size would be a ring that your partner wears on the ring finger on the other hand. (If you’re still unclear, this is the finger next to the pinkie finger on the right hand.) Never use a ring that your partner wears on their two main pointer fingers, because the size of these have no correlation to the ring finger on their left hand. For most people, the two ring fingers will only be about half a size different. If she is right-handed, the right hand is usually a half size bigger, so make sure you take off half a size. If the only ring you can find is a ring that she wears on one of the two middle fingers, just stick with the standard finger size option (between L and M for women).
You can contact the team via email here and we can arrange a complimentry ring sizer to be delivered to your home or workplace. You can also call the showroom on 07 32106288 or make an appointment to chat with one of our experts here.
Thinking about lab grown diamonds? This post will give you the most comprehensive deep dive into laboratory grown diamonds, giving you more knowledge than 90% of the sales people out there and making sure you are getting the best quality diamond.
Having been in the diamond industry for over 25 years, working as a diamond grader, gemmologist and valuer and owner of a diamond boutique, I can honestly say I really love diamonds. I am often asked questions about jewellery and gems, asking me to pick my favourite cut, colour, or stone and at the end of the day, I keep coming back to a diamond.
The questions I get asked more than most right now are all about lab grown diamonds; what exactly are they? Are they all created the same? Can you tell the difference, and most importantly should I consider buying one?
For me, whether it is a lab grown diamond or a mined diamond, I love both and either can be perfect for you depending on what you are looking for in your diamond. My wife wears both mined and lab grown diamonds and the origin for the stone has not been a contributing factor for me, but I understand for some it may be.
I am a big believer in arming yourself with all the correct information before deciding between lab grown diamond and mined diamonds and where to buy from. With the size of the diamond industry combined with the extensive amount of information on the internet, you might be finding it difficult to decipher what is correct and what is misinformation on created diamonds without the marketing agenda and spin.
The first time I came across a lab grown diamond, I must confess I was quite sceptical. One of my suppliers had sent me an amazing two-carat diamond to look at. As I normally do, I checked the diamond for myself so I could grade it based on my own valuation. I looked at the colour, clarity, and the precision of the cutting, and was soon satisfied that I was indeed looking at an amazing diamond – one that would make someone incredibly happy to wear for the next 50 years. I then looked at the paperwork, and the first thing that struck me was the price. It was significantly less than what I was expecting considering the quality of the stone. I quickly rang the supplier to see if the pricing was a mistake and discovered it wasn’t. It was just the mining cost making the significant price difference.
Can an expert tell the difference? Can you?
I recently put myself to the test, to check whether I could tell the difference between a lab grown diamond and a mined diamond. I sat down, a little cocky, as the gentleman across the table from me presented 10 stones. I simply had to sort these into lab grown diamonds and mined diamonds.
I started as I always do, picking up my loop and tweezers, as familiar to me as a pair of shoes that fit perfectly. Picking up the first diamond, I noticed a dark black inclusion on the edge of the stone. This looked like a familiar graphite inclusion that I had seen 1000 times of more. Easy first one, I thought. This obviously belongs in the mined diamond group. The second diamond I picked up was completely clean, so I placed the stone back on the table, gave it a wipe with the special microfibre diamond cloth, rotated the stone and picked it up again. (A widespread practice when assessing diamonds is to rotate the stone to make sure the orientation of the inclusion isn’t hiding due to the angles of light bouncing around inside the stone.) Still nothing? Well, this must be either an incredibly clean diamond, or it must be a lab growndiamond, I thought. So, it went in the created diamond category.
Over and over, I went through this exercise until all ten stones were sorted. Announcing I was finished to my counterpart across the table with a little smile on my face, he asked me if I was sure and happy with my selection. To which my confidence slipped a little and I nervously replied, ‘Well, let me just have one quicker look.’ Having satisfied my curiosity, I decided I was happy with my selection. ‘How did I do?’ I (still somewhat nervously) asked him.
The gentleman now seemed to know something he was reluctant to share. ‘Well, the thing is,’ he said somewhat apprehensively, ‘they are all lab grown diamonds.’
What? How is this possible? I thought.
Realising that the game was up, I decided to have a look at all the diamonds I had marked as mined, scrutinising them from every angle. I had to conclude that, without sophisticate laboratory equipment, there really was no way to tell the difference between lab grown diamonds and mined diamonds, even with a 10x times magnifying lens.
At first, I wasn’t sure whether I should be happy or upset that I couldn’t tell the difference; however, what I ended up taking from the experience was that my original prejudices around the origin of creation had absolutely nothing to do with how the diamond presented and performed.
Are created diamonds better?
How could something that is created in a lab be better than something produced ‘naturally’? Well, lab grown diamonds being as good as, or better, than mined diamonds may not be as far-fetched as you think. After all, advancements in technology are happening every year, and things were previously thought impossible are now normal. We are talking about travelling to Mars and 3D printing meat, just to name but a few such innovations. So why not creating high-quality diamonds?
