cz versus the real deal...

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#61
vespergirl said:
I feel pretty strongly about this one ... the original purpose of the diamond engagement ring was for the diamond to be a symbol of the man's financial prosperity, and to assure the woman's family that he would be able to take care of her, when he was marrying her and she would be leaving her father's house. That's why people are more "impressed" by large diamonds - it show's off the wealth of the couple.

These days, of course, most women are financially independent, so it's not like the guy has to show her dad that he can take care of her, since she was probably taking care of herself before they got engaged.

However, I am traditional, so I still see it as a symbol of the man's commitment to his wife by making a financial sacrifice to get her something of value. When we went diamond shopping, my husband was determined to spend as least two months salary, because that's what he felt that I "deserved."

That's not to say that I think a woman needs any particular size diamond - but it needs to be real, and her fiance should have saved for the purchase - I think 2 months salary is a good guideline. If that means that she's getting a real .25 carat diamond because that's what his budget can afford, then she should wear it with pride.

I know someone who's fiance drives a $60,000 car & spends $ like it's water on himself, but she's walking around with a 3 carat CZ on her finger that she's trying to pass off as a real diamond (she knows it isn't). My husband was disgusted when her fiance bought her that - he said that it showed a real lack of commitment to her - if he were really serious about the relationship, he would have either bought her a smaller, real diamond, or sold the fancy car to buy her the bigger diamond that he wanted everyone to "think" he had bought.

Maybe I have a more old-fashioned view of this, but I see the diamond engagement ring as a symbol. I think it's totally cool if you don't buy into it, though - I have lots of friends who just wear wedding bands, because they don't like the whole connotation of the couple's wealth being displayed on her finger - but I love diamonds too much to be that down to earth! :graucho:
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my question...what if the girl doesnt want a real diamond and wants a cz??? would you still think thats its unacceptable to purchase a cz even if the girl doesnt want a diamond.

i dont want a diamond and i dont have a problem admitting that....i personally dont see the point in spending so much money on a diamond. i dont think it shows more love or that a guy can take care of me better. maybe it did before but i personally dont think thats what it should represent. i would be happy getting whatever my boyfriend chose to get me.
 
#62
meeowy said:
I don't understand why some say it is so tacky to have a cz engagement ring. Real deal or not, it symbolizes someone's eternal love and everlasting commitment to the other person. In my mind, no symbol of love is too tacky if there is true sincerity and love behind it.
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i agree 100 percent. it shouldnt matter if its a diamond or a cz or just a plain band.
 
#66
Couturegrl said:
I don't know where one would even buy a 'real' looking CZ engagement ring??
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some of Winfield's pieces are quite nice.

http://www.freecz.com/gallery/gallery2.php
http://www.freecz.com/gallery/gallery.php

I occasionally like some of the Fantasia by Deserio rings at Neiman Marcus.

I've gotten lucky a few times with Shopnbc.com's Signity line.

***
No cz looks just like a diamond to me. However, for a 'right hand ring', fun piece, experiment before committing to a diamond, or diamond alternative they can be cool!

Again as gem/jewelry obsessed as I am, I still find that most people simply aren't tuned in..they have other things to think about.
 
#67
Totally agree with you...
courtneyh said:
i have real diamonds...i have 1 carat earrings and 2 carat necklace from my mom........my best friend has a 2 carat CZ engagment ring...and seriously holding them next to each other it looks the same if not the CZ looks better (of course cause its perfect). I would definatly have NO problem with a CZ engagment ring. I dont think it should matter, as long as you love the person who gave you the ring.

