Weddingbee boards

<font size="3"><font color="#000000"><font face="Times New Roman">My bf and I are looking around for rings now and although I have had a lifetime of priming to expect a diamond for my engagement ring, I find myself seriously thinking about moissanite. It’s a beautiful stone and the only negative thing I could think of was that it had a faint yellowish color when sat next to a colorless stone (but how often will that happen on your ring finger right?). Also it is SO much cheaper and now that I’ve gone back to school and money is tight, a cheaper ring would mean more money towards the wedding etc which is great! So now my only problem is this:
I would have NO problem with a moissanite ring at all but I don’t feel I can tell my family & friends that it isn’t a diamond. They would view it as a 'fake' diamond (even though it’s not) which connotates cheapness and I don’t even want to think of what that may imply about their thoughts on my bf. But I just don’t want to lie either. Have any of you moissanite engagement ring owners ever felt this way and how did you deal?</font></font></font>

I had researched into alternatives and while labs like Gemesis and Apollo Diamonds offer cultured diamonds that have the same chemical and structural make up as a mined diamond, Diamond Nexus actually is a synthetic (not the same chemical or structural makeup). Which doesn't necessarily bother me except for the fact that I have heard a lot of disconcerting stuff about those stones losing their color or 'fading' and that unlike a cultured diamond or moissanite, they are not as hard or durable as diamonds. However cultured diamonds are only really sold in fancy colors (blue, pink and yellow which I don't want) and Apollo Diamonds which is the only one creating colorless ones, always seems to have an enormous waiting list.

I first saw a moissanite at a jewellery store (Helzberg) and it was sat next to a diamond. I think you can get moissanites of different quality and the one I saw was an equivalant to a VS2, 'I' color and except for the fact that it wasn't colorless, I couldn't find anything to complain about. I didn't see any cloudiness but I will try to take another look to try to see it.

AAAHHH so confused!

PS Suzanno, I don't think I mentioned moissanite as a lab grown diamond. What I do know of it, is that it is a mineral that was originally found in meteors but in a very small quantity and is now being grown in labs. I've been told it's a gem in it's own right and not a fake diamond per say. Kind of like setting a sapphire or an amethyst in your ring instead of a diamond. Which is why I'm questinging all this hoopla about a diamond in the first place I guess.

However, Gemesis and Apollo are two companies who do grow actual diamonds in a lab setting.

I think Moissanite may be a feasible alternative, but i'm not quite sure if you would be happy with the result years down the road. Since you may still have a foggy look or slight color discoloration even with someof the best moissanite, that might be some of the things you might want to consider when thinking about your stone. I agree with Suzanno that when i see moissanite, it  looks like not as good quality diamond.

 i have heard of folks getting their ring with a cubic zirconia center stone, and upgrading a year or so late when they are able to more financially afford it. Case in point- Tacori rings, where the setting is fan-ta-stic, but some of the settings alone are quite pricey- the couple was able to get the setting she wanted, and a year later when they had more cash flow, they replaced her center stone with a diamond.

 another alternative is white sapphire? and if you are looking for diamond alternatives, i think this can definietly hold its own. 

http://www.mineralminers.com/html/swhgems.stm

http://www.simplysapphires.com/html/whitediamond.html

http://www.simplysapphires.com/html/whiteinfo.html

good luck!  

nkang - I LOVE Tacori settings - they're my favorite! And you're right on the money - my bf and I are in a situation right now that we could get the diamond of my dreams, but it would mean putting off the wedding for a long while, not to mention taking longer to put together a downpayment for a house etc. And despite all this it would still be ok but we went from two incomes to one when I went back to school. So we've really been toying with the idea of getting something like a moissanite now and then upgrading in a few years once I'm out of med school, we've paid for our wedding and are feeling comfortable with money again.

You asked a question about how does anyone feel who owns moissanite, and that you don't want to lie to your family claiming it's a diamond, and your scared if you tell them it's not a diamond they will think of your FI as a cheapskate ,I just want to say that you are the one getting married. Period. I think it's very sad how the notion of "it has to be a diamond" is so much ingrained in our brains. If you want a Moissanite then get one. I even notice with some of the above comments, people are posting a bunch of negatives about moissanite ( it's cloudy, it has yellow tinge to it, it looks like a cheap diamond) trying to sway you to buy a diamond( buy a vintage ring, get a .8 diamond) this still shows how you have to have a diamond is still ingrained!!! Moissanite is a gemstone in its own right, stop comparing it to a diamond

The OP didn't ask what's the cons of a moissanite are, she asked if anyone  who owns moissanite ever had trouble having to tell there family it's real, and is torn between buying a diamond, and not having money to pay for the wedding, or buying moissanite and still able to afford a wedding, and possible a house down the road. Now that I'm done ranting on to answering the question.

