So I've been dating this gal a while and getting pretty serious and starting to look at engagement rings. The jewelry store we went to in Tulsa said their two carat diamond rings are about 25 grand and their lab grown diamond rings are about $5,500. They said about 90% of people are now buying lab grown diamonds and I think my girlfriend is OK with one and she better be, cause I ain't pay'in $25K, I've been married twice already. Does anyone know about these diamonds or what to look for? Most jewelry stores seem to be a rip off and I'm not sure I totally trust what they say. Yes, I know most guys here will probably say skip the ring and buy a Registered Magnum but Jana really wants a ring.

You might check out Cubic Zirconia, too. Then you can get the ring AND the Registered Magnum.

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protocalldesign.com

Cubic Zirconias are a little TOO cheap for her and if I did save money I'm going to need it for my daughter wedding that will be coming up also.

As far as I know, "lab grown" diamonds are exactly the same chemically as natural diamonds, with one exception - they are TOO PERFECT. The major difference is the lab can use much more pure stock to create the diamond than you typically find in nature (it's only carbon, after all), leaving the final stone with much greater clarity and no inclusions. After that, it's nothing more than size, cut and setting.

All humor aside, I've know jewelers who can only tell the difference because the lab-grown gem is just too fine to be natural, and nothing more. It's like the difference between generic acetaminophen and brand-name Tylenol - the only people who will know the difference are you, the jeweler you are buying it from, and the guy your jeweler is making his boat payments to...

1) Set a budget for the ring.
2) Hire a lawyer to prepare a good prenup.
3) Deduct the fee for the lawyer from the budget. Use whatever is left to buy the ring.

A cigar band will do, if every thing else is right.
Just Celebrated 44 years with my wife.
No, I did not use a cigar band but it was
Not a $25,000 ring either.

I just checked with the resident expert in my home. It’s not me. However, the price for the 2 carat Mossanite home grown diamond is too high at $5000. She priced the ring at 3 jewelers and all were less than $2000. At two carats , the HGD does not compare in looks to her real diamond 2 carat diamond . A smaller stone will not be as dramatic a difference. However, she still loves her two carat Cubic Zirconia ring. It just needs to be cleaned more often. Body oils dull the shine or sparkle.

Cheers!
Resident “Sugar Daddy”

Bill

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That's what we do!

save a BUNDEL =GO TO A PAWN SHOP. The markup at a jewelery store is like 200 %

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age is just a number

Contact pawngal.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Many gals will use high end lab grown diamonds as "travel jewelry" instead of the real thing (i.g. a $25K diamond). If it is lost or stolen then its a lot less than the real ring.

Your diamond should be as real as your love for the woman. 2ct is a big diamond. Maybe scale back on the size and get the real thing. If something has to be marketed “as good as” or “same as” then it’s not. All Registered Magnums are 357s. But not all .357s are Registered Magnums.

Farmer, Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials. I wish you and Jana a life of happiness together.

There wasn't a diamond large enough or cut well enough to convey my love for Ruthie.

On my proposal night we were at an upscale restaurant. It was a cold night. After the meal she ran to the powder room. While she was gone I slipped a small stone engagement ring into the ring finger of her glove.

The look on her face 😍.

She loves recounting that to others.

As Yoda the anastropheist would say: "A hopeless romantic am I".

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

OK here is what I know about diamonds, besides being too expensive. Color, cut and clarity. I took some man made diamonds to my jeweler and he wanted NOTHING to do with them. Said they were worth nothing and he will not deal in them. Somebody that wants 5500.oo for a lab diamond is selling you just the gold, according to my jeweler.

2Karat is overboard IMHO. I would be looking for a 3/4 to 1 K, Color D, VS1 rated if you want a fine stone, and that will cost you plenty.

Everybody knows a guy who knows a guy. Buy a loose diamond based on getting appraisal before you buy and have it set. If you can follow that and get the appraisal, you can save a ton of money. There is at least a 400% markup in jewelry. so think about in the 5500 fake diamond a 400% is worth just the gold. Gold is 1850.00 or thereabouts an ounce.

Do your homework!!!

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Pete
I ain't no fortunate son

My "first wife" and I will also celebrate 44 years on July 28.