Aren’t all diamonds created?
When you really think about it, all diamonds are created. Some are just created by the earth, and some are created by humans. The process used to make diamonds today is essentially replicating the conditions that occurred below the ground over millions of years.
Mined diamonds are a billion years old, whereas a lab grown diamond can be anywhere from one to three months old, depending on the size and quality of the stone.
Apart from the time factor, the only real difference is that one diamond is made below the ground and the other is made above the ground. Essentially, only the origin is different for each.
Natural versus synthetic
Interestingly, in 2020 the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) removed the word ‘natural’ when talking about a mined diamond. They argued it was impossible to have a synthetic element. We are either breathing oxygen right now or we aren’t, for example. The same goes with the carbon in a diamond – it is either carbon or it isn’t. A synthetic carbon simply doesn’t exist.
The other interesting point here is that most people can tell from a considerable distance that other gemstones are the created versions – for example, synthetic sapphires look like blue glass. There is something quite distinctive about most created gemstones, and they just look fake or unnatural – and so are significantly cheaper. A lab grown diamond, on the other hand, is indistinguishable from a mined diamond.
Simulate versus created
As opposed to a lab grown diamond, a simulate is something that is like but not the same thing. In terms of diamond simulates, this refers to stones such as a cubic zirconia (CZ). At a distant glance, they might look the same as a diamond, but they don’t have the same optical or hardness properties.
What about the negatives?
As I’ve discussed, lab grown diamonds can be of such high quality it’s almost impossible to separate them from mined diamonds. And you can buy this high quality at a fraction of the price of mined diamonds. So, you might be reading this and thinking that this sounds like the best thing since sliced bread. A bigger and better-quality diamond, for less? What’s the catch?
The main possible negatives relate to resale value for the diamond and whether it will hold its value.
Resale value
The truth is every diamond in the world is graded and valued for exactly what it is. If you pay $5000 less for a lab grown diamond now, for example, then it will be consistently worth at least $5000 less than the value of a comparable mined diamond.
Holding its value over time
I am not sure about you, but my crystal ball is on the fritz now, and I think anyone who tells you they know what the future holds should be treated with caution. What I do know is that all diamonds – mined and lab grown – move up and down in price. Many contributing factors influence the price of diamonds globally. When I recently checked the wholesale price of the diamond I purchased for my wife’s engagement ring, it had fallen $3000. (Of course, as I have mentioned, this is totally irrelevant to me, because I don’t plan on selling it.)
While it might be true that products often get cheaper as technology advances, prices are still governed by the age-old forces of supply and demand. Late in 2020, for example, we did see a drop in the prices of laboratory-created diamonds. However, 2021 has seen not only a stabilising of the market rates of created diamonds, but also signs of an increase in rates as demand outstrips supply.
These shortages are being exasperated further by delays in more reactors being built, which is placing further pressures on supply.
Looking at the diverse types of lab grown diamonds
Before I get any further into the features, benefits, pros, and cons of created, understanding the two distinct types of created diamonds currently on the market is important. Check out this video that shows the two growing procesess
High pressure and high temperature lab grown diamonds
HPHT, or high pressure and high temperature, lab grown diamonds, were first invented in 1954 by General Electric and were predominately used for industrial purposes.
In this process, the diamond is created from a ‘carbon seed,’ with typically a material such as graphite being used. Here they are essentially extracting the carbon from a solvent metal, under the required conditions of pressure (over 1.5 million pounds) and high heat (over 1400 °C) to grow the diamond. However, it wasn’t until the 1970s that gem-quality diamonds started to be produced.
While HPHT diamonds are created using several different processes, many of these diamonds exhibit yellowish and brownish tints due to their exposure to nitrogen when being formed. They can also contain metal-type inclusions such as iron, nickel, and cobalt. These types of inclusions area-typical in mined diamonds, and so are often something that allows experts to identify them as lab grown.
HPHT is also used as a post-growth treatment to turn diamonds that have a brownish or yellowish tint into ones in the colourless range of diamonds (that is, in the D to F range; refer to chapter 7). While the colour change produced post-growth using HPHT is permanent, it is important to be aware if the treatment has been used.
One distinguishing feature of HPHT grown diamonds is that they will often have fluorescence, and may not show up on a diamond tester as a diamond in all cases
The time frame for making a HPHT diamond is around one to two months.
Chemical vapour deposition
CVD, or chemical vapour deposition, created diamonds are different from HPHT diamonds in that the seed is an actual diamond, and the diamond is grown from a hydrocarbon gas mixture. This process is a more recent method for creating diamonds and has been used since the 1980s.
Considerably less heat (800 °C) is used, along with myriad other techniques to cause the carbon-rich gas to bond with the diamond seed crystal to allow it to grow.
