Star Gazer Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 A typical GIA certificated 1.50-2.00ct natural should range between 15 and 20K, depending on specs. If available, a synthetic of similar specs should be 15-30% less, with larger being lesser in discount. IME, the man-made variety isn't 15-30% less. It's 15-30% of the cost, IF that. For example, the 1.73 carat ring I was looking at with my ex was around 20k if natural/GIA, and only about $2,300 if certified man-made. Colorless.
Author Banker Chick Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 Thanks everyone for your replies! I'm a penny pincher anyway so the thought of spending that much money (especially when his is so limited to begin with) makes my stomach churn. The thing that irks me are the looks and comments I get when I try to explain this to people. Really? Are people THAT superficial? Let's be honest ... when announcing "I'm engaged" the first response is "Ooooh, let me see the ring!". Ugh. Another aspect of this which I thought of after reading Carhill's post ... I wouldn't mind a different stone or a piece of heirloom jewelry but is this something that should be picked out together? I like being surprised but not sure if I trust his judgement
carhill Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 IME, the man-made variety isn't 15-30% less. It's 15-30% of the cost, IF that. For example, the 1.73 carat ring I was looking at with my ex was around 20k if natural/GIA, and only about $2,300 if certified man-made. Colorless. Please advise me where that synthetic is being made/produced. I'm not aware of synths that large. Thanks!
daphne Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Here is how pigs get slaughtered for their meat in the US. A large group of pigs is driven into a room with metal walls. The walls of that room are actually automated hydraulic compressors. That means 2 walls of the metal room move with high pressure towards the center of the room, compressing all the pigs so tightly they can't move or breathe. Then once the pigs are compressed like that, but still alive, then they put 10000 Volts on the metal walls of the room for several minutes, killing all the pigs in the room by electrocution. And that is how the meat on your plate died. Guess I'll be eating vegetarian tonight. Thanks party pooper. I usually like to depersonalize my food and pretend it came in plastic from the start.
lenny Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 I would want real. The cost/value would mean nothing to me; I wouldn't even care if it was a diamond or any stone at all, a band would be fine. Symbolically, it just seems to me an artificial stone in an ER would be a bad omen or something.
reservoirdog1 Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 The idea that somebody would turn up their nose at a diamond just because it's synthetic (i.e. still a diamond, just from a human process) rather than naturally-occurring does strike me as a little bit weird. Isn't a synthetic diamond just as sparkly as a natural one? Don't they have the same properties? And as far as their industrial uses, synthetic diamonds can often be manufactured to be harder than natural diamonds. Why do people place more value on a diamond that's dug out of the ground than on one that's synthetic? It just seems odd. Purely subjective and superficial. Or am I missing something?
zengirl Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 It just seems odd. Purely subjective and superficial. Or am I missing something? Well . . . Aren't engagement rings in general purely subjective and superficial? I don't mean this as a criticism, but it's not like they're functional or actually protect the marriage in any way. It's all artifice. If you're going for a superficial example of your love in a jewel, it may as well be the one you want, I guess. Maybe I just don't get it.
somedude81 Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 What I don't get, is how come the ring even has to be a diamond in the first place. How about something a little different?
Author Banker Chick Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 (edited) Well . . . Aren't engagement rings in general purely subjective and superficial? I don't mean this as a criticism, but it's not like they're functional or actually protect the marriage in any way. It's all artifice. If you're going for a superficial example of your love in a jewel, it may as well be the one you want, I guess. Maybe I just don't get it. This is my feeling as well. I would have no problem with not having one, it just seems that everyone else I knows thinks it's the strangest thing to not have the "symbol". One of my best girlfriends just got engaged. She always talks about how they're struggling for money and her fiance had to file BK about 6 mos ago because of a business loss. So what's he do? He buys her this fairly big, shiny engagement ring. I just don't get it. Edited February 7, 2011 by Banker Chick
Star Gazer Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Please advise me where that synthetic is being made/produced. I'm not aware of synths that large. Thanks! Google is your friend, Carhill. "Cultured diamonds" - and they're all right there. Gemesis, Diamond Nexus Labs...that's who we were looking at. They are AIG certified but not just ALL carbon like a natural diamond is. I have three friends with DNL rings, and you'd never know it. There are also several retailers in San Francisco's jewelrymart who work with these and other manufacturers. Larger stones absolutely can be created. They just take a lot longer to create - more than twice as long.
Nexus One Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 (edited) Engagement rings and wedding rings are the real world's equivalent of Facebook's relationship status. Their main function is to keep others at bay. Every now and then I notice women focusing their eyes on my ring finger. It's the same thing as checking someone's relationship status on Facebook. Edited February 7, 2011 by Nexus One
Author Banker Chick Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 On an interesting sidenote: the Gemesis Corp is about two miles from my house.
Star Gazer Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Engagement rings and wedding rings are the real world's equivalent of Facebook's relationship status. Their main function is to keep others at bay. Every now and then I notice women focusing their eyes on my ring finger. It's the same thing as checking someone's relationship status on Facebook. So true! After his eyes, the first thing I check out on a guy is his ring finger! BC... THAT is a sign! Synthie all the way!