As a newly employed chemist just out of grad school, I was too broke to afford an engagement ring when I proposed.

With life events - work transfers, kids, etc. - she waited 6 years before I was able to finally purchase her modest engagement ring; we "upgraded" (significantly!) on our 30th anniversary.

She's been the best...........

Back on topic - remember the 3 "C's" - carat, cut, clarity. Set a budget and buy the best "quality" diamond that fits the budget. Quality diamonds will give that much desired "fire" and will only increase in value over time.

My girlfriend and I had little money to spend. And we wanted to buy a house to live in rather than an apartment. We chose a real diamond, but it was the smallest one they had.

A buddy bought his girlfriend a huge diamond, and had to mortgage it besides.

My girlfriend understood the dilemma. His wouldn't settle for less.

They loved poorly and we were solid middle class.

They divorced after about 10 years. We will soon be celebrating our 50th anniversary.

The ring should be around 3 months salary, that's it. If she wants more, she might have the wrong fella?

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

Remember these from grade school?

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

I find it ironic that almost all of my wife's jewelry is now in a safe deposit box. She feels it is too dangerous to wear it out in public unless it is a private party. Don't even get me started on fur coats. I am thinking of having VERY expensive fur converted to Teddy Bears for the kids.

First, Congratulations! That's really cool, I'm happy for you! Now, a little story.
My mother's engagement ring has the smallest diamond I have ever seen. Absolutley no exaggeration. They couldn't afford much at the start, she was going to nursing school, and he was working in a heavy equipment factory as a mechanic. They decided, together, to put the money towards "making memories and starting a family". They were married for 58 years until she passed. In all that time she refused to have it replaced with another stone or another ring. She never said why until a couple of years beforehand. She said it wasn't the size of the diamond that mattered to her, it was the planning for the future, together, that the ring represented. It was the promise that, not only would her voice be heard in this marriage, but that he would be there to hear it. That meant alot to her.
But that's just one couple's story. Whatever you decide to do, if it's done with love, it's probably the right thing.

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The best I can with what I got

In England, in 1952, dad gave mom an unadorned thin silver band as an engagement ring. The Crown Jewels wouldn't have made her any happier.



Dad would ask folks "why is my hand like a lemon pie?"

"It's got muh rang on it."

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

If she has green eyes, give her turquoise; If blue, give her opals. She should know that a 25k ring will cost her as much as it does you. I have been single 72 years.

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"Don't Give Up the Ship"

This could be better than tomatoes, what do I need to get started growing’em?

My wife and I got married at the age that we recognize that "sparkly" is just a waste of money. We didn't bother with an engagement ring, just went to Kohl's department store and got plain 14K gold bands. On sale at that, buy one get the second 1/2 off.

Coming up on 17 years, I say I'm still on my first wife and she says she's on her last husband.

Saw my name mentioned, I'll post later this evening about the differences and what to look out for.

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Super Snooper

Having once done some research on the topic, I discovered that there is a ton of information concerning natural vs. lab-made diamonds, including pricing, on the internet. I advise you immerse yourself in it before making a purchase decision. Way back in the Iron Age, my wife-to-be and I shopped all the diamond dealers and pawn shops in Cleveland (there are many of them) and finally found a stone she liked at a reasonable price for us. We bought the stone, a little bigger than a half-carat, and had it set in a ring later. Unfortunately, that ring was stolen in a home burglary in the mid 1980’s, and she never replaced it.

My wife came from a very poor family, and she made no demands about the size and cost of her ring. She would have been happy with anything.

When our son got engaged, she was from a fairly well-to-do family and insisted on a huge and very expensive engagement rock (from the “family jewelers,” no less) so he went into debt and bought her one. That convinced me the marriage would have no legs. And I was right, it lasted about six years.

Everything I know about synthetic diamonds I learned from Walter White:

A synthetic diamond is like an Uberti Colt.

When we were married my Bride has a .35 carat engagement ring, For our 40th Anniversary she got a 1.75 carat very fine diamond. For our 50th anniversary we spent a month in Paris. She passed 10 days short of our 56th Anniversary.