The diamonds created during the CVD growth method are near colourless, attributed to the vacuum chamber in which they are created. This chamber limits the exposure to nitrogen and boron. When combined with what’s known as a Type 1a, or type 2a, diamond seed, this leads to a whiter finished diamond. (Type 1a diamonds are purely, or almost purely, carbon, and are the purest and most valuable of all – see the section ‘Under the microscope’ for more.) This means that the original creators found the most perfect diamond they could in nature and used this for the seed crystal, from which all the subsequent diamonds were created.
Another advantage of a CVD created diamond is that it will never show fluorescence – refer to chapter 7 for more on how diamonds with low or no fluorescence are graded.
In this process, the diamond seed is placed in the reactor and, over a period of one to three months, grows into the finished laboratory-grown diamond.
Checking the certificate
When buying a lab grown diamond, you need to check the comments section on the certificate to confirm the method used. Was it through HPHT or CVD? If created through CVD, does it specify that a Type IIa diamond was used?
Value of created diamonds
Creating diamonds is not like making a loaf of bread, where you put your ingredients into the mix and, if you follow the recipe, it comes out perfect every time. Creating diamonds has so many variables – relating to the required heat, pressure, time frames and growth rates – that it must be like controlling a spaceship and flying into space with Elon Musk. This variability leads to high fail rates, making the yield of the growth process incredibly unpredictable. Most created diamonds sit in the lower I to K range for colour and SI (G-K VVS-SI1) to I range for clarity (refer to chapter 7). This means that a created diamond in the D to F range for colour and in the VS range for clarity represents a small percentage of all diamonds that are created. If you’re sourcing such a diamond, you’re looking for something rare and hard to find (and so more valuable).
This, along with the millions of dollars already spent in R&D, means that the value of a created diamond falling as low as $1 is incredibly unlikely.
Under the microscope
Diamonds are almost entirely made of carbon. The type Ia diamond, for example, is made up of over 98 per cent carbon, along with trace elements of nitrogen and other minor impurities in them. The type IIa diamond is almost exclusively made up of just carbon. (These make up just 1 to 2 per cent of all mined diamonds.)
To get a better idea of the effect of trace elements on light performance, imagine you are looking through your car windscreen after having been driving for a couple of months. On the windscreen might be the general grime of pollution, putting a fine film on the surface, along the occasion bug that has hit your window and other nasties that have found their way on to your screen. All of this impairs the clean transparency of your vision. Now imagine your windscreen has been cleaned with a premium grade solution that has made it so clear you find it hard to tell there is a glass barrier there at all.
At a microscopic level, this is like the difference between the type Ia and type IIa diamond. While the difference may seem small, it makes a significant impact on your diamond’s appearance and value. The type IIa diamond just has a certain crispness to it, and this type is possible with created diamonds.
Interesting fact for the chemistry buffs on trivia night
Carbon has four covalent bonds and nitrogen only has three. As mentioned, a type Ia diamond has carbon and nitrogen. Having nitrogen in the diamond’s crystalline lattice structure means it absorbs blue light, which leaves yellow light being emitted. Therefore, the more nitrogen a diamond has, the more yellow it looks.
The type IIa diamond, on the other hand has almost no nitrogen, which leaves it facing up whiter.
Considering the Sarine Light Performance report
Along with the ‘four Cs’ of cut, colour, clarity, and carat weight (refer to chapter 7) a new measure of a diamond’s performance rates how it interacts with light – using the Sarine Light Performance rating. The highest light report ranking you can get using this system is an Ultimate3. With practice and skill, it is possible to select a stone that has the right proportions, cut, clarity and colour to achieve this ranking. However, it has been my experience that it is almost impossible for a mined diamond to reach this classification due to the quality of the crystal and the way the light travels through the crystal.
Achieving an Ultimate cut grade (which is higher than the standard GIA excellent cut – refer to chapter 7) means that you diamond will sparkle more, even when dirty. Diamonds in the Ultimate range are simply beautiful and hard to source, which makes them even more desirable. Laboratory created diamonds are more likely to achieve the Ultimate 3 ranking than mined diamonds.
Mined versus created – or taxi versus Uber
One of the things clients often say to me is that they prefer a mined diamond because they believe it to be ‘traditional’ – to which I usually ask them if they use an Uber or a taxi. Almost everyone says they use an Uber, and I then ask, ‘Why isn’t a taxi ‘traditional’?’
The funny thing about technology is that it is often first seen with sceptical eyes, before being slowly adopted, and finally accepted and seen as common place. Even something such as buying online and having your shopping delivered used to be viewed with apprehension – putting your credit card information and address into the website? What if someone fraudulently purchased something on your card? Now no-one gives it a second thought.
Are lab grown diamonds a young person diamond?
As a rule, I find the client age line for choosing a created diamond is around 45 years. While it might be said that younger people embrace technology faster than the more seasoned of us, it isn’t always the case.
