About Charles & Colvard

Charles & Colvard sells fine jewellery set with laboratory-created stones rather than mined ones. Understanding what those stones are is the whole basis for deciding whether the price makes sense.

Moissanite is not a fake diamond

Moissanite is its own mineral, silicon carbide, occurring naturally only in vanishingly small quantities and therefore grown in a laboratory for jewellery. It is not a diamond simulant in the way cubic zirconia is; it is a distinct gemstone with its own properties. It is very hard, close behind diamond on the scale used for scratch resistance, and it refracts light more strongly, which produces noticeably more coloured flashes. Some people love that extra fire and some find it unmistakably different from a diamond. Look at one in daylight before deciding.

Lab-grown diamonds are a separate thing again

The lab-grown diamond line is chemically and optically diamond, produced in a reactor rather than dug out of the ground. Those stones are graded on the same scale of cut, colour, clarity and carat as mined ones. If you want the material to be diamond, this is the range to look at; if you are comfortable with a different stone that costs less again, moissanite is.

Settings, metals and what lasts

Stones are set in precious metals including recycled gold, and the setting deserves as much attention as the stone. A raised solitaire catches on clothing and knocks more easily than a lower bezel or halo setting, which matters for a ring worn daily for decades. Ask what the metal alloy is if you have a nickel sensitivity, and check ring sizing and resizing terms before ordering, since not every setting can be resized.

Guarantees and buying sensibly

The premium moissanite line carries a lifetime warranty on the stone, which is meaningful for a piece intended to be permanent. Keep the documentation that arrives with the jewellery, since it is what a jeweller or an insurer will ask for later. Photograph the piece for your home insurance, and have settings checked periodically by a jeweller, because stones are lost to worn claws far more often than to anything dramatic.