Elite Traveler Summer 2024

elite traveler SUMMER 2024 75

Harry Winston fl oral inspired natural blue

diamond ring with petals of fancy-cut pear and marquis colorless diamonds set in platinum. Price on request, harrywinston.com

A NATURAL DEBATE For centuries, natural diamonds have been held as the epitome of luxury and exclusivity. Formed about a hundred miles beneath the Earth’s surface under intense heat and pressure about three billion years ago, natural diamonds were brought close to the surface through volcanic eruptions. Each natural diamond is unique, bearing the marks of its journey through time. Natural diamonds are also rare and, at some point in time, fi nding them may prove impossible — endowing them with enduring value. Lab-grown diamonds, also known as synthetic or cultured diamonds, are created through advanced technological processes that replicate the conditions under which natural diamonds form. By starting with a diamond ‘seed’ (a slice of a natural diamond) and replicating heat and pressure conditions, or by using carbon and other gases, the end result is lab-grown diamonds that possess the same chemical composition, crystal structure and optical properties as their mined counterparts but are produced in controlled laboratory environments. As a result, companies creating lab-grown diamonds are able to mass-produce them — translating to highly a ff ordable pricing. The debate between natural and lab-grown diamonds is not merely about their origin but also about the values they represent. Traditionalists argue that natural diamonds hold an inherent mystique and sentimental value, as well as inherent value, that cannot be replicated by their lab-grown counterparts. “One of the beauties of a natural diamond is that each one is individual. There are no two natural diamonds in the world that are the same,” says David Kellie, CEO of the Natural Diamond Council (NDC), a global nonpro fi t organization committed to educating consumers about real, rare and responsible values inherent in natural diamonds. “Nature doesn’t create the same thing twice. Whether it’s the inclusions in the diamond, or the size or color of the diamonds, they are never replicated. So, a diamond isn’t just rare in terms of the number to be mined, but also in terms of their individuality.”

“Because lab-grown diamonds are a technology product, the cost is signi fi cantly less than a natural diamond,” said Antoine Borde, CEO of Lightbox, an Oregon-based company that was founded in 2018 and is now one of the largest producers of lab-grown diamonds. He noted that today, approximately 10% of the overall diamond market is in lab-grown diamonds — amounting to an approximately $12bn business. “Today, one engagement ring out of every two sold in the US is a lab-grown diamond.”

Conversely, proponents of lab-grown diamonds champion innovation. While lab-grown diamonds have been made for decades — primarily used for diamond-cutting tools and other purposes — it is only recently that companies were able to develop gem-quality lab-grown diamonds. One of the main bene fi ts of lab-grown diamonds comes in the pricing structure. Supporters of these stones argue that the technological process has made lab-grown diamonds a ff ordable and accessible to a broader audience.