Mama Style || Collaborative Post
We all love a bit of sparkle, especially this time of year when the more sparkle, the merrier. Sometimes though, the beautiful precious stones we love to wear come at a cost, so finding places that provide ethically produced sustainable jewellery is a great move for your next piece. Some brands are changing the way we think about our jewellery, particularly how the star components such as diamonds are obtained, opting for planet friendly options that quite literally, don't cost the earth. Diamonds always offer the wow factor, so I thought I'd share a little about where our sparkles come from and a brand that's going the extra mile.
Larkandberry.com are a great example of a brand that's working hard to produce stunning luxurious lab grown diamond jewellery, changing the way we think when it comes to our precious treasures. The advantage of lab grown is that they are more conscious of the environment, far more ethical in their production and much more cost effective. Win win all round. Lark & Berry have a gorgeous selection, such as stunning lab grown diamond engagement rings, unique labrettes, rings, studs, necklaces and more. Here's a selection to show a little of their beautifully made jewellery;
If you're new to the world of lab grown/ cultured/ man made diamonds, then you no doubt have a fair few questions, so here's a few of the most commonly asked at Lark & Berry, along with their answers...
What are Cultured Diamonds?
Cultured diamonds are diamonds. They are also known as lab grown, created or man made. In this day and age, you can mine diamonds and you can grow diamonds. Both are just as hard, just as brilliant and just as everlasting because both are just diamonds. Real Diamonds.
Can my expert gemologist friend tell a mined diamond and a cultured diamond apart?
Nope.
Are cultured diamonds also graded? Can you get a certificate?
YES! Cultured Diamonds are graded in the same way as mined diamonds- by their colour, clarity, cut and carat. The GIA (Gemological Institute of America) and the IGI (International Gemological Institute), among other gemological institutes offer certificates for lab grown diamonds.
Are cultured diamonds more or less expensive?
Since there's no monopoly pricing and there's only 2 steps to obtain them (Grow & Cut), cultured diamonds are 30% to 50% less than mined ones.
How are diamonds grown?
We mimic the way diamonds grow under ground.
There's 2 ways you can grow diamonds. One involves applying immense heat and pressure to carbon and the other involves applying heat and gases to a diamond slice.
Both processes create 100% diamonds; and watching both of these processes in real life is like magic, but real!
How are cultured diamonds more sustainable?
Cultured diamonds don't require land or wildlife displacement. Since they are not mined, they don't cause any under ground water pollution or release any chemicals into the ground.
Cultured diamonds can now be grown with 100% renewable energy and they are guaranteed conflict-free every single time.
How pure are cultured diamonds?
Cultured diamonds are generally purer than mined diamonds since we can control the environment in which they grow. Only 2% of mined diamonds are as pure as cultured diamonds. This type of rare diamond is called Type 2a.
Do cultured diamonds shine as much as mined ones?
They shine exactly the same! It's all about the colour, cut, and clarity that you get!
Will my cultured diamonds last as long as my mined diamond?
Yep! Just as long, in the exact same way.
So as you can see, man made diamonds cultured by Lark & Berry are a much more conscientiously produced product, providing the sparkle and luxury we expect from diamonds, without any ethical or environmental worry. I am a big fan of their jewellery, but I must say I particularly love the rose gold options and perfectly imperfect shapes in some of the quirky designs. If you're on the look out for a gift this year, or even a treat to yourself, then I'd thoroughly recommend checking out their website to get an idea of the kind of luxurious treasures that can be created from something so cleverly produced. This is a sleek, unique beautiful take on ethical jewellery and it's the way to go in terms of keeping our planet safe too. If you're not familiar on the production process, you can read all about it on their site as well as finding out more about the traditional and quite scary methods of diamond mining which they are finding solutions in working against. As well as all this, lark & Berry are also working to increase the tree population, by donating five trees for every purchase made on their site meaning they are actually putting more into the earth than they take out which is pretty commendable in a time where climate issues are top of the agenda for most.
Are you a fan of diamonds too?
