3 Responses for "Moissanite"

1. Me November 14th, 2008 at 5:04 am 1

   As a fan of moissanite jewels, I am dissapointed to see that so much confusion remains about moissanite after a decade of availability.

   Moissanite is NOT a diamond simulant. Moissanite is a unique fine jewel. Moissanite is the highest quality. It has superior optical properties, even above diamond.

   Diamond is a nice jewel, but the only reason that everybody assumes diamond is the best and only “real” jewel, is because the diamond industry has brainwashed the public (through advertising) into thinking that.

   All this nonsense about dispersion being bad is just that, nonense. Dispersion is an optical property that is desired, in diamonds, and in moissanite. And moissanite beats diamond in dispersion. Moissanite also beats diamond in brilliance (another measurable optical property). What it means is that moissanite sparkles more, and gets noticed more. It means that moissanite (which is all one high quality grade, no fussing with 4 C’s versus price) has looks comparble to a very high priced diamond, and looks better than the usual ordinary quality diamonds at most jewelers. And moissanite is durable enough, just like diamond, to last “forever”.

   Does moissanite look like diamond ? Or does diamond look like moissanite ? Folks assume the former, only because diamond has been around longer. But if quality properties were the criteria, moissanite is measurably better, so the latter would apply (moissanite is the standard, diamond looks similar to moissanite).

   It is nonsense to say that dispersion makes moissanite look different than diamond, except that moissanite generally looks better (because of higher dispersion, higher brilliance, etc). But both are near colorless fine jewels. Neither is a simulant of the other.

   Experts, gemologists, cannot tell the difference with their naked eye, at least with a casual glance. If they use instruments to measure optical properties, they will be able to tell, because moissanite will measure higher (better) on all optical measurements.

   But, at the end of the day, it comes down to each person using an open mind and evaluating each jewel. See how moissanite and diamond look to you. Understand that both are unique high quality fine jewels. Look at the value of each. Compare quality and size, versus cost. Then make your own decision. But, do yourself the favor of not letting almost a century of advertising (brainwashing) by the diamond industry prevent you from taking a fresh, unbiased look at which jewel your prefer. Make up your own mind. I did. And I chose big beautiful moissanite jewels for my money, versus the smaller lower quality diamonds available for the same prices.

2. Sarah Anne November 17th, 2008 at 1:41 pm 2

   I’m finding that this is really a fascinating gem. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moissanite, “Moissanite, in its natural form, is rarer than diamond. It has only been discovered in a small variety of places from upper mantle rock to meteorites.”

   However, http://mineral.galleries.com/minerals/elements/moissani/moissani.htm states, “Moissanite grown in laboratories is now being cut as gemstones and they are used as diamond simulants. Moissanite brings to the jeweler’s table a similar index of refraction and better than twice the fire of diamond… Moissanite is causing quite a stir in the jewelry markets.

   As a diamond simulant, artificial moissanite is very hard to differentiate from diamond and can fool many gemologists. It does have many similarities. It is very hard at 9.25 (diamond is 10) and it is highly refractive with an index of refraction of 2.6 – 2.7 (diamond’s IR is slightly lower at 2.42). Most important, moissanite and diamond are thermally conductive unlike other diamond simulants and unfortunately it is this property that is primarily used as the test for the authenticity of real diamonds. A through the face examination of a moissanite gemstone should show double facet edges whereas a diamond’s edges are single in appearance. Moissanite is also slightly less dense than diamond and is rarely perfectly clear of color, having pale shades of green. Natural flaws are absent in moissanite, replaced instead by tiny, unnatural, white, ribbon-like structures that are a result of the growing process.”

   Of course, on Diamond Nexus’ page, you will find a whole page dedicated to why Moissanite is NOT as diamond-like, but I think we’ve done enough Diamond-Nexus bashing for the moment.

   In reading http://www.moissaniteco.com/education.html, moissanite IS a naturally occurring mineral; however, a scientific process is used to create the mineral for jewelry purposes. The lab created properties of a synthetic moissanite are extremely close to a diamond.

   I fully agree that we have been brainwashed by the diamond industry. Every time I think of diamonds, the DeBeers music starts playing in my head. A product is only as good as its desire for it. Right now, with so much diamond advertising, I just don’t think people are really aware that high quality diamond alternatives OTHER THAN cubic zirconia even exist. Diamond alternatives probably have advertising budgets that are only a couple drops in the bucket compared to the diamond companies. However, as Wikipedia says, “With the emergence of Web 2.0, many web start-ups like Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, and Digg have used buzz marketing by merging it with the social networks that they have developed. With the increasing use of the Internet as a research and communications platform, word of mouth has become an even more powerful and useful resource for consumers and marketers.”

   What’s your opinion? Have you seen it available in large retail stores? What are your favorite sites for high quality & decent priced moissanite? Let’s hear your opinion…

3. Me January 14th, 2009 at 5:59 am 3

   I think moissanite is a fascinating jewel also.

   I’ve seen lots of moissanite jewelry, and some loose moissanite jewels, in many large retail stores, and small stores. Department stores, jewelry chain stores, and independent jewelers. Many have a good selection of basic jewelry pieces (stud ear rings, pendants, rings, etc). I’ve also attended “moissanite trunk shows” at some of these stores, where they bring in hundreds of pieces for one day.

   I have seen many absolutely beautiful moissanite jewelry pieces, and I have bought several. I think anybody considering buying fine jewelry owes it to themselves to check out moissanite before making a decision. Anybody about to be engaged should definitely compare engagement rings with moissanite versus with diamond, at the same price, before deciding.

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   Keep in mind that hardness (resistance to scratching) is only one factor in durability. Toughness (resistance to chipping or breaking) is another factor, and moissanite has better toughness than diamond. Stability (resistance to heat and chemicals) is also a factor, and moissanite is superior on stability also. Bottom line, moissanite is more durable than diamond overall. Practically speaking, moissanite jewels will last “forever” and remain brilliant.

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   Those “ribbons” are not visible to the naked eye. Clarity of moissanite is similar to VS clarity diamond. Keep that in mind when comparing moissanite items to diamond items.

   Every moissanite is perfectly cut, so compare to perfectly cut (ideal cut) diamonds.

   A good source for information about moissanite is the http://www.whatismoissanite.com website.

   I don’t have any insights on specific internet retailers. Moissanite is also available on HSN and ShopNBC cable TV channels occaisionally, and they seem to have some good prices on many items.