Are lab diamonds the equivalent of handbag Superfakes?

#91
I don’t think lab diamonds are like fakes at all. I think there is a lot of judgement about people buying labs because wealthier people do not want those in middle class or working class to be able to afford the same things as them in the same sizes and it be indistinguishable. This type of thinking is gross and I’m personally glad especially young folks today can buy their dream rings without it getting in the way of saving for their futures.
 
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#92
I have no desire to own lab grown diamonds. Reminds me of the grow your own crystal kits! LOL
On another note, a local jeweler's ad cracks me up: "...Nothing says I love you less than a fake diamond. Steve only sells REAL Natural Earth Born Diamonds™. Steven has never, and will never sell lab grown diamonds, but he WILL give them away for FREE!

You may be wondering how Steven Singer is giving away 1 carat lab grown diamonds for free. We aren't going to tell you how we can give them away, but you should question how other jewelers are charging you thousands of dollars for them..."
 
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#93
DesigningStyle said:
I have no desire to own lab grown diamonds. Reminds me of the grow your own crystal kits! LOL
On another note, a local jeweler's ad cracks me up: "...Nothing says I love you less than a fake diamond. Steve only sells REAL Natural Earth Born Diamonds™. Steven has never, and will never sell lab grown diamonds, but he WILL give them away for FREE!

You may be wondering how Steven Singer is giving away 1 carat lab grown diamonds for free. We aren't going to tell you how we can give them away, but you should question how other jewelers are charging you thousands of dollars for them..."
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Bad quality 1ct lab costs around $200, good quality one $400. So I guess he is giving away those “for free” to the people who buy natural diamonds from him with hundreds percent markup.
Jewelers are feeling really bad towards lab, because their average sales drop dramatically and their earnings with them. I totally understand, it’s not a pleasant feeling when you can not continue getting tens or sometimes hundreds of thousands from ignorant customers.
Industry is getting disrupted and sour jewelers are definitely not the people who one should listen to when making a decision natural vs lab.
 
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#94
Mishella said:
Bad quality 1ct lab costs around $200, good quality one $400. So I guess he is giving away those “for free” to the people who buy natural diamonds from him with hundreds percent markup.
Jewelers are feeling really bad towards lab, because their average sales drop dramatically and their earnings with them. I totally understand, it’s not a pleasant feeling when you can not continue getting tens or sometimes hundreds of thousands from ignorant customers.
Industry is getting disrupted and sour jewelers are definitely not the people who one should listen to when making a decision natural vs lab.
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don't know where your price examples are coming from....I see much higher prices, thousands, not hundreds for lab grown diamonds
 
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#95
sdkitty said:
don't know where your price examples are coming from....I see much higher prices, thousands, not hundreds for lab grown diamonds
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It’s manufacturers price. The closest you can get would be from Loosegrowndiamonds. Brilliant earth markups are huge, I personally wouldn’y buy from them.
Btw I saw exactly same diamond (report number) selling for 5x more on Rarecarat than on Loosegrown. People are still not aware about real prices for labs, so aggregators like them and common jewelers profit hugely.
 
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#96
Mishella said:
It’s manufacturers price. The closest you can get would be from Loosegrowndiamonds. Brilliant earth markups are huge, I personally wouldn’y buy from them.
Btw I saw exactly same diamond (report number) selling for 5x more on Rarecarat than on Loosegrown. People are still not aware about real prices for labs, so aggregators like them and common jewelers profit hugely.
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so manufacturers price is always much lower than retail. wholesale price on natural diamonds is going to be lower than retail too (maybe not as much of a difference as with the lab ones based on what you're saying)
 
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#98
sdkitty said:
so manufacturers price is always much lower than retail. wholesale price on natural diamonds is going to be lower than retail too (maybe not as much of a difference as with the lab ones based on what you're saying)
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Yes, sure. But with diamonds (no matter lab or natural) fair price would be manufacturers + 10% commision. At least that is the price I’m paying when ordering stones for my pieces. If you are paying more, you’re being taken advantage of.
 
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#100
I live in the Philly suburbs and the Steven Singer adds about lab diamonds completely turn me off. There are many valid reasons why someone would want a lab diamond and not a natural diamond but his advertising basically implies all those people are idiots.

And from what I've seen while natural diamonds may hold their value more, the vast majority of the time, people who want to sell a natural diamond are very disappointed when they realize how much they can sell it for in the open market. It's difficult to sell a diamond privately (potential buyers of an item like that may require services or buyer assurances that a private seller may not want or be able to provide) and selling it via a consigner further reduces the take-home profit. And also, diamond owners sometimes have appraisals that have inflated the value of the diamond but that is the $ value they have in mind when they go to sell the diamond but that is a $ value they'll never achieve by selling.
 
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#101
adlgel said:
I live in the Philly suburbs and the Steven Singer adds about lab diamonds completely turn me off. There are many valid reasons why someone would want a lab diamond and not a natural diamond but his advertising basically implies all those people are idiots.
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That is the exact impression that I was left with after reading the post regarding the ad contents. There are a ton of reasons why a couple might choose lab over mined. I'm sure 99.9% of those are not that they are stupid or that their love is fake. That entire ad campaign guarantees I'd never shop there.
 
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#102
TechPrincess said:
That is the exact impression that I was left with after reading the post regarding the ad contents. There are a ton of reasons why a couple might choose lab over mined. I'm sure 99.9% of those are not that they are stupid or that their love is fake. That entire ad campaign guarantees I'd never shop there.
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one reason I can think of for going for a lab diamond - the person wants size and sparkle and budget is a factor....very few people (if any) are going to know the difference
 
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#103
It’s an interesting topic and I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s responses. For an engagement ring, I would not wear a lab grown diamond. As someone else commented, it might be generational. I prefer a mined diamond. I don’t think a lab diamond is exactly the same as a superfake. They’re not illegal. I just wouldn’t claim it to be a mined stone. That’s being dishonest. In my opinion, they are not on the same level as mined stones. I don’t believe they hold the same value. I’m not sure if I would ever consider owning any jewelry with lab diamonds even though some of the cocktail earrings I have seen look very pretty and the prices are reasonable. Having said that, I really don’t care what anyone else chooses to buy or wear. Lab diamonds are just another option. In the end, you have to go with what makes you happy and is within your budget.
 
#104
Mishella said:
Bad quality 1ct lab costs around $200, good quality one $400. So I guess he is giving away those “for free” to the people who buy natural diamonds from him with hundreds percent markup.
Jewelers are feeling really bad towards lab, because their average sales drop dramatically and their earnings with them. I totally understand, it’s not a pleasant feeling when you can not continue getting tens or sometimes hundreds of thousands from ignorant customers.
Industry is getting disrupted and sour jewelers are definitely not the people who one should listen to when making a decision natural vs lab.
Click to expand...
Right. While not unbiased, this poster on Reddit gives good explanation on why lab prices vary so much.

 
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#105
mrsinsyder said:
Right. While not unbiased, this poster on Reddit gives good explanation on why lab prices vary so much.

Click to expand...

It’s another marketing post to stimulate people to overpay and justify it for themselves. The truth is what you see in a certificate. Super low quality diamonds that he is talking about don’t go to a laboratory at the first place and don’t get graded. His post is intentionally very confusing to those without GIA education and a total nonsense to those who have it :biggrin:
 
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