I had a couple recently celebrating their 43-year wedding anniversary with a 4.6ct E VS1 round brilliant, created diamond. If they had wanted to go for a mined equivalent, they would have had to pay more than $120,000 extra.
Spend more, save more
While ‘spend more to save more’ might be a funny catchphrase aimed at getting you to spend more at the Christmas and Boxing Day sales, it really is true when it comes to diamonds. The bigger the created diamond that you choose, the more you save. At the time of writing, the average saving when purchasing a one-carat created diamond was $5000, while you could save $12,000 if purchasing a 1.5ct created diamond, and $25,000 on a two-carat one.
The conversation I often have with my clients is around what they could do with the extra money. For a lot of them, the money saved can go towards a house deposit, paying for the wedding or even a house renovation.
Clients often decide to either save the money they would have otherwise had to spend for a comparable mined diamond, or they keep their budget the same and increase the size and quality of the diamond they can afford to buy. Depending on the quality of the diamond you are looking at, for example, you can likely get around a 40 to 50 per cent bigger diamond for the same money. So, if you’re looking at a one-carat mined diamond, in a created diamond you would be looking at 1.5ct-plus size diamond, which is certainly a noticeable difference.
The other bonus factor you usually find in a created diamond is that the cost of upgrading your quality is substantially less. For example, upgrading to a diamond in the VS range for clarity from one in the SI range might cost $200 in a created diamond, but might be $1000 more in a mined diamond.
One of the joys of my profession is seeing happy clients after they have been proposed to. Usually, they come in and love to tell the story of how their partner proposed, and then proudly show off the ring their partner chose. What I have seen over the last two years is the elation that comes from their expectations being exceeded, not just in the size of the diamond, but in maximising the other three of the 4Cs – cut grade, colour, and clarity. Exceeding expectations in all areas becomes more possible when considering created diamonds.
You may already know that my wife and I have triplets (plus one). One of the questions I am often asked it is whether the triplet pregnancy was by IVF. While it wasn’t, I have had many families and friends who have had their children with the assistance of IVF.
Imagine if you were made through IVF and your partner was made through the good old-fashioned way. No-one would look at you as a synthetic human; you just had a different start in life. In the same way, you couldn’t walk down the Queen St Mall in Brisbane, for example, and pick out the IVF babies. A created diamond can be just as beautiful, regardless of its origin being from a laboratory rather than the ground.
Engagement ring versus other diamond jewellery
While initially lab grown diamonds were extremely popular with fine jewellery, such as diamond pendants, earrings and diamond tennis bracelets, the inclusion of a created diamond as the main feature in engagement rings has seen a huge increase in recent years. At the time of writing, the trend is about 70 per cent of all engagement rings have a created diamond in the centre.
Our Ready to Wear Designer Engagement Ring collection is available in both laboratory grown diamonds and man made diamonds and you can check out our range here.
Proposed with an African mined diamond
Having now helped more than 7800 couples choose their dream engagement ring, one of the things I love doing, being a romantic at heart, is to ask people when they come back in to have their ring sized and perfectly fitted is how their partner did with the proposal. They often talk about how nervous their partner was, how amazing the proposal was (especially if their partner had some proposal coaching) and how much they love the ring.
I am yet to hear a bride talk about how amazing the proposal was because of their African mined diamond. At the end of the day, your diamond engagement ring is a symbol of your commitment together, as you start out on your adventure together. Its origins don’t affect your commitment or the story of your adventure.
Frequent questions
Through this chapter I’ve covered some of the initial concerns and questions most people have about created diamonds. In the following sections, I cover some more specific questions.
Are diamonds an investment?
To my understanding of an investment asset, a diamond meets none of the standard criteria (pink diamonds from the Argyle mind excluded!) You are not buying it to sell at some point in the future and make a profit. It does not pay you any dividends or returns, and the tax department certainly doesn’t make it tax deductible. The only investment it represents is in your happiness. I am yet to meet someone who would be happy about you selling their engagement ring.
I often look at my phone in the same way. I bought it because of what it can do and the enjoyment it brings me (even when I get addicted to the many silly games that can be downloaded onto it), not because I was ever thinking of how much I might get for it at some point in the future.
Can lab grown diamonds be insured?
Insurance companies will insure your created diamond. Just make sure that you have your stone valued by a recognised valuer from the Australian National Council of Jewellery Valuers (ncjv.com.au/). The amount insured must relate to your purchase amount. For example, you can’t purchase a created diamond and insure it for the price of a mined diamond. The insurance company will just replace what it was that you originally purchased – so insuring it for more will just mean that you are paying a higher premium for no reason.
Can they be valued?