The good ones are worth it.

Her granddaughter has both diamonds and loves them.

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Kind regards, Heinz

Diamonds have little to no resale value. Land does (you know that) Just sayin’…


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

We were in married in March of 1959, I plowed about 30 acres for a fellow and with the money he paid me we went to Overstreets jewelry in Bentonville Ar and we got a plain gold band for eight dollars and on our twenty fifth anniversary she got a 1.5 carat single stone we have been married sixty four years. Jeff

Mom met Dad at his cousins house just as the war started. Mom wrote to Dad all the time he was on sabbatical in the South Pacific. When he got back they dated and decided to marry.

Grandpa said they were too young, had zero money and needed to wait. At that time Dad had a job, but couldn't even afford to buy a car. Grandpa promised if they waited a year he would buy their furniture.

After the year, it all came to fruition. It would last 69 years. In all those years Mom only wore a very small gold band. No other ring.

Way back in 1963 when we got engaged, the "rule of thumb" for a ring was equal to one months pay. Just starting out that wasn't very much but did get a .33 caret diamond. On our 50th anniversary 8 years ago she kept the same stone but we had it reset and added an Anniversary ring of 5, .20 stones for a caret total with the original stone is 1.33 caret.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Diamonds are the biggest hoax on the planet. Just about the most common mineral on the planet, the high prices are completely due to the monopolistic nature of the diamond trade and the DeBeers company.

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Pisgah

1st, Be certain you are getting a Lab-created diamond.
Cubic Zirconia (CZ) is a fancy glass diamond simulant, FAKE
Moissanite is a diamond substitute, NOT a diamond.
Synthetic diamond, nope, Run Forrest, Run
Lab created diamonds are real diamonds. They are also called Lab-grown diamonds. They can be certified by the Gemology Institute of America (GIA)
This is a good information link
https://www.bluenile.com/education/d...grown-diamonds

Or as someone else mentioned, check the pawnshops! They can guarantee that the stones are diamonds. But not likely that they can tell you if it is a natural or lab created diamond (There is a machine that can test for the difference but it costs around $25,000)

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Super Snooper

I was wondering if someone was going to point this out!

They also came up with the "two months salary" thing.

Often, you can find diamonds for sale locally. The problem is, figuring if they are real or fake. When I married the first bride, Pop gave me a diamond ring from his family. Long story short, I lost that ring.

When I remarried, I shopped around. Found a jewelry store in town (Cleveland, Ohio) that had bought a bunch of loose stones from a store that went out of business. Got a good deal on the stone, the ring and the bride. 30 years with this one.

As for size of the stone, the sales lady commented, “Diamonds are like sex, it’s never too big.” I nearly died when she said that!

Kevin

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Unshared knowledge is wasted.

Heck, do a smash-and-grab. Appears to be all the rage the days and it seems no one ever gets caught.

I agree with Rusty's suggestion to follow Pawngal's advice. Looking forward to her post.

My second son is getting close to an engagement so we've been discussing this. I sent him a recent article I read written by a gal who had, with her encouragement, received a bicycle as an engagement gift from her betrothed. So, do whatever — within reason — makes your betrothed happy.

The older I get, the less I am into folowing conventions. We're only here for a short time. If we're lucky enough to find our soulmates, we should do whatever feels right for the relationship, not what we imagine others expect of us.

(Now, having said all that, my son's fiance is an exec with a famous luxury brand, so I am pretty sure she ain't going with a bicycle!)

Best of luck, Farmer. I have enjoyed watching your relationship develop!

There is a thriving market in used diamonds. In fact most of the diamonds you see at a jewelry store are recycled. If you took one to a pawnshop and got pennies on the dollar, that was your ignorance, not the diamonds fault. True, DeBeers does control the supply, which is why diamonds hold their value. Go to your friendly neighborhood diamond merchant and you will get a fair price. He probably has a beard and wears a prayer shawl.
Why do you think diamonds are so popular in criminal enterprises?

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Kind regards, Heinz

I bought an Eternity Ring that was made with Lab Created Diamonds. Very nice ring and about a 1/5 the cost of natural diamonds in lesser color and clarity. Wife is happy, but lab created diamonds look perfect and the larger, the more obvious they look too perfect. This ring has about 12 diamonds and is 2 carats in total weight. Married 33 years and counting!

