Why would buy a lab-grown engagement ring?

[Tabster]

Surprisingly, diamonds are not rare, whatsoever! This might come as a shock to a person who has just paid 1,000 dollars for a one-carat stone, but there are enough diamonds in the world to give every man, woman, and child in America a cupful.

I would want the cup with all the blood red 10x AAA grade 'fancy' stones (ie pure colour no secondry grey/brown tones) cut 'brilliant' without a culet if possible. (if there isn't enough red, top the cup up with 'orange-red' and 'deep violet')

I wouldn't want a cup full of 'bort' only suitable for drill bits.

at about $1M difference in price per carat it would pay to be choosey

 

[aelf]

I don't really get the argument on whether diamonds are rare. AFAIK, whether something is actually rare might not have any bearing on the price of a commodity. If people think they're worth a certain sum, they will be worth a certain sum, give or take. People just need to have confidence that the posted price is accurate (to what exactly is a good question).

I was going to say that De Beers no longer has a controlling share, but I see that it's been mentioned. But quite evidently the price of diamonds has little to do with who controls the market or exactly how many big players there are. It's to do with the myth that has been built around the commodity. As long as people buy into it people will buy it at the posted price. Le fin.

 

[GoodGame]

Why not, it's not conflict diamonds.

 

[Defiant47]

Actually, thinking about it, I'd rather buy a lab-grown diamond ring for $500, and then mail a $1500 cheque to a random diamond mining company. Same thing, really.

Just tell your significant other that it cost you $2000.

 

[Grisu]

I would buy whatever my fiancee wanted, for the following reasons:

* She's the one that has to wear it.
* Men generally don't know anything about women's fashion.

For the record, my wife doesn't even have an engagement ring. She refused to wear one on the grounds that the wedding band is expensive enough, and we'd rather save our money for more important things. So I never bought her one.

My advice is to propose without a ring, then tell your fiancee that you can come with her to shop for one of her choosing. Doing so is both practical and useful. You will not have to waste money on crap she'll hate, and if perchance she rejects you, you will have saved money. By offering to let her choose the ring that you buy, you enhance your reputation with her, as you are essentially buying things for her that she wants. It's the perfect crime.

PS. I would also add that this event offers a perfect chance to test your future wife. If she ends up picking the most ridiculously expensive ring knowing you cannot afford it, you will immediately realize exactly who you're marrying, and can decide to back out of the deal before it's too late.

I'm partially with Nanocyborgasm here, except that I'd do (and did) without a ring at all...It's really not necessary, IMHO..of course, that's also a question of culture as these things are less common here than they seem to be in the US.

 

[Archbob]

Dude, look at the wiki article you cited. Nowhere does it say gem-grade diamonds are rare. Actually if you read, it says the diamond industry is divided into industrial and gem-grade but it also says that mined "rough" diamonds can be made into gem-grade diamonds by "cutting".

One contributory factor is the geological nature of diamond deposits: several large primary kimberlite-pipe mines each account for significant portions of market share (such as the Jwaneng mine in Botswana, which is a single large pit operated by De Beers that can produce between 12.5 to 15 million carats of diamonds per year,[58]) whereas secondary alluvial diamond deposits tend to be fragmented amongst many different operators because they can be dispersed over many hundreds of square kilometers

There are enough diamonds for everyone on earth to have at least one if not more because most of these mined rough can be cut into gemstones.


The really rare natural ones are the colored ones.

 

[Formaldehyde]

Actually if you read, it says the diamond industry is divided into industrial and gem-grade but it also says that mined "rough" diamonds can be made into gem-grade diamonds by "cutting".

That is correct. However, you are making the mistake of thinking that rough means industrial-grade, which it obviously doesn't. All diamonds are rough prior to being cut. They don't even bother with the industrial grade ones because nobody wants them due to the flaws or the disclorations.

