Can you believe that we are living in the year 2020? Think of all the ways life has changed in the last 150 years. From medicine to machinery, advances in technology have impacted nearly every industry, helping people lead better lives by making the things we love more affordable — and the gemstone world is no different. The explosion of treatments and methods for creating gemstones has made the possibility of owning fine gems and jewelry a reality for every woman. You may have heard a lot in the news lately about lab-grown diamonds, but did you know that their history dates all the way back to 1879?

The earliest mined diamonds were discovered in India in the 4th century B.C. Ever since, they have been prized for their beauty and durability. In 1879, James Ballantyne Hannay made the first attempts to synthesize a diamond in a laboratory by heating charcoal and iron in a carbon crucible. Another pioneer may be a familiar name to you: Henri Moissan, the creator of synthetic moissanite! In 1893, Moissan used an electric arc furnace to try to simulate the pressure and temperature needed to turn graphite into diamonds. It wasn’t until 1954, however, that General Electric achieved the first commercially successful creation of a diamond. At the time, this was considered a huge breakthrough, although the diamonds produced were a far cry from the white, bright, and sparkly lab diamonds used in the tri-color gold ring featured above. In contrast, GE’s synthetic diamonds were yellow or brown, opaque, and fairly small. Yet unlike colored gemstones, even industrial quality diamonds are considered valuable because of their unique physical properties. Diamonds are not only the hardest natural substance on the planet, but they are also excellent thermal conductors and electrical insulators. These lower-quality diamonds were used for a number of commercial purposes, including diamond saws, abrasive powders, lasers, x-ray machines, and audio speakers.

General Electric was again at the forefront of lab-grown diamond technology in 1970, when they created the first gem-quality diamond in their lab. Since then, two main methods of growing lab diamonds have been developed. The first is the High Pressure, High Temperature (HPHT) method. Using a belt press or a BARS apparatus (and sometimes a mined diamond as a seed), engineers replicate the extreme pressure and temperature conditions that occur deep in the mantle of the earth to form diamonds. The second method was developed more recently, and is called chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Using a vacuum chamber, a hydrocarbon gas mixture is deposited onto a seed plate to grow a diamond. Over the years, these processes have been refined so that the diamonds created in a laboratory have essentially the same optical, physical, and chemical properties as those mined from the earth. Lab-grown diamonds are actual diamonds that are difficult to distinguish from their mined counterparts without advanced gemological testing equipment found in a laboratory. The only difference is that in a lab, the factors such as heat and pressure that affect diamond quality and appearance can be controlled. This is much like a hothouse rose, which can look more perfect than one grown in your backyard because it was grown in an environment under the best possible conditions for optimal growth. At the same time, not every lab-grown diamond turns out perfect, or even gem-quality! This is why our merchants and vendors have exacting standards for the lab-grown diamonds used in our jewelry designs, such as the trio of crisp white lab-grown diamond rings (L to R: square center setting, knot design, cluster center setting) featured in the photo above.

At JTV, we pride ourselves on being one of the forerunners of the emergent lab-grown diamond industry. Perhaps our website says it best: “As one of the largest jewelry retailers in the United States, JTV has the experience and expertise to deliver extraordinary lab-grown diamonds at extraordinary prices. We are able to source and search the world for lab-grown diamonds with the color and clarity of top-tier mined diamonds.” The lab-grown diamonds which we bring to our customers are eye clean and nearly colorless! These characteristics represent the upper echelon of diamond quality. Extra care has been taken to ensure that our lab-grown diamonds are featured in beautifully designed 14 karat gold jewelry pieces such as the Art Deco-inspired oval ring shown above. Our couture collection of rings, bracelets, pendants, and earrings will appeal to every jewelry lover, and these pieces are sure to become treasured heirlooms for generations to come. Strict quality control ensures our lab-grown diamond jewelry passes through several levels of verification and assessment before it is offered to our customers, allowing us to bring you top quality diamonds for a wonderful value. The affordability of our lab-grown diamonds for their color and clarity (compared to mined diamonds of the same caliber) is an excellent opportunity for our customers to indulge themselves in top-quality diamond jewelry that will last forever.

The lab-grown diamond industry has come a long way since the days of James Hannay and Henri Moissan. Today, manufacturers and scientists are able to create gem-quality, lab-grown diamonds which are virtually indistinguishable from their mined counterparts. In fact, in a 2019 survey given to JTV viewers (who tend to know a thing or two about gemstones), more than 54% of our customers were unable to correctly choose which diamond was lab-grown when displayed side-by-side with a mined diamond of similar quality. Take a look at the sweet heart-shaped ring above. Can you tell whether it is mined or grown in a laboratory? As the technology required to create diamonds in a lab continues to improve, JTV is excited to offer you both mined and lab-grown diamond jewelry at truly irresistible prices.