{"id":1549,"date":"2018-12-02T10:00:38","date_gmt":"2018-12-02T15:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/?p=1549"},"modified":"2023-07-01T13:10:27","modified_gmt":"2023-07-01T17:10:27","slug":"what-is-moissanite-is-it-a-diamond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/what-is-moissanite-is-it-a-diamond\/","title":{"rendered":"WHAT IS MOISSANITE? IS IT A DIAMOND?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Moissanite<\/div>\n

Moissanite is simply a man-made diamond look-a-like.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nThe first time I ever encountered moissanite was about 5 years ago. A customer brought in their “diamond” engagement ring to sell.<\/p>\n

\nI remember the jeweler louping the ring carefully and testing the stone with a diamond tester<\/strong>. It tested as “diamond”, but the jeweler was not so convinced.<\/p>\n

\nHe kept looking at it from all different angles, even upside down.<\/p>\n

The stone just didn’t look right.<\/h2>\n

\nThe optical properties were different, the color was off, the way the stone handled light was odd. He showed the stone to the other jewelers which was followed by confusion, discussions and opinions.<\/p>\n

\nThe outcome:<\/strong><\/p>\n

“This is not a diamond!”<\/h2>\n

\nEven though the tester said it was, they didn’t buy it (I don’t even know if the customers knew what it really was). Shocking!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nIt was later determined that the stone in question was in fact, a moissanite.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The “new” diamond.<\/h2>\n

\nFake? Yes! Fooling? Yes!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nThink CZ, cubic zirconia… but more durable<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

So what is moissanite?<\/h2>\n

\nMoissanite is actually a natural, genuine stone<\/strong> that is so rare in nature that only a few small pieces exist. First discovered in canyon Diablo in a meteorite in 1893<\/strong> by one Dr. Henri Moissan, who at the time mistook the stone for diamond. It was found later to be a new mineral similar to diamond, but at the same time, drastically different in many, many ways.<\/p>\n

\nLet’s get a couple of things straight about moissanite…<\/p>\n

Moissanite is not a diamond!!!<\/h2>\n

\nMoissanite is not even a diamond substitute. <\/strong>Nor a brand name for a diamond.<\/p>\n

\nMoissanite is a genuine stone<\/strong>, but so rare that it can’t even be used for jewelry (that’s where created moissanite<\/strong> steps in). Moissanite is made of silicon carbide (SiC) (diamond is made of 100% pure carbon<\/strong>). Moissanite on the Mohs scale of hardness<\/a> is 9.25<\/strong> (diamond is a 10. Sapphire and ruby is a 9).<\/p>\n

\nSo that’s a very good thing. Moissanite (some say moissonite<\/strong>) is a very tough and durable gem. It will hold up well and last you a lifetime. But…<\/p>\n

\nWhat are the other differences between moissanite and a diamond?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nThe differences between moissanite and diamond are plenty…<\/p>\n

\nKeep in mind, when we’re talking about moissanite, we’re actually talking about the created man-made moissanites<\/strong> that you see on the market today. Not the genuine stone found in nature.<\/p>\n

\nThe moissanite in today’s jewelry is created by a company named Cree Research<\/strong>. In the late 1990’s they came up with the formula to almost perfect the stone found in nature. Tiffany & Co. actually came up with the name.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nBut, while it may resemble a diamond in many ways, the chemical composition and optical properties are totally different.<\/p>\n

Moissanites weight less than diamonds do.<\/h2>\n

\nThey also give off more brilliance and fire (sparkles<\/strong>) than a diamond. 10% more brilliance (white light), and 150% more fire<\/strong> (colored light). That’s a lot of light.<\/p>\n

\nSo just looking at a moissanite stone, you’ll see it sparkling like crazy. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it is a big sign that it’s not a real diamond<\/strong> (think of a discoball’s flashing lights… Note that CZ’s also have more brilliance and sparkle than a diamond does).<\/p>\n

Fewer inclusions:<\/h2>\n

\nMoissanites can be created with very few inclusions also. Which is awesome. <\/strong>They look clean, almost flawless (most man-made gemstones are), and if they were graded the same way that a diamond was, they would be in the VS clarity <\/strong>range. To the naked eye, they are clean, and even under a microscope<\/a> or a 10x jeweler’s loupe<\/a> you’d only see a couple of small imperfections or inclusions. Not too bad.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Moissanite color:<\/h2>\n