Only a fraction of the diamonds found can be cut into gems that anybody is willing to buy. And most of those are quite small in size and are relatively worthless. It is only the cut stones that are over half a carat that really have much value as jewelry. This represents a tiny fraction of the amount mined each year. It is also a highly labor-intensive task. Brilliant diamonds have 58 facets, each of which must be cut by hand by an extremely qualified craftsman. The slightest slip and it is suddenly almost worthless depending on what can be done with the remaining shards.

It is basic economics. Scarce e.g. rare, objects typically demand a premium given there is an actual demand. And even the remarkable advances which have alowed the production of flawless synthetic diamonds have not eroded the price of natural gem-quality diamonds. Nobody is now hording diamonds. And it now appears that since DeBeers already sold off whatever stockpiles they actually had back in the 80s and early 90s, even that didn't disrupt the wholesale price to any extent. This likely means even they weren't hording them to any large extent, as some people imagined they were.

There are a lot of myths about the diamond industry, most of which are due to DeBeers own highly secretive practices in the past. But now, there is basically an open market. If there are more gem-grade diamonds than the current demand, prices will fall. Otherwise they won't. See the graph I posted earlier to discern for yourself what has actually happened.

 

[Abaddon]

I can't imagine proposing without a ring..

 

[Elta]

I just noticed how horrid the title is

Why would buy a lab-grown engagement ring?

 

[JRD]

removed

 

[AL_DA_GREAT]

The creator of lab grown engagment rings is mans best friend.

 

[bhsup]

I don't understand why they force the diamonds to be marked as synthetic. Are they or are they not legitimately diamonds? The only thing I can see is this is done to protect one specific business against another business. Shouldn't be doing that. If the ones that dig them out out of the ground cannot compete with the synthetic makers, tough hairless squirrels.

Personally, I think amethyst should be used. Why? Cuz it's my birthstone and oh so pretty!

 

[civ_king]

I don't understand why they force the diamonds to be marked as synthetic. Are they or are they not legitimately diamonds? The only thing I can see is this is done to protect one specific business against another business. Shouldn't be doing that. If the ones that dig them out out of the ground cannot compete with the synthetic makers, tough hairless squirrels.

Personally, I think amethyst should be used. Why? Cuz it's my birthstone and oh so pretty!

So people don't sell synthetic ones as real ones and rip people off, or so I'm told

 

[bhsup]

But why is a synthetic one "ripping people off"? That is what I just am not getting. Is it or is it not a diamond? Does it sparkle and look lovely?

 

[Ulyaoth]

I'd guess the point is to force them to actually sell them for the lower price, rather than just start making their own cheap diamonds and keeping the same price as mined and making a huge profit.

 

[bhsup]

OH man, if I owned the business even if not marked I would undercut the hell out of the other diamond sellers. Force THEM to drop their prices to be competitive. Smaller margins but higher volume!

 

[MobBoss]

So people don't sell synthetic ones as real ones and rip people off, or so I'm told

But why is a synthetic one "ripping people off"? That is what I just am not getting. Is it or is it not a diamond? Does it sparkle and look lovely?

Correct me if I a wrong here, but I recently bought my wife a strand of pearls (opera length) and it occurs to me the difference in real and synthetic diamonds is roughly the same as between natural and cultured pearls. Cultured pearls are expensive enough, but you cant hardly fathom how expensive a matched set (color & size) of pearls cost.

Except that natural pearls are a lot more rare than diamonds.

But I do agree with most of the comments in the thread about getting something that looks nice at a good price. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Neonanocyborgasm]

I'm partially with Nanocyborgasm here, except that I'd do (and did) without a ring at all...It's really not necessary, IMHO..of course, that's also a question of culture as these things are less common here than they seem to be in the US.

Diamond engagement rings are only a custom in the US, although the practice has spread to some neighboring countries. That is because of an advertising campaign by the De Beers diamond conglomerate several decades ago, which targeted only the US (it was the richest country in the world, by far, at the time). Everyone fell for it and so here we are discussing the merits of carbon crystals. I'd even go so far as to say that the entire diamond industry is a scam. De Beers itself owns nearly all the diamond reserves in the world, and so has a virtual monopoly. It hoards diamonds to keep their prices artificially high, and has convinced people that they are worth their cost.