Diamonds are valued according to their ratings in terms of colour, clarity, cut grade, carat weight – and origin. So, your created diamond will be valued in the same way as a mined diamond would be, just with the relevant adjustment to bring it in line with what you paid. For example, if a mined diamond would be valued at $15,000 as a classic one-carat F-colour VS-clarity diamond (and you would have paid close to this for such a diamond), a comparable created diamond with the same stats might be valued at $8000 (and, again, you would have paid close to this).
Are they graded the same?
Lab grown diamonds are graded absolutely the same as mined diamonds, because they are a created to be the same at a molecular level. All the international diamond grading laboratories use the recognised grading system for colour, clarity, cut and carat weight. Your created diamond should come with an international grading report and be laser inscribed to authenticate your stone.
Are they cut the same?
Lab Grown diamonds have the same hardness and optical properties as mined diamonds, so they are cut in the same way. The diamond follows the same path a mined diamond would – in the way the crystal is selected, cut is plotted for inclusions and yield determined to get the best result, and right down to the shape of the diamond they choose to cut.
However, there has been an expected windfall with laboratory grown diamonds – because the rough diamond crystals created are more consistent and regular, the cutters are often able to achieve a more ideal cut, whereas the irregularity in mined diamond rough crystals leads to more variation in the cutting.
Do they have the same certification?
At the time of writing, the main diamond grading laboratory for created diamonds is the International Gemmological Institute (IGI) laboratory. While the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA) laboratory was reluctant to grade created diamonds for the first year, they have now started grading created diamonds. However, their delay has meant that the IGI laboratory report is seen as the most recognised report to have when buying a created diamond.
What happens if you put it on a diamond tester?
Putting a lab grown diamond on a standard diamond tester will have it report as a diamond. Some newer diamond testers can check whether the diamond is a Type Ia or a Type IIa diamond, but this is not a conclusive test that a diamond is created. If the diamond shows up as a Type IIa crystal using this tester, further testing is then needed to confirm it is created.
What does the future look like in the diamond industry?
A lot has been made public on the topic of mined and created diamonds, and the ethics and sustainability of both. The manufacturing process for created diamonds requires enormous amounts of energy. Yes, some diamond producers use renewable energy to create their diamonds, but now this isn’t across the whole industry. What is undisputed is that they are not digging a massive hole in the planet that can be seen from space. The large volume of water associated with mining isn’t required with created diamonds either.
Several diamond growers are also leading the industry in their attempts to be more transparent and sustainable – for example, in the following areas:
· Verified origin traceability
· Ethical stewardship
· Climate neutrality
· Sustainable production practices
· Sustainable community and planetary investments.
What these means is that a shift is occurring in the industry. It is no longer just about producing beautiful gems, but also about doing the right thing for the planet and the future generations.
Origin traceability involves using state of the art traceability to track the diamond throughout its whole journey – from the diamond seed, through its international certification, right to the point where it is placed in a piece of jewellery you can have the enjoyment of wearing.
Ethical stewardship involves companies meeting a set of 12 strict ethical principles to ensure that everyone in the supply chain is looked after from a human rights point of view.
Climate neutrality means that a company must be climate neutral, not just in its current production, but also from the circumstances prior to the manufacturing becoming possible.
Sustainability production can only be achieved by offsetting the environmental and health impacts.
Sustainability investments are all about the role business can play in uplifting the vulnerable communities around them, and investing in protecting the climate, purifying the air, and protecting the waterways.
Sustainably is a factor
I would say that 70 per cent of clients I show a created diamond to choose it because of the 50 per cent size boost, while the other 30 per cent of clients choose it for the ethical, sustainability and environmentally friendly reasons. (I am sure a reasonable percentage of clients choose it for both reasons.)
The laboratory grown diamond industry is escalating their sustainability developments with a focus on sustainability across the entire process, and their innovations are fast becoming an attractive aspect for today’s modern consumer.
Concluding thoughts
So, in conclusion, created diamonds are here to stay. The growth rate and acceptance rate of created diamonds is increasing at an exponential rate. Some stores in the US are now selling created diamonds exclusively.
Whether or not you decide if a created diamond is a right for you will come down to where you see the value, because both options are beautiful. One has a story that some find appealing and the other has certain advantages, as outlined in this chapter.
For me, as with most things in life, I find the best answer comes in seeing them for myself firsthand. An intellectual understanding is a great first step, but this is no substitute for seeing a mined diamond and a created one side by side. After all, you or your partner will be wearing this for an exceptionally long time, so it is important to make sure you make the right choice.
From my perspective, the joy many of my clients’ experience in receiving a diamond that is beyond their wildest dreams is undeniable – and this they can often add the satisfaction of still having the money they need for the necessities of life, where they are right now.
If you want to learn more we also offer free diamond masterclasses, where you can come along in a relaxed setting and get to know more about diamonds than 90% of sales people put there!