Nexus One Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 On an interesting sidenote: the Gemesis Corp is about two miles from my house. Really...can I touch you?
Nexus One Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 (edited) So true! After his eyes, the first thing I check out on a guy is his ring finger! BC... THAT is a sign! Synthie all the way! Are you being sarcastic there? If so then I get the idea you're misunderstanding what I tried to say in that post. All the information in that post should be taken exactly the way it's written, there's nothing between the lines there. I didn't mean to imply anything if that's what you mean. Edited February 7, 2011 by Nexus One
Star Gazer Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Are you being sarcastic there? If so then I get the idea you're misunderstanding what I tried to say in that post. All the information in that post should be taken exactly the way it's written, there's nothing between the lines there. I didn't mean to imply anything if that's what you mean. Huh? No, not sarcastic at all. I do check out guys' ring fingers to see if they're available.
Nexus One Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Huh? No, not sarcastic at all. I do check out guys' ring fingers to see if they're available. Oh ok, the laughing and crying smiley had me doubting.
Stung Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 Huh? No, not sarcastic at all. I do check out guys' ring fingers to see if they're available. Of course! It's gross how many guys wearing wedding rings will still hit on women. Always leaves me feeling mildly oily and depressed, a little sad perhaps on behalf of the wife. I tended to view my engagement ring as a symbol of commitment and connection, rather than some kind of notice of purchase or a status update, but I do concede the point on the status update.
Eeyore79 Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 I'd rather have a ruby ring myself. Diamonds are so bland and colourless, and historically weren't used much for engagement rings anyway. Not to mention that all the sheeple have virtually identical diamond engagement rings. I think you should get whatever you want and to hell with anyone else's opinion
Nexus One Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 I'd rather have a ruby ring myself. Diamonds are so bland and colourless, and historically weren't used much for engagement rings anyway. Not to mention that all the sheeple have virtually identical diamond engagement rings. I think you should get whatever you want and to hell with anyone else's opinion That's right, be different. Just like everyone else.
LexiB Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 It sounds like you have your head on straight to me. Good for you. My thoughts exactly when I read that. Screw what your friends think, Banker Chic. All that matters is what's right for you and your stbf. As far as my personal views on the matter though, I'd prefer to have a real diamond for my engagement ring, especially since I've never been married/engaged. However, if the man I loved truly couldn't afford to get me a diamond, and was upfront about it, I'd be fine with a fake. I'd rather have a standard-sized fake stone than a tiny genuine diamond anyway.
Star Gazer Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 Oh ok, the laughing and crying smiley had me doubting. It's not a crying from sadness smiley, silly. It's a laughing so hard you're crying smiley. This thread is making me want to buy myself a diamond ring! A right had ring, of course!
zengirl Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 Speaking of rings, and buying them, and having people buy them, here's something I've never understood. Why do women "want" specific kinds of rings? I mean, most women don't pick out a ring, do they? How does a guy know what to pick out? Are people really sending their boyfriend's like pictures of the ring they'd like, the same way I used to circle toys in the Toys R Us catalog when I was a kid?
Star Gazer Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 Speaking of rings, and buying them, and having people buy them, here's something I've never understood. Why do women "want" specific kinds of rings? I mean, most women don't pick out a ring, do they? How does a guy know what to pick out? Are people really sending their boyfriend's like pictures of the ring they'd like, the same way I used to circle toys in the Toys R Us catalog when I was a kid? It's called bookmarking in IE or Firefox, and having him use your computer to casually come across it... Or really, taking your BFF or sister shopping with him.
pureinheart Posted February 8, 2011 Posted February 8, 2011 This topic seems to generate a lot of mixed thoughts within my circle of friends. I'm on the cusp of being proposed to and my bf and I have discussed rings. I don't care if the stone is real or not and some of my friends think I'm absolutely crazy! I'm divorced and my ex and his family own a high-end jewelry store so my ring back then was nice and the stone was high quality and big. I didn't care. I am 42 and my bf will be 40 this year and stuff like that just doesn't matter to me. He also is in the process of getting his bachelors degree and is a hard working college student with limited funds right now. They make some really nice fake stones (moissanite, etc) in quality settings so not too many would be able to tell the difference. At this point in my life I'd rather spend money on other things instead of a nice diamond. Same with the wedding ... my first wedding was 200+ people and all the stress that goes along with it so this time we're talking about just something between us (and my 19 yr old daughter) to make it more about us and our love for each other and not the hoopla. It's funny because I have a sapphire ring I wear on my left hand and it's fake but I get compliments all the time on it and asked if it's my ER. If it wasn't an issue of someone lying to you and trying to pass off a fake stone as a real one, would you have an issue with it? You know what...I'm not a materialistic person, although this being a significant move (getting married), I'd better get a diamond and am partial to baggets...I don't need the big wedding or all of the frills, but must have diamonds, big ones! Don't be cheap with my friggin wedding ring!
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