\nBut let’s talk about color…<\/p>\n

\nThis is where moissanite falls short.<\/strong> The natural color of moissanite is green, yellow or grey. <\/strong>(Lovely) White is not <\/strong>an option (as of yet). No pure white moissanites have been created or perfected. The closest the laboratories can get to White is a near colorless<\/strong> color range like I-J-K. To me, you can always see a stark yellow cast to them.<\/p>\n

\nThey just appear darker and dirty.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nSo while the clarity may be there, the color isn’t. <\/strong>Light yellow stones just don’t look appealing, and they certainly don’t sell well. Diamonds rule in this aspect.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nSo all in all, man-made created moissanites have come a long way since their initial discovery about a century ago. They are durable, heat resistant, and resemble a genuine diamond in many regards. They even sparkle more than a diamond, cost way less<\/strong>, and are very clean of any imperfections…<\/p>\n

But should you buy moissanite versus diamond? <\/h2>\n

\nThe worst things about moissanites are the yellow hue<\/strong>, and of course the fact that they’re man-made.<\/p>\n

\nThose are two very big reasons to hesitate before buying them.<\/p>\n

Fluorescence:<\/h2>\n

\nMost moissanites also have a distinct fluorescence cast to them<\/strong> (weird display of light, that tends to look foggy, and most glow-in-the-dark<\/strong>). And when viewed under a microscope or jeweler’s loupe, the lines, facets, refraction and reflection will create a doubling effect (blurry and doubled like when you squint your eyes). Not so good.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nSo while moissanite may fool some people, and confuse many jewelers, newer diamond testers<\/a> can now determine the difference between a moissanite and a diamond due to its different thermal conductivity<\/strong>. They still don’t bode well in the jewelry industry or the market yet. It generates heated conversations.<\/p>\n

Disclosure:<\/h2>\n

\nJewelers selling moissanite have to disclose<\/strong> the fact that it’s moissanite, and most jewelers don’t even want to carry moissanite for fear that customers may confuse it with their diamond selection. The two don’t mix well.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nYou may save tons of money<\/strong> buying moissanite over diamond (like these moissanites at Helzberg HERE<\/a>) but in the long run, is it really worth it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nResell values for Moissanites are slim to none<\/strong>. Very few people have even heard of moissanites and don’t really understand the purpose for them (many do really think it’s just a brand name for a diamond).<\/p>\n

My thoughts are:<\/h2>\n

\nIf moissanites resemble a diamond, but have weird optical properties and a yellow cast to them, then why not just buy diamond instead?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nNothing beats the beauty, shine and whiteness of a diamond. Nothing beats it’s symbolic meaning or desire. Nothing beats a diamond, period<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\nSo is moissanite right for you?<\/strong> Only if price is your only objective.<\/p>\n

\nJust don’t buy it as an engagement ring thinking “She’ll never know the difference<\/strong>“…<\/p>\n

\nTrust me, she will. <\/strong><\/p>\n

\nBecause moissanite is no substitute<\/strong> for diamond…<\/p>\n

\nYET!<\/p>\n

\nCheck out some genuine diamond deals HERE at James Allen<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Update:<\/h2>\n

\nAs of this initial post, 10 years ago<\/strong>, moissanites have come a long way. They are now available in white colors of D, E, and F<\/strong>. But the price has escalated<\/strong> as well. They used to be just 15% of a diamond’s worth, and now they have jumped up to 50-60%<\/strong> of what a real diamond sells for. I still can’t understand why someone would spend that kind of money for a fake stone, versus the real thing<\/strong>…<\/p>\n

What are your comments on the subject?<\/h2>\n

\nI’d love to hear them below…<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nCheers! :)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Moissanite is simply a man-made diamond look-a-like. The first time I ever encountered moissanite was about 5 years ago. A customer brought in their “diamond” engagement ring to sell. I remember the jeweler louping the [Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diamonds","category-gemstones"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1549"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1549"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1549\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewelry-secrets.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}