Like most ladies, I am sure you would love to know how to get diamonds for Christmas. I wish I could tell you that guys love shopping for your Christmas present. The truth is most of us hate going near the shops, especially at this time of year. Even worse there is a constant dread of choosing something that you are going to hate. So, what do we do? We procrastinate, we leave it till the last minute, then in the last chance effort, we dash to the shops on Christmas Eve to join all the other helpless guys looking for a present for their partners.
Sound familiar??
I think it is partly because we don’t know what it is you really want, and partly because shopping for us guys is genuinely not an enjoyable experience. I am going to let you in on a little secret – we would rather be watching our favourite sports team, playing on our devices or pretty much anything else than spending hours at a shopping centre.
Ladies, it would really help us a lot if you left a list of the things you would really like for Christmas, as well as a list of the things that you absolutely DO NOT WANT. I know that you think it is common sense not to get you a blender for Christmas, but for our practical minds, it simply isn’t that straightforward. We don’t take subtle hints, it needs to be written on a big sheet of paper in red and put on the fridge. Somewhere where we can’t miss it is ideal.
Secondly, tell us the stores that you would love us to shop at for you. Ideally, these stores should have great team members that will make the process easy and a pleasurable experience for us. Ideally, these stores should have ample comfortable seating, be away from the bustling crowds, and have offered us a beer or beverage of our choice while we are picking out your perfect gift.
So If you are tired of receiving the same type of gifts every year, try this new tactic and see if this Santa brings you exactly what you have been dreaming of. Not only will you get more of what you want, but we will actually thank you for making the process of choosing your gift easier for us.
Just in case your partner hasn’t been to see our new showroom. We have lots of beautiful diamonds for you to wear, a private upstairs diamond boutique with comfy chairs, a great team of diamond consultants trained to make picking out your Christmas present easy for them. If that wasn’t enough there is also an exclusive scotch bar and/or beer for them to make the experience one that they will want to come back time and time again.
We even have a special promotion running at the moment, to help you get diamonds for Christmas – you can find out more here #LetHerSparkle.
The question of “How much does a 1ct diamond cost?” is something that I get asked often. Because there are so many factors that make up a diamonds price and quality. The usual answer here is how long is a piece of string. It is a common question that most men ask as they are about to embark on purchasing a new engagement ring.
At this point in time with the current exchange rate around the .82 cents. A beautiful 1ct F colour, SI clarity excellent cut grade diamond will typically cost around the $13000 all made up in a classic solitaire.
The rough rule of thumb is that under a carat the price will move about a $1000 for every ten points within a particular quality. So a 0.90ct F SI excellent cut grade round brilliant diamond will be approximately $11500 – $12000. The smaller the diamond the smaller the variation in price for the 10 points. Changing the size of a diamond always has a much bigger result on the price, than changing the colour or clarity of a diamond.
Are the difference between all the grades priced the same?
In nature anything that is rarer is also more valuable. So a pure white stone is going to carry more of a premium than a yellower diamond. Likewise a diamond that is flawless. Whenever you move to the top on any given scale the jump in price is going to be greater as that given stone becomes more rare and valuable. So while a jump in price from a G – F may be $300, going from an F to an E colour may be $350, and $400 to the top D colour
How much does the price change when changing the clarity of a diamond?
In todays market, changing the clarity of a diamond will have a bigger effect on the price of a given diamond than changing the colour.
For example moving from an SI2 to a VS2 may have roughly the same affect as changing the size by ten points. Depending on the size of the diamond, this could be as much as $800
How much does the price change for changing the colour of a diamond?
While changing this characteristic has the least impact on the price, the visual effect on the diamond can not be underestimated. Changing from a .50ct (half a carat) G to F will actually only cost around the $200 – $300. Which in my experience is well worth it, as most clients are able to tell the difference with their eyes.
The bigger the size of the diamond the larger the difference in colour is. Anyone who has been to a hardware store and had to pick out a colour for a wall will know this. Looking at colour as a postage paid stamp is much harder to visualise that looking at an A4 piece of paper. Diamonds are no different. The colour difference in a 1ct diamond is easier to see than a .50ct diamond. The difference in price however, because of the rarity will be more. Usually you can expect to pay around the $500 -$800 more for a jump in colour.
Always happy to help, if you would like to know “How much does a 1ct diamond cost” or another particular diamond size. Please email me, if you would like to compare the price of a particular diamond that you have been looking at.
Wedding day diamonds are a great way to spoil your new bride on one of the most magical days of her life. Wedding days can be an exciting roller coaster of emotions. New beginnings as the two of you begin your new life together, contrasted with the sadness of some fathers of the bride, who see their daughter leaving as the end of a chapter of their life.
Like the best man who is in charge of the wedding rings. The maid of honour or sister of the bride is a great choice, to give the wedding day diamonds to (which ever you are closer to). You will need to arrange a little get together prior to the wedding day to finalise the finer points of your plan.
