Moissanites vs. Lab Diamonds
The most popular center stones
The three most popular center stone options offered at Olive Ave, are moissanites, lab diamonds and natural diamonds. While they look similar, there are key differences that are important to understand.
Moissanite is a rare natural occurring mineral known as silicon carbide. It was first discovered in 1893 at the site of a massive meteorite strike in Arizona but is now produced in laboratories in controlled environments making them man-made gemstones. Lab diamonds and natural diamonds are created as a result of intense heat and pressure. Natural diamonds are formed over the course of billions of years in the organic elements of the earth while lab-grown diamonds are created in the laboratory, often produced in just a matter of weeks.
PRICING
When it comes to pricing, moissanites have a significantly lower price when compared to diamonds of equal size. Moissanites typically vary in price based on the size, whereas diamond prices vary based on shape, carat, cut, color and clarity. Since lab diamonds are manufactured in a lab, they are significantly more affordable than a natural diamond while keeping all the physical and chemical properties of a mined diamond.
characteristics
Beyond considering the size and overall price, there are four major characteristics of a stone that aren’t as commonly considered. These are brilliance, color, clarity, fire dispersion and hardness.
Brilliance:
Brilliance is the amount of light that reflects off the stone. The RI, or the refractive index, is what affects the gemstone's brilliance or sparkle rating. Moissanites display more brilliance than any other stone, but diamonds aren’t far behind. A moissanite's RI ranges from 2.65 to 2.69, while a diamond's RI is a 2.42.
Color:
When it comes to color, there are three grades of moissanite available today: colorless (D-E-F range), near-colorless (G-H-I range), and faint hues of color (J-K range). All of Olive Ave’s moissanite stones are colorless and within the D-E-F range.
Diamonds have their own color grading scale ranging from D to Z. D is the highest color grade, meaning the diamond has the least amount of visible color. The lower you go on the color grading scale, the more yellow will be present in the stone. At Olive Ave, we offer diamonds by default that are rated I color or above, in order to keep a certain level of quality among our jewelry.
Clarity:
Because moissanites are grown in laboratories they will not contain any clarity imperfections visible to the naked eye. Diamonds have their own clarity gradings scale and can range from having inclusions that are visible, to diamonds that are considered eye clean, meaning you won’t see any inclusions with your naked eye.
Fire Dispersions:
Fire dispersions refers to the prism effect that occurs when pure white light enters a non-opaque stone and breaks into rainbow colors in the reflection. A moissanite's dispersion is a 0.104 which exceeds that of any gemstone. Moissanites tend to have rainbow reflected sparkles that you wouldn’t typically find in a diamond. Diamonds vary in fire dispersion based on cut and clarity of each unique stone.
Hardness:
All stones are measured on the Mohs scale of hardness which assesses the gem’s ability to withstand surface scratching. Moissanites rank at a 9.25, which is harder than any other gemstone, with the exception of diamonds. Diamonds are the hardest known mined stone and rank at a 10. This includes both natural and lab diamonds. All three of these stones are extremely durable and ideal for daily wear.
sizing
Keep in mind when choosing your stone in terms of sizing, the carat is a traditional unit of measurement for a diamond’s weight. However, moissanites are measured in millimeters and are based off their dimensions rather than a weight. This is because moissanites weigh approximately 10% less than diamonds. Click here to see our mm to ct conversion chart.
Moissanites At Olive Ave
At Olive Ave, each moissanite is manufactured identically meaning you get the same beautiful product every time. Every moissanite purchased is accompanied by a manufacturing warranty. Every natural or lab diamond offered is especially unique in its own way because of the many variations in environmental factors. Every diamond purchased at Olive Ave is accompanied with a certificate denoting the unique properties of your stone.
If you have any additional questions about our center stone options at Olive Ave Jewelry, email us at hello@oliveavejewelry.com. We’d love to help you find the perfect fit for you.
