Today, we'll just lightly discuss four common misconceptions believed about diamonds in the jewelry industry. We'll briefly offer counterpoints to these statements in order to provide helpful information from our own experiences and point-of-view.



1.) Some say that diamonds are nearly indestructible?

Diamonds are not indestructible. Even if they are the hardest naturally occurring mineral on the planet, hardness is understood by definition as 'resistant to scratches or abrasion' rather than being impervious to breakage or splitting. Diamonds are actually able to 'chip' and break, especially at the thinnest points of their physical structure- the girdle edge and the culet. Chipped diamonds obviously become lower in value, as this does affect their clarity grade. Likewise, diamonds also have certain crystallographic directions where the bonds between atoms are weaker, causing them to possibly or potentially 'split apart' in clean breaks if hit with enough force along those directions. These are called cleavage planes. Furthermore, diamonds are made of carbon. Carbon can burn. Which is why diamonds can be altered significantly by intensely high temperature fires, and can also be 'cut' or separated using lasers.

2.) There are some people who say that 'lab-grown diamonds' are not diamonds at all? (specifically referring to CVD and HPHT produced LG diamonds)

Actually, by chemical definition- a diamond is essentially made-up of carbon atoms crystallized in the isometric / cubic crystal lattice system. By this definition, a lab-grown diamond is a diamond. The difference between natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds mainly relates to two things: market price value and how they grew. Natural diamonds take billions of years to form, and this results in the presence of minor trace-elements and certain atomic defects when compared to lab-grown diamonds, which allow properly equipped gemological laboratories to differentiate between the two. Trace elements are very small percentages of elements that are non-essential to a diamond's basic chemistry, but form along with it during growth. The present-day selling prices / value of natural diamonds are higher than those of artificially grown or man-made diamonds due to the rarity factors involved, as well as the idea that lab-grown diamonds can simply be produced over and over again (despite manufacturing technologies still being expensive). Be very careful of using terms like 'real' or 'genuine' when buying or selling a lab-grown diamond. These terms are very subjective and can have different meanings and interpretations for different people. For ethical transparency you should always say 'lab-grown diamond', if your stone is indeed a man-made diamond. You can always further differentiate it from imitation materials like moissanite or cubic zirconia as well, and say that its essential chemistry is composed of carbon.

(Note: Lab-grown diamonds are different from lab-grown imitation materials like cubic zirconia or moissanite. This article refers specifically to lab-grown diamonds grown from the Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process or the High-Pressure, High-Temperature (HPHT) process. We are only talking about man-made diamonds themselves (carbon chemistry), not about any kind of simulant or lookalike gem material.)

We've recently noted that a lot of people who set appointments for diamond checking / evaluation, express heavy concerns regarding natural diamonds possibly losing a percentage of their current status or value in the trade. This fear seems to stem from the recently rising popularity of lab-grown / man-made diamonds both locally and abroad, based on what we're hearing from visitors.

As far as we've seen though, natural diamond sales across the globe are very stable and values at middle-to-commercial tiers are still routinely standardized. Values at the top tiers (D-E-F with F-IF or VVS clarities above 10cts) are also doing very well at auction events. At the retail level though, the most in-demand sizes remain especially strong- 1ct, 1.5ct and 2ct weights.

Pictured below is 102.34 ct. round brilliant natural diamond, image credit: Sotheby's auctions. Rare and astounding gemstones like this are reserved for only those willing to pay the required fortune for owning such an opulent symbol of exclusivity and luxury. Large, high end natural diamonds have been increasing in value-demand quite steadily over the recent years, even with the advent of lab-grown stones.



Lab-grown diamonds are cheaper than natural earth-mined stones by around 40-60% at the wholesale / dealer level (sometimes 30% at retail), and *normal diamond testers (or moissanite testers) are NOT able to separate these from natural diamonds at all. Remember that their essential chemical composition is the same as a natural diamond's, so advanced spectrometry-based laboratory equipment would be required to positively identify most earth-mined natural diamonds from potentially man-made counterparts.

Nevertheless, we're currently aiding the screening efforts for several jewelry stores in order to make sure their diamond inventory is more accurately identified. (As a third-party evaluator though, we do not buy or sell diamond jewelry. We also do not recommend or discourage sale from any specific store or brand, in order to remain completely objective for all our evaluations.)

In the U.S., some stores are already selling lab-grown stones under the label- real diamonds, and while some may agree and others may disagree, they are following the definition based on same chemistry and cubic crystal structure. Essentially lab-grown diamonds are still chemically diamonds, they were just created in a factory lab.