 

[Formaldehyde]

Diamond engagement rings are only a custom in the US, although the practice has spread to some neighboring countries.

Diamond engagement rings are actually quite unversal in European culture, and they predate the DeBeers ad campaign by centuries. Of course, they did become more popular with the middle class in the mid-20th Century when DeBeers first started their advertising campaign, but it is likely the cause and effect were just the opposite. That increased demand from the middle class caused DeBeers to start advertising to generate even more popularity.

http://www.circa1930s.com/c30content/c30-historyengagementrings.htm

Spoiler :

The practice of sealing the marriage contract with a ring is a time-honored tradition, dating back to ancient times. The predecessor to today's engagement rings, however, wouldn't have turned many heads: a simple iron hoop was de rigeur in early Roman times, followed by a plain gold band some centuries later. The significance of the ring was its symbolism, with its circular shape an abstract representation of eternity.

Diamonds were first discovered in India around 800 B.C., and were prized by cultures throughout the world for their beauty and rarity; many believed them to possess magical powers. Early societies were particularly impressed with the hardness of diamond; the name diamond comes from the Greek word "adamas," meaning unconquerable. Such an attribute made it the perfect choice to represent the marriage bond.

However, it was the 15th century before brides-to-be could look forward to a little sparkle on their ring fingers; and then, only if they were among the royalty, or very wealthy. The first recorded incidence of a diamond engagement ring was that given to Mary of Burgundy by the Archduke Maximilian of Hamburg in 1477.

In the eighteenth century, the discovery of diamonds in Brazil increased the available supply; diamond jewelry became quite fashionable, sparkling in the candlelight at evening balls and social events. Engagement rings from this time are charming and romantic, with diamond-set crowned hearts, bows and sprays of flowers.

The wealth generated by the Industrial Revolution, coupled with newly discovered diamond mines in Africa, made diamonds available to the wider public in the Victorian age. Sentimental themes remained popular; larger clusters and bands of diamonds were also favored. Queen Victoria chose a snake ring, whose coils symbolized eternity, to mark her engagement. In 1886, Tiffany introduced the six-prong solitaire diamond engagement ring.

The antique engagement rings available today are primarily those from the first half of the twentieth century. White gold and platinum filigree rings were popular from the turn of the century through the twenties; the intricate, lace-like detail loved by Edwardian era ladies still holds a special appeal for women today. Platinum and diamond Art Deco rings often featured geometric shapes and colored accent stones (ruby, sapphire, or emerald). Both yellow and white gold, often in combination, were common for engagement rings in the thirties and forties. Small side diamonds, and delicately-carved hearts, flowers, and leaves, gave these rings a romantic charm ideal for the occasion. Square-shaped and "illusion" settings beautifully showcased the center diamonds.

De Beers itself owns nearly all the diamond reserves in the world, and so has a virtual monopoly. It hoards diamonds to keep their prices artificially high, and has convinced people that they are worth their cost.

Not anymore. Read the posts above for more details.

 

[Defiant47]

If I found out my OH had bought a cheap lab diamond, I would be rather miffed.

So then, which is more important? The "social worth" of the diamond in question (how it is perceived) or the money spent on the diamond? Or a combination of both?

You say you don't want a cheap lab diamond.

Suppose that lab-grown diamonds were revered quite a bit in the social scene. They cost a fraction of the natural diamonds, but everyone thinks that there's something special about lab-grown diamonds. If you'd show off a diamond ring and say that the diamond was artificially made (because no-one could tell otherwise just from looking), then everyone would honestly think quite highly of the ring. "Wow, very impressive!" "He's a keeper" etc.

If the social worth were as high as diamonds, would you still have a problem with your husband buying a "cheap lab diamond"?

Or suppose that lab-grown diamonds are viewed the way they are now, but because the artificial creation process isn't quite perfected, they actually end up costing more than regular diamonds.

If the actual cost were as high as diamonds, would you still have a problem with your husband buying a "cheap lab diamond"?