I have been where you have been PhillyMedGirl, I don't have moissanite but I have 2 rings a White sapphire, and a Aquamarine. When My mother saw my engagement ring she went wild, saying my DH did so well!!! When I told her it was a white sapphire the happy dance immediatly stopped, and started in with the dreaded discussion. I told her this shouldn't come as a surprise because she knew I didn't want a diamond. Not because I didn't like diamonds, but just like you I was thinking ahead about where that extra cash could go to benifit me and my DH down the road. So my advice is do whats best for you and your FI. Who knows they might be pissed, so what. It's ultimately you and your FI decision, and that's what matters.

GoodLuck, and I hope I've answered your question:)

Hey ladies! I just created an account because I just HAVE to get in on these moissanite/diamond/Asha/CZ, etc. e-ring discussions! I have decided that I do not want a diamond e-ring for ethical and environmental reasons, as well as the fact that I can have something sparkle-tastic without spending the down payment on my future home ;)...

That said, I think that there a few things to keep in mind:

Some people prefer gemstones, even diamonds, with a non-colorless look. One person's beautiful flawless white diamond may look ridiculously boring or ugly to another... So moissy may be a great option, for example, as an alternative to a J or K diamond.

Also, I tend to be a skeptic lol...And I pay attention to how many posts members have. It sounds wrong, but if someone comes into a thread or forum and only has a few posts as a member, or REALLY seems to be pushing a company, I get suspicious... I think that most of us can tell the difference between those of us here who are really researching or happy with our purchases and gushing about them to our WB girlfriends, and those of us who may be overly-emphazing one company's customer service, policies, etc., especially in comparison to other companies.

Okay, enough with my mouthful lol. My FFI teases me and says that it takes me ten minutes to make a point that takes ten seconds .

As for the OP: I don't know where you are now or what you have, but I would've advised you to go with whatever made you happy. You can't please everyone all of the time, including family (unfortunately). Wear what YOU like, and wear it proudly!

@blurose262: I agree. I mean, I'm new to this site, but it's obvious when someone posts a bad review or bad thread and they only have 1 post.

Mossanite has gotten better over the years. I was in physical pain thinking about the cost of a diamond. I didn't want a diamond. I didn't want my future fiance spending thousands on a rock. Ugh.

I first came across mossanite on a diary website that I have belonged to for 10 years. There is a frontpage news section where one member had announced her engagement. I went to her diary to say congrats and look at ring porn. (I love engagement stories and the ring porn that follows it.)

The first thing she posted was a photo of the ring. OMG! It sparkled so much in the photo! I could only imagine what it looked like in person. I thought, wow that diamond must have cost a fortune! (We were looking at a 1ct Leo from Kays that was priced at $6500) and her's looked a lot bigger than 1ct.
So I read through the story and then at the bottom she described the ring. "It's a round brillant MOISSANITE" O_O What? Did she mean diamond? Then she went into the specs and what moissanite was. I was in love.

I found out that Helzberg Diamonds actually had moissanite in the store. So we went to go look. They only had three rings left, (I guess they were on clearence because that particular store was no longer going to stock them) 1 was a halo square design. The second was a halo round design, and the third was a round tiffany novo inspired design.
The sales woman was very very helpful. She placed the stones next to diamonds and the moissanite caught my eye everytime because it has more fire than a diamond. She said, "An engagment ring serves two purposes: to look pretty and to remind you that he wants to spend his life with you. That's it. It's not an investment. It's not a status symbol. (Surprising coming from a diamond sales person)

After that I read everything I could on Moissanite and have not found anything bad about them. So we are going to go with moissanite from moissaniteco.com

I'm so happy!

I also have a moissanite and I LOVE it.  I was looking for something that will "fool" others (I wanted to make the right financial decision but I didn't want them to think less of FI), and I think moissanite is a good choice for us.  I got to work with Sharon @ Moissanite Bridal.com to come up with the design (2.32ct).  She was GREAT to work with.