Zack & Elle is committed to being at the forefront of news, updates, and changes in the jewelry industry.  There is now a new option for diamond ring shoppers: The Lab Grown Diamond.

Are Lab Grown Diamonds Real?

Lab grown diamonds are real diamonds that are simply created in a different way than earth mined diamonds are. 

This type of diamond is “grown” inside a lab using cutting-edge technology that replicates the natural diamond growing process.

Sometimes, lab- created diamonds are referred to as synthetic diamonds. While not technically inaccurate, the term “synthetic” may be the reason people believe lab-created diamonds are “fake.”

How Are Lab Grown Diamonds Graded and Certified?

Lab grown diamonds are graded and certified using the same process as mined diamonds.

Diamonds are sent to a gem lab that specializes in grading diamonds. The majority of these labs grade using the 4c’s (cut, clarity, color, and carat — more on those later), however, a select few use their own criteria.

What Are the Benefits of Lab Grown Diamonds?

One of the biggest benefits of buying lab grown is the fact that they are much cheaper than earth mined diamonds.

Mined diamonds have a long supply chain. To get a diamond from its raw form to a retail-ready gemstone requires miners, distributors, cutters, polishers, jewelry manufacturers, and retailers. That is what makes them more expensive.

Buying lab grown is also more ethical. 

This is because knowing the exact origin of your diamond provides peace of mind and reassurance that sometimes buying a natural diamond cannot.

Lastly, a lab grown diamond is more environmentally friendly.

They are inherently and significantly less detrimental to the environment as it takes considerably less energy to grow a diamond in a lab than it does to dig it out of the ground. In fact, it is actually in the interest of the growers to minimize the amount of energy they use in the process to save money and decrease their costs.