It is a good idea to do a little research here, to find out what her wedding itinerary will be like. Ideally you want to try and arrange to have it presented when the mood is just right. An ideal moment is when she is having her hair done, or she is celebrating the moment with a glass of bubbles. It is a good idea to avoid doing it when she is having her make up applied as she may cry and cause her mascara to run.
While I am sure most ladies would be over the moon to receive diamonds on their wedding day. There is something that you guys can do, to make it even more special. Inside the box, write a special hand written note, telling her how special she is, and how much you are looking forward to seeing her walk down the aisle. I guarantee it will be something that she will treasure as much as the diamonds.
Like everything in life, guides are just that. There is no strict rule as to how much you should spend, and everyones budget is different. Especially with the cost of weddings these days, it is important to pick something that isn’t going to blow out the already maxed out credit card. As a rough guide a set of fine diamond hoops could be from the $800 – $1500+.
Diamond studs are also a popular choice if she doesn’t have any, and are unlikely to clash with her wedding day dress.
Buying a diamond engagement ring is not only a big emotional commitment but a significant financial one for most couples. While the internet is usually a great tool for conducting some initial research before buying a diamond, it can become difficult when you need to make a price comparison. The key piece of advice that i give my clients is – Don’t believe everything the diamond certificate tells you. After all it is only an opinion, graded by humans, who as we all know are prone to mistakes.
1. Certificate type
While the GIA is considered one of the most renown independant certificate on the market, there are some certificates that are really not worth the paper they are written on. Some are consistently at least one colour grade and clarity grade out. (to the downside) So while it might seem cheap on face value, it isn’t when you compare what you are actually getting for your money.
2. Excellent cut grade – What does that mean ?
It used to be that approximately the top 20% of stones received an excellent cut grade, today this figure is probably closer to the top 40%, as the parameters for an excellent cut grade are widening. The diamond grading laboratories like Google won’t tell you when they move them. You just need to know exactly what a perfect cut diamond looks like. Where you sit in this spectrum will not only be seen in the brilliance of the stone but the price as well. Make sure that when you are buying a diamond you don’t pay for a top 10% cut grade stone, when you are actually getting a top 30%.
3. Independently check your colour grade.
Colour grading can be affected by so many variables. How tired was the diamond grader at the time and things like excess coffee can all affect the way we perceive colour. The margin for error is so small, that it only takes a small error to cost you thousands depending on the size of diamond you are looking at. Make sure your diamond is checked by a qualified diamond grader. The colour on the left is an F colour and the one on the right is a H colour. 
4. Clarity grade – inclusion location
If you were deciding between two diamonds – one with an inclusion in the middle of the stone or one with a mark on the edge of the stone (that can be covered) i am sure you would choose the one on the edge. It is for this reason the diamonds with marks in the middle (table facet) are discounted and made cheaper. When buying a diamond always aim to have a girdle (edge) inclusion.
5. Fluorescence
A little understood characteristic. Basicly it is the way the diamond responds under ultraviolet light (like the one in discos). Anything slight to nill is ideal. Some medium fluorescent stones can be ok, but you really need to be careful as they can sometimes make the diamond look cloudy (which reduces the brilliance). Strong fluorescent stones are to be avoided – and they are much cheaper.
6. Laser inscription
This is a little be a nice to have – not need to have. The inscription is only on the surface of the stone. If someone wanted to, it is possible to have it polished off by a diamond cutter. So don’t discard a beautiful stone just because a stone doesn’t have a laser inscription
7. Not consulting a diamond expert
For complete piece of mind, it is always important to see a diamond expert when buying a diamond. You wouldn’t take your car to be serviced to someone that just sold tyers ? Like jewellery there are some who specialise in diamonds and some that just sell general jewellery. A diamond specialist will not only be able to tell you why a diamond is a better quality but be able to show you and answer any question you have about your diamond. 
At the end of the day, unless you want to look at your diamond certificate on the anniversary of your purchase every year, the diamond paper is not as important as finding the most brilliant diamond.
If you have found this helpful or have something you would like me to answer, please email me directly and i will answer any question that you have.
If diamonds would sparkle more in claw settings, then i am sure that almost every diamond ring would be set that way. Understanding the way a diamond sparkles has more to do with the cut of a diamond than it does the setting that it is in. A diamond owes its sparkle to the precision of the diamond cutter. The way the diamond cutter expertly cuts and polishes every facet to be within the smallest of margins allows the light to bounce around inside the diamond and exit through the top of the stone.
The nemesis of a diamond cutter is light leakage. Having light leak out through the back or side of a diamond will lead to reduced diamond scintillation. It only takes one facet to be off one tenth of a degree for the light to escape out through the bottom of the stone. Likewise it only takes a small deviation on some of the top kite or star facets for you to get an unbalanced sparkle from the top of the diamond.
