Would You Buy A Lab

Nov 03, 2023

By Sarah Royce-Greensill

Shopping for an engagement ring is like buying a house: exciting, nerve-wracking, and unless you have a Kardashian's budget, it involves compromise. Traditionally, a bigger diamond meant sacrificing clarity or colour, while those set on D-Flawless, the ultimate in colour and clarity, opted for a smaller but perfectly formed stone. Now, couples are exploring lab-grown diamonds to make their money stretch further. Chemically and physically identical to mined diamonds yet costing ten to 40 per cent less, they can offer a chance to get a bigger rock for your budget.

By Rachel Garrahan

"When we started looking for an engagement ring, we had a strict budget but I also had a clear vision of what I wanted," says Emilie Nelson, who designed a bespoke toi-et-moi ring using Fenton's Solar Diamonds. The lab-grown gems are created at a solar-powered facility in India; a one-carat stone costs on average around £2,600, versus around £6,000 for a comparable natural diamond. "This way I could get the design I wanted, with diamonds in the size I wanted," says Nelson.

Emilie Nelson, who chose a lab-grown diamond from Fenton, with her fiancé.

By Emma Spedding

By Emma Spedding

By Alex Kessler

When Linnea Weinberger decided to upgrade her natural diamond engagement ring, she asked her original jeweller, Lylie, to source a 4ct emerald-cut lab-grown diamond. "I wanted a super beautiful, big, clean stone, and choosing lab-grown meant I got the biggest bang for my buck," she says. "If it was a natural diamond, it would have defects but the lab-grown material has excellent clarity, with exactly the same certification. It made total sense."

When Linnea Weinberger upgraded her engagement ring from Lylie, she chose a lab-grown diamond.

Price aside, other clients are motivated by environmental factors. "The ethics mattered far more than the budget: we did not want an unethical diamond on Bethany's finger," says Daniel Hoare, whose fiancée Bethany Smith suggested opting for lab-grown. The couple worked with East London-based jeweller Rachel Boston to design a bespoke ring featuring a 3.71ct oval lab-grown diamond. "We were very particular in terms of size, cut and clarity, and we felt safer sourcing a stone of that quality knowing it has a proven history and provenance. The result is absolutely stunning," says Hoare.

Bethany Smith with her fiancé Daniel Hoare.

By Emma Spedding

By Emma Spedding

By Alex Kessler

In December 2022, lab-grown diamond jewellery brand Kimai opened its first boutique in Marylebone. Co-founder Sidney Neuhaus expects engagement rings to make up 55 per cent of its business by the end of 2023. "We thought it would take longer to convince people to buy lab-grown engagement rings but there has been a huge shift in the last couple of years," says Neuhaus, whose own engagement ring inspired one of Kimai's best-selling styles.

"For me it's a no brainer: not only for the sustainability and traceability aspect but also for the pricing. My generation is savvy about how we spend. I love wearing diamond jewellery but a two-carat mined stone is crazy expensive – I’d rather invest in a house. With lab-grown I can do both. It's democratising diamond jewellery."

Lara Nuchowitz in her Kimai engagement ring with her fiancé.

Kimai client Lara Nuchowicz, who chose a lab-grown yellow diamond, agrees. "I’m an advocate for sustainability, and lab-grown diamonds are aligned with what I believe in," she says. "It was important for me to be confident that my engagement ring didn't have any negative effects on people or the planet."

Lab-grown diamond jeweller Vrai's UK bridal business has doubled in the last year. Customers can choose their stone online: from a 0.30-carat, G-colour marquise in a classic 18kt gold solitaire setting for £1,595, to an 8.62-carat, H-colour round brilliant stone for over £23,000; each one created in Diamond Foundry's carbon-neutral plant in Washington state. Soon, buyers will be able to specify their desired shape and size, cut to order from a lab-grown rough.

But not everybody is open to the idea. "I am mildly allergic to lab-grown; the concept of a traditional token of love being mass-produced in a kiln to maximise profit removes all the natural, gemmological wonder," says jeweller Georgina Boyce. "Lab-grown diamonds do not have the same legacy as natural stones and the claims that they have zero carbon footprint are, I believe, misleading. There are other ways to be sustainable, such as repurposing old stones."

While the purists may never be convinced, there's no doubt that enthusiasm for lab-grown diamonds will continue to grow. Brands like Lylie, Rachel Boston and Alex Monroe offer a choice between lab-grown, repurposed antique and responsibly mined natural diamonds; giving consumers the opportunity to make an informed decision about the ring on their finger. As Fenton founder Laura Lambert says, "the famous ad only said ‘a diamond is forever’ – there was no mention of the provenance of that rock."