For the wedding ring, I bought the wife a 1 carat solitaire and added two half carat stones to the side in a new mount a few years after we were married. The diamonds were 2nd hand and the are all D color and SI2 in clarity, but the cut was a modern cut. Vintage diamonds may have a cut that may not match modern cuts and look different. Saved over 1/2 what similar diamonds from jewelry stores or other dealers wanted.

You need to study the 4 Cs (Cut, Clarity, Carat, Color). Certified diamonds are now the norm and they have a standard market value like guns, gold, etc. Get and idea what she wants, what you think is reasonable, and surprise her. Women love good surprises!

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Blaine
SWCA 3490 SWHF 586

Be unconventional! Forget the diamonds as there are many other gems stones out there. Look at rubies, sapphires or emeralds as a start. We both liked the colored gem stones and my wife's engagement ring was a deep blue sapphire to match her eyes. Over the years she now gotten a ruby and an emerald so she can now take her pick on what color to wear to match her outfit or mood.

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Bill

Why, seed diamond of course!

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Who are those guys?

Diamonds, natural and synthetic, do not show up on an exray. All the female techs I worked with made sure theirs passed the test.
As far as real value goes, diamonds are probably one of the worse investments an individual can make. We've been well trained to think otherwise by the most success ad campaign in history... "diamonds are forever".

John

Well, seeing how this is wedding #3 (congratulations by the way!), I'm not sure I would get her ANY kind of gun. Only because of my 1st two joyous journeys in Holy Matrimony.
My #25 years of Heavenly bliss comes sometime this year, I think November, so I'll be hunting for a diamond SOMETHING. I really have to remember that date. I hope it's November, I think the 31st.

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Waiting For The Sun.

Around 50 years ago, my best friend’s father worked at a General Electric facility in Columbus, Ohio that made industrial diamonds. It was a very high-security location. He told me that they used huge hydraulic presses, but not exactly how the process worked. At the time, they produced only industrial-grade stones used for cutting and grinding tools, not gemstones. It appears that lab-made diamond technology has come a very long way in the last fifty years. A Brief History of Lab-Grown Diamonds - International Gem Society

Just my opinion, but given that lab-made diamonds are chemically and in crystalline structure identical twins to natural diamonds, and can be graded and GIA-certified using the exact same procedures and standards as natural diamonds, why would anyone of rational mind spend even a penny extra to buy an otherwise equivalent natural diamond? But many people are not rational.

The next campaign was "Diamonds will take her breath away".

After that "Diamonds will make her breathless".

The men's version is "Diamonds, that'll shut her up".

Equating ones love to money spent on engagement rings is akin to St. Valentine's Day. The holiday was commandeered by profiteers to guilt people into forking out multiple billions each year on cards, chocolates and flowers.

A token of love shouldn't be measured in greenbacks.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Simply get a hand exercise machine,, and make your own.

Trust me, she will be more impressed with DIY than any store-bought diamond,,

Here is the how-to video,,


The added bonus is that new-found strength will make you more accurate with a Model 629,,

The engagement/wedding rings from my last marriage came from my pawnshop. Appraisal is $15,000+. They are for sale in the shop now for $5000. Center diamond is .85ct.
Pawnshop paid $1500 for them.
That is to give you an idea of the different price points.

Attached Images

IMG-7280.jpg (98.4 KB, 30 views)

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Super Snooper

I suspect that the lab-made diamonds will eventually replace natural diamonds in the retail market and the competition will force the pricing of natural diamonds down significantly. Most everyone knows that for a long time the market dominance of the DeBeers diamond cartel was the only reason that diamonds were expensive. It seems that DeBeers became aware of the threat as they no longer control the market and now have their own line of lab-made diamonds.

I am amazed that folks steeped in all the nuances of S&W collecting wonder that people would prefer a natural diamond over a man-made diamond. What is the difference between original finish and reblue? Why all the fuss over some penciled numbers inside the grips?

Diamonds are like guns, they is or they ain't.

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Kind regards, Heinz