Learn About Lab Diamonds Before Your Next Big Diamond Purchase

 Learn About Lab Diamonds Before Your Next Big Diamond Purchase

There are basically two types of diamonds that are available in the market today – one is the mined diamond that has been traditionally around for centuries, and the other is the lab diamond, where a piece of carbon is subjected to pressures similar to that the carbon faces on earth itself, that leads to the formation of a diamond. Lab diamonds, for all intents and purposes, are real diamonds. Yet, a lot of people think that lab diamonds are not real diamonds and choose mined diamonds over lab diamonds, despite the obvious ethical and environmental concerns that mined diamonds bring.

What people however are not aware about are the costs at which mined diamonds are procured. There is both a human cost as well as an environmental cost that every purchase of mined diamonds. A lot of people might have heard about the concept or the term ‘blood diamonds’ which indicates that a lot of diamonds that have been sourced from developing countries, such as particularly those in Africa actually come at the cost of human lives and contribute to human suffering.

Furthermore, mining by itself is one of the worst possible things that you can do to earth. Mining is tremendously harmful for the earth’s surface, and mines are often just filled with water and shallowly covered up once the ores are depleted. It is therefore important to remember these factors before purchasing a diamond.

Are Lab Diamonds Real Diamonds?

If you want to learn about lab grown diamond, the first important question to ask is whether they are real diamonds. Despite popular misconceptions, lab grown diamonds are real diamonds. They are also carbon subject to high pressure, but are created in laboratory settings rather than being mined. Their structure, chemical composition, and formulation is the same. Unless viewed with some very specific equipment, it is impossible to tell the difference between a diamond that is mined and that is lab grown.

Does it have the same sparkle and hardiness of a mined diamond?

Yes! Lab diamonds are exactly the same as mined diamonds when it comes to sparkle and hardiness. In fact, some people actually find the cut and the clarity of a lab diamond much better than that of a mined diamond. This is because the brilliance of a lab diamond is much higher due to it being more perfect than a mined diamond. Low quality mined diamonds (usually the affordable ones) are actually very imperfect and have tons of inclusions in them. Therefore, lab diamonds certainly win on this aspect.

What are the benefits of going the lab route rather than buying a mined diamond piece?

The biggest advantage of going the lab grown diamond route is that you get to save a lot of money that you can spend on getting a larger stone of your choice if you decide to go in for a lab grown diamond. This cannot be said for mined diamonds. Similarly, if you purchase only ethically sourced goods and do not want to contribute towards the exploitation of poor communities and the environment, lab diamonds are a better bet.

Teresa Martinez

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