Diamonds personally to me dont symbolize anything. It doesnt mean more love the bigger the carat, it just means you spent more money, thats just my opinion.
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#68
Michele26, you can't always tell just by looking at a stone with the naked eye. A very good cz can fool you even with a jeweler's loupe! The cutting and faceting is done very well on many brands such as Diamonique (QVC) Absolute (HSN) or Signity (ShopNBC). Also, the material cz is made of is much nicer now and doesn't turn cloudy like the older cz. It's come a long way in terms of looking authentic. Even the cz settings are as good as diamond settings now. A diamond tester is customarily used because it measures heat conductivity which is quite different in a diamond versus a cz. However, Moissonite will test positive as a diamond because of the close similarity in heat conductivity. Moissonite is not synthetic, whereas cz is. It's a natural stone, and can cost in the thousands! What usually tips me off that it's a cz is the perfection. (Of course I'm using a loupe at this point.) Diamonds have natural blemishes and inclusions, and cz usually is the equivalent of a D colorless IF clarity stone. Even a one carat stone would be expensive and in the tens of thousands. I've had people come in bragging about their ring, and they'll have a 3 to 5 carat stone and a real diamond that's perfect is rare in that size and would cost as much as some folk's homes! When they hand them to me, they're light (set in sterling silver). Platinum is the heaviest, then gold, and then silver. I can usually tell what kind of metal a stone is set in by picking it up. Also if one has a loose cz, if you sit it on newspaper you can still read print through it. Diamonds have a refractive index that makes that impossible. Where I was going with this thread was that it seems that so many people would take the artifice of a cz just to look affluent (I'm specifically talking about engagement rings) and I just can't imagine wanting one for an engagement ring. I'd take a platinum wedding band or a sapphire (although a large natural sapphire with few inclusions is expensive too...you can spend $10k on a sapphire). I can see why people may have fun with cz that they purchase for themselves (not my thing personally), but I'd never want one for an engagement ring.
 
#71
Well, being a feminist I wasn't sure I wanted an engagement ring because of the cultural signifiers already mentioned. Then again I'm a feminist who loves jewelry. I settled with a classic Tiffany ring.

But I think there are rings in every budget and I just don't get the mentality that a big purchase has to benefit both people in the relationship equally like some of the women have expressed in this thread. That I don't get. Its not like the big plasma TV sitting in the living room is making me do backflips of joy or anything.
 
#72
Oh boy. What a great thread!

A CZ is intrinsicly an inexpensive replacement for a diamond. Therefore, it is a cheap replica. Just like faux handbags ... EXCEPT they aren't made by hungry lonely little children in 3rd world nations under horrible working conditions financing mafia or terrorists, etc. CZ's are a legit product and made in a reputable industry.

I have some CZ's. I don't ever claim they are diamonds. I have ShopNBC Signity studs that are fabulously sparkly (and will never cloud as they aren't made with calcium). I highly recommend Signity to friends and share whenever they are going to be on the air. I just worry about losing earrings so I feel better about having them instead of the real thing in my ears. Maybe someday I'll replace them with some that have the locking clasps.

However, an engagement ring is an entirely different matter as it is traditionally symbolic and represents your committment as a couple, your love for each other. I personally would not choose a CZ for my engagement ring. I would feel like a fraud. When my ex (from college) proposed, he gave me an oval amethyst encircled with tiny melle diamonds from Zales. It was the real deal and the best we could afford. (Now, 19 years later, I have the same style ring in a natural fancy yellow diamond from my longtime SO!:yahoo:)

When people ask me my opinion, I tell them to buy what you can afford, and buy genuine. Don't get faux, because that is how you will eventually feel. And then you realize that you blew money on fake when you could have had something real, however humble.
 
#73
Oregonfanlisa, I totally agree!
CZ is fine for earrings and fun, fashion jewelry.
But I just think it's ridiculous to wear one for your engagement ring. Engagement rings are supposed to be genuine, like your love. Not some cheap knock off.
 
#74
I would feel like I was faking it if I wore a cz. Since my husband upgraded my ring to a 2 1/2 carat I've received many comments on it. I just would feel weird if someone commented on my ring and it was cz.
 
#75
Crystalina said:
Oregonfanlisa, I totally agree!
CZ is fine for earrings and fun, fashion jewelry.
But I just think it's ridiculous to wear one for your engagement ring. Engagement rings are supposed to be genuine, like your love. Not some cheap knock off.
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...a cz is not a knock off first of all.....and just because u think its ridiculous doesnt mean it is to other people...how can you call it ridiculous...seriously.....a diamond does not mean anything....a 5 carat diamond doesnt mean someone loves you more than a .25 carat diamond but people like you think that....you cant call it a cheap knock off.....

some people cant afford diamonds because they are so expensive....so why cant people have a cz....theres nothing wrong with it...but people like you make other people feel like they cant do stuff like that because you just think its so "ridiculous".....or maybe some people dont want a "real" diamond....i for one DONT want a real diamond and i WANT a CZ...and you can call me fake all you want...but i dont have a problem wanting a CZ for an engagment ring....i dont think its a "cheap knock off" or "fake" or how ever people like you feel about them....

no matter what...that pretty little diamond on your finger doesnt mean your husband loves you more than someone wearing a CZ.....

its a waste of money to purchase a diamond...its the worst investment EVER. and thats how i feel about that:cursing:
 
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