Whether you're into lab-grown stones or not, it's best to be sure of what you have. These two kinds of diamonds have very different market values this 2019.

The lack of a metal or gold band makes this ring the complete opposite of traditionally crafted counterparts. It obviously won't be resizable after the final form is cut, as diamond is not malleable like gold.

The actual cutting will be done using very high-pressured jets of water, guided by precise laser systems. The piece is predicted to have somewhere between 2,000 to 3,000 facets according to Sotheby's. This is the most number of facets counted on a single diamond.

When asked for comments on its price, the opinion was that the ring would eventually reach about 150,000 to 250,000 USD.


Be aware however that the raw diamond stone used for this ring was grown artificially in a laboratory belonging to San Francisco-based company; Diamond Foundry. Martin Roscheinsen, its founder, explained that they had to grow a rough piece that was about 45 carats in weight in order to properly create the solid-diamond ring. This was no easy feat, but to-date the largest lab grown diamond ever created was 155 carats, so it was not impossible.

While it's not a natural diamond, the ring does indeed showcase a beautiful appeal, being a product of inventive design and innovation. This collaboration between industry-leading designers will surely be something to remember over the next few decades.

Objectively speaking, lab-grown or man-made diamonds are a neutral product. They're neither good nor bad, and reception of them as a gemstone really depends on a person's own opinion. As we've stated before, these artificially made products, do possess the same essential chemical composition and crystal structure as natural diamond. They are indeed different from 'imitations' or 'simulants' such as cubic zirconia, moissanite and glass. The problem only lies when they are sold as 'natural' diamonds, as this is a different product class with different value points.

Despite this established differentiation, it seems a lot of people still (perhaps by habit) call these items 'fake' diamonds. Here at the laboratory, we try to refrain from using the word 'fake', as it promotes negativity towards any item type. A lab-grown stone is just a man-made counterpart of a natural stone.



On the other hand, a simulant or imitation stone, is indeed a lookalike counterpart of a natural stone, that does not share its composition or structure. Please note the difference between usage of the words man-made & lab-grown versus usage of the word simulant.

The monetary values and prices of lab-grown diamonds are not the same as those of natural diamonds (like the natural specimen pictured above, featured during a Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong). The latter is usually around 30% higher in price at the retail level, and 40-60% higher in price at the wholesale level, based on our own observations speaking to members of the trade from around the world (2018).

Filipinos that visit the facility as we've noticed, tend to feel scared when the issue of lab-grown diamonds comes up. The fact that all man-made diamonds cannot be checked or separated by thermal diamond testers, adds to that growing fear. Spectrometric / luminescence-spectrometry testing is now needed to confirm an informed opinion as to whether or not a diamond is a natural type 1aAB stone. Lab-grown stones can also possess inclusions, so do not depend on the absence of inclusions as a solo test for checking them. Some older HPHT grown stones though may show characteristic metallic flux inclusions that would help in their identification, but these should be judged by a gemologist who is already familiar with their appearances.

Relatively recent news of diamonds with false laser inscriptions and switched reports caused worry amidst even the local trade. These occurrences may be uncommon, but the fact that they happen (for both enhanced / treated and lab-grown diamonds), calls for an air of caution when purchasing expensive stones. You can find one of our articles on the matter here. The Diamond Loupe also writes about a similar instance, which you can read through this link too.

Do note that lab-grown diamonds are beautiful products in their own right, as long as they are sold with the proper transparency and ethical disclosure required of them. People should know that what they are buying is not a natural gemstone mined out of the earth, but rather is a well-made crystal grown from machines using a repeatable process. Marketing adjective-terms like 'cultured' are sometimes used by sellers at their own discretion, probably trying to relate their products more to the cultured pearl industry. Here at the lab though we only choose to use the terms "man-made or lab-grown" for this type of product.



It is up to the buyer to do his or her due diligence regarding the complexities of the man-made diamond trend, and decide whether or not the purchase of one would be applicable for his or her purpose.

There are some buyers out there though, who do prefer lab-grown diamonds due to the absence of the possibility of them being involved with the funding of wars in diamond-mining countries. This basically rules out the fear of 'conflict diamonds'.

Feel free to ask about lab-grown gemstones during your appointment visits with our G.G. / gemologist here at the lab as well.

*Gemcamp Laboratories does not buy, sell or recommend specific traders for both natural and lab-grown diamonds (and gemstones). We do this in order to maintain no vested interest in the items that we examine and share our opinions on.