Surprising reason woman is disappointed with her engagement ring: 'Spoiled brat'

A soon-to-be bride has shared her engagement ring woes, confessing her disappointment upon discovering her ring's diamond was lab-created. The post has stirred up a heated discussion about engagement rings and the ethics of diamonds, igniting a storm of angry responses from social media users.

"My ring is gorgeous, I truly love it but when I found out it's a lab-created diamond, I'm not going to lie, I was pretty disappointed," she wrote. "Especially since my future husband has enough income to afford a real diamond."

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She added, "I feel like a spoiled brat complaining but I also feel like I got second best. He had previously been engaged around 14 years ago and her engagement ring was in the $75K range."

Social media's savage replies

As you'd imagine, people wasted no time ripping the woman to shreds over her 'problem'.

"People sure do get upset when their diamonds are the result of human rights abuses and environmental destruction, huh?" one commenter quipped, summing up the general mood.

Another chimed in, "How else is she gonna prove that she is better than the rest of us if it's not by showing how many people and kids have been abused for her to have that stone in her hand?"

Ouch.

And the hits kept coming.

"Not to mention the animal lives lost to the greed, habitat destruction," someone noted.

"I require my diamonds to be exploitative," joked another.

And a personal favourite: "It just doesn't sparkle right without being watered by the blood of exploited labour."

"It's 2024, who tf wants a blood diamond?" another user questioned, with someone else mocking the original poster, "I'm sad because no one suffered for my diamond ring!

Others thought it was downright bizarre that the woman was fixated on how much her partner had spent on his former fiancée - and that she knew that information to begin with.

Social media schooling

While the initial comments were harsh, they also sparked a deeper discussion about the benefits and misconceptions of lab-grown diamonds.

"A lab-grown diamond is a real diamond. It's literally science," one comment read, pointing out that these gems are chemically and physically identical to their mined counterparts.

Others noted the various practical advantages of having a diamond created in such a way.

"They are literally better quality," highlighting how lab-created diamonds often have fewer flaws and greater clarity due to the controlled environment in which they're made.

"And they can be fairly priced in their own right!"

Is a lab-grown diamond a real diamond?

According to Gill Lawrence, Founder and Creative Director of Covetear Jewellery, the only difference between a lab-grown diamond and a natural diamond is the process by which they are made; both share the same physical, chemical, and optical properties.

"A lab-grown diamond is exactly that,' Lawrence explained to Yahoo Lifestyle, "made in a lab whereas a natural diamond is formed and harvested from the earth."

Lawrence says there are no noticeable differences in quality, appearance or physical properties between lab-grown and natural diamonds, as they are fundamentally the same thing.

"The only thing that differentiates the two is that lab diamonds are made in a lab and natural diamonds are mined. They are made up of all the same materials and undergo the same formation processes," she said.

Can you tell the difference between a lab-grown diamond and a real diamond?

According to Lawrence, while a highly trained gemologist may be able to tell the difference between a natural and a lab-grown diamond through advanced and specialised testing, consumers must rely on the honesty of the company selling the diamonds, as they look and feel the same.

And what about the price?

"The one major determining factor on the price difference between lab-grown diamonds and natural diamonds is simply the supply and demand," Lawrence says. "Natural diamonds have a high scarcity compared to lab-grown diamonds as the latter can be produced on mass whereas the supply of natural diamonds depends on the amount that can be mined."

For the environmentally conscious, lab-grown diamonds are a win. Traditional diamond mining can be destructive, causing habitat loss and even human rights abuses. Lab-grown diamonds, on the other hand, offer a more ethical alternative, reducing the negative impact on communities and ecosystems. But does this growing demand for lab-grown diamonds drive up their price?

According to Lawrence, maybe.

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"From a manufacturing perspective, the prices of lab-grown diamonds have been decreasing as the laboratories are getting more efficient in their manufacturing processes which means they can make a higher volume in a faster time frame," she explains.

"However, the demand for lab-grown diamonds has increased from the consumer end as people are becoming increasingly more eco-conscious with their jewellery purchases which have pushed prices up at an e-commerce level."

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