Have you ever looked at a diamond and thought that there was a dead spot in the stone where the diamond just looked dull ? It was most likely due to light being lost out through one side of the diamond. A perfectly cut diamond should sparkle evenly from one side of the diamond to the other.
Make sure that you don’t get a diamond with dead spots. The effect is magnified when the diamond becomes dirty. If you are wanting the maximum sparkle to come from your diamond ring then a high performance cut diamond like the Passion8 “Hearts and Arrows” Diamond is a great place to start.
The Passion8 diamond has a 99% light return rating. All Passion8 Diamonds have also been scored as a triple excellent for; Scintillation, Dispersion and Brilliance. Which means that it doesn’t matter what setting you put it into. It will sparkle just the same in a claw setting or a full bezel setting.
A Passion8 diamonds takes 6 times as long to cut and is considered to be in the top 1% in the world for cut grade.
Not all triple excellent cut grade diamonds are equal.
Research Shows – Size Doesn’t matter !!!
A recent study found that 84% of respondents surveyed, stated that they would prefer a smaller diamond size if it was of a higher quality. This was in line with further questioning that showed that 86% didn’t want a showy engagement ring at the expense of quality.* (*Intertrade 2013)
When it comes to diamonds, diamond size is the least important characteristic. You can radically change the price of a ring by a $1000 by reducing the diamond size of a diamond by ten points (or 0.2mm, which is hardly discernable to the naked eye). To achieve the same saving without changing the size you would need to resort to having an incredibly flawed and yellow diamond, which is visible from a distance.
My advice is to always aim for a slightly smaller excellent cut high performance diamond like a Passion8 “hearts and arrows”, rather than just a larger one. Passion8 cut the most perfectly cut round and princess cut diamonds in the world. The precision cutting puts them in the top 1% in the world for cut grade. On average it takes them 6 times as long to cut a perfect cut “hearts and arrows” diamond as a regular excellent cut diamond. The also return 99% of the light that enters in through the table. One thing that clients comment on most is that their Passion8 diamonds sparkle for longer and even when dirty compared to their friends diamonds. Unfortunately diamonds are not like a bottle of wine – they are not going to get better in years to come. If you buy the best cut grade diamond you can now, it will always be the best and continue to sparkle for the rest of your life.
Come and see how much better a perfect cut looks than just going for a larger diamond size. If you have any questions or would like to know more about the Passion8 diamonds, please feel free to email at info@xennoxdiamonds.com.au
SI2 diamonds that are eye clean are becoming harder to find. They are something that takes patience and experience to find. As a qualified diamond grader, I am always searching for the most perfectly cut SI2 diamonds with the best located inclusions. Looking at a diamond’s inclusion location is just like property, it is all about location, location location. The second most important thing to understand about diamond clarity and inclusions, is that they are expressed as a percentage of the diamonds size. So the bigger the diamond, the bigger the inclusions can be; becoming more evident in larger diamonds around the 1ct plus size.
There are four main locations of SI2 diamond inclusions:
White inclusion on the edge of the diamond (rarest and most desirable) Having a specialised and qualified diamond grader hand pick your diamond with an eye clean SI2 diamond will not only make it sparkle more, but will save you money as well. It will sparkle more because the inclusions are on the edge of the diamond and not interfering with the light as it travels through the centre of the stone. This gives the diamond more brilliance and sparkle. It will save you money because you won’t need to spend money needlessly on upgrading your clarity to a VS grade.
SI2 clarity inclusions can either be:
Inclusions in the table should be avoided if at all possible. The table facet or centre of the stone is the easiest place to see any inclusions. Like something sitting below a clear glass table, once you see an inclusion, you will always see it. Your eye is trained to find the inclusion and will always go back to the same spot; one of which can be seen here just off to the left of centre in the middle of the diamond.
Inclusions on the edge are definitely preferred. The combination of facets that run around the outside edge of the diamond (star facets, kite or mainfacets, and upper girdle facets) scatter the light as it exits the stone. This provides a unique camouflage effect, making the inclusions much harder to see. Inclusions are seen here at 10 o’clock and 7 o’clock, halfway to the edge of the diamond.
One big inclusion on the girdle (edge of the diamond) is the perfect location for an inclusion. Most claw settings will cover an inclusion, provided that they don’t come too far into the centre of the stone. Even if the claw doesn’t cover 100% of the inclusion, when an inclusion comes out of a claw, it is much less noticeable as the eye is not draw to a blank space. Inclusion here is near 12 o’clock, perfectly located to be covered by a claw.
At Xennox Diamonds, our specialty is hand picking eye clean SI2 inclusions. We are always aiming for the “perfect” inclusion that you can cover with a claw. This leaves more money in your budget for maximizing your cut grade, colour grade or size. Please make sure to always avoid “Clarity Enhanced” diamonds, as these do not follow the same guidelines outlined here. If you have any questions about this blog or about what to look for when choosing a diamond, please post a comment below as I always enjoy responding.
