Consumer misconceptions about diamonds can make the process of engagement ring shopping even more distressing.
With Thanksgiving marking the unofficial start of engagement season — late November through Valentine’s Day is when marriage proposals are common — ring buying is top of mind for many couples considering marriage.
The four Cs — carat, cut, color, and clarity — have traditionally been used to evaluate diamonds. Now, couples buying diamond engagement rings have another choice to make: natural diamonds, which are mined from the earth, or lab-grown diamonds, which are man-made but chemically identical.
The once straightforward process of picking a stone is now fraught with confusion. Along with their style preferences, couples are now considering the ethics and sustainability of each type of diamond. “I was surprised by how much uncertainty and how much of an opinion existed out there on both sides of the fence,” Chris Lawlor, 35, of New York, said about his experience designing an engagement ring for his fiancée in 2021. “People didn’t seem to be on the same page.”
For the rest of this article: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/23/fashion/weddings/diamond-engagement-rings-lab-grown-natural.html