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August Vintage Lab grown diamonds poll

Would you be open to buying AV lab created diamonds

  • Total voters
    187
Rpb

Rpb

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Apr 2, 2018
Messages
354
Since @Rhino has posted this question on his Instagram I thought we should also have it
here, as there may be many members who may not be very active on Instagram or may not be aware ...
Since lab-grown diamonds are here to stay, would you want be interested in buying one from August Vintage?
 
I voted yes, because I quite like the juxtaposition of ultra-modern technology and vintage cutting styles :)

And also because I like the idea of getting a Type IIa diamond with awesome clarity/transparency, hopefully at a considerably lower price than Mined diamonds!

TBH the question is fairly moot because I am nowhere near having the funds for any diamond :( but I have previously thought that it would be perfectly acceptable, and indeed awesome :) if cheap MMD/LGD rough enabled a wide variety of new and superbly performing cuts to be developed and sold!

I mean, how cool would it be to say you had your diamond custom-cut by a highly-skilled, 'famous' cutter - it would mean you are paying for the artisan skills involved, not just a huge amount for something dug out of the ground and cut into a 'standard' MRB shape!
 
I voted yes but I suspect that AV lab diamonds would not be discounted much over mined diamonds, so I would probably not buy one.
 
It's a big fat yes from me! I've been hoping he would do this.
 
Hellz yeah.
 
I think it is FAR better to make them with lab diamonds as opposed to other simulants. However, I wouldn't even consider lab grown unless they were under half the price of natural mined diamonds.
 
Rhino said:
LOL I'm just now seeing this thread. Yes ... first prototypes should be in my hands next week and NO ... they will not be anywhere close to the price of earth grown. :)
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Will you be doing larger than 1 carat? :mrgreen2:
 
Mamabean said:
Will you be doing larger than 1 carat? :mrgreen2:
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Absolutely. The first two prototypes finished as a 1.76ct E VS2 AVR and a 1.51ct F VS2 AVC. I need to personally inspect for precision, proportions and light performance. Once I give the green light production starts for a skeleton inventory and we'll cut as demand is there. We will be focusing on 1.5xct+ for starters.
 
Rhino said:
Absolutely. The first two prototypes finished as a 1.76ct E VS2 AVR and a 1.51ct F VS2 AVC. I need to personally inspect for precision, proportions and light performance. Once I give the green light production starts for a skeleton inventory and we'll cut as demand is there. We will be focusing on 1.5xct+ for starters.
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:appl:
 
Awesome, thank you for the update, Rhino! :))
 
Rhino said:
Absolutely. The first two prototypes finished as a 1.76ct E VS2 AVR and a 1.51ct F VS2 AVC. I need to personally inspect for precision, proportions and light performance. Once I give the green light production starts for a skeleton inventory and we'll cut as demand is there. We will be focusing on 1.5xct+ for starters.
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Is there like some waiting list I can get on?
 
Rhino said:
Absolutely. The first two prototypes finished as a 1.76ct E VS2 AVR and a 1.51ct F VS2 AVC. I need to personally inspect for precision, proportions and light performance. Once I give the green light production starts for a skeleton inventory and we'll cut as demand is there. We will be focusing on 1.5xct+ for starters.
Click to expand...

Would you be willing to share the price for these?
 
Rhino said:
Absolutely. The first two prototypes finished as a 1.76ct E VS2 AVR and a 1.51ct F VS2 AVC. I need to personally inspect for precision, proportions and light performance. Once I give the green light production starts for a skeleton inventory and we'll cut as demand is there. We will be focusing on 1.5xct+ for starters.
Click to expand...
Looking forward to seeing them...
 
August Vintage released a video of a 2.4 ct lab created emerald cut, H/VS1, that he's selling for 9500. So that should give people a good idea of the prices a lab diamond can command. I tried to find it on the website, and it's not there, so maybe it sold already.
 
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If diamonds are lab grown, can't they make the color be better than an H? I just think about lab grown colored stones and the colors are, in other words,' too good to be true,' ideal.
 
lambskin said:
If diamonds are lab grown, can't they make the color be better than an H? I just think about lab grown colored stones and the colors are, in other words,' too good to be true,' ideal.
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Perhaps they are aiming for some tint, on the basis that CZ etc. is usually D/E/colourless, therefore something that has tint must be diamond?? lol
 
Lab diamonds with a H color and flaws (SV1)..oh my. I look at what I am getting for the price. Sure a mined diamond of that size and quality would be a bargain if sold at the lab created price. But, IMHO comparing mined to lab created prices is not a fair comparison to justify the prices asked for the lab created diamonds. Lab diamonds sales are trying to target buyers with not a lot of $ for luxury goods, especially diamonds. As such they have to compete with CZ and Moissanite which sell nearly everywhere at bargain prices compared to mined diamonds or crappy color and quality diamonds that are still sold at a premium. Just like a cultured vs natural pearls, the distinction and pricing treatment should be different. If someone ( not the casual observer at the grocery store or work) admires your lab diamond do you tell them it is 'real but not mined', 'lab created' or 'not naturally made' and/or also that you paid less for the lab diamond or that your lab diamond is worth less than a mined diamond? IMHO, DeBeers and other diamond folks market these gems as 'diamonds' to justify the inflated mined diamond prices and to keep mined diamond prices at highly inflated prices but convincing the consumer that lab diamonds are worthy of a merely a small discount. I think that using the mined diamond price comparison to justify the lab pricing` is over inflating the price of lab diamonds...especially when the technology spreads and can't be controlled by DeBeers. Remember how expensive those digital Casio watches were when they first came out..same with calculators. Supply and demand...something that DeBeers knows a lot about. Again, I think the comparison is not fair. Say a Prada handbag sells for $10,000 in New York City at the Prada boutique. Next door a new handbag shop opens up and sells handbags that use the Prada name, design, leather, stitching etc, same workers etc. And that bag sells for $7000-a slight discount over the Prada bag sold at the Prada store. The only caveat is that the bag was not made at the Prada factory. Like a lab diamond, the product materials and look are the same, just made elsewhere. Also, like the lab diamond you inform folks that it is a Prada bag that did not come from the factory, was not bought at the Prada store so it was cheaper than a Prada bag, or it is a handbag made in the Prada design and materials but not by Prada. Is the $3000 discount enough for the disclaimer? Like Cubic Zirconia and Moissanite which are sold for far less than lab diamonds, there are a lot of pretty good fake Prada bags that sell well, well below the $7000 price in backrooms, alleys or on the street. The bags have(nearly) (almost) the same leather, stitching and markings/design. In other words they are the same as Prada but made and purchased elsewhere say for $500. Is that fake discount worth it when the casual observer makes inquiries about your bag? Also what are and will be the resale values of Lab vs. mined diamonds? Will they appreciate or fall victim to mass produced lab diamonds. So, will I be buying Lab diamonds? Nope. Perhaps when they eventually become mass produced and sell for CZ or Moissanite prices I would buy for costume jewelry.
 
lambskin said:
IMHO, DeBeers and other diamond folks market these gems as 'diamonds' to justify the inflated mined diamond prices and to keep mined diamond prices at highly inflated prices but convincing the consumer that lab diamonds are worthy of a merely a small discount.
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They are marketed as diamonds because they are diamonds. What on earth would you like them to be called? DeBeers's $800/carat is hardly a small discount.

Say a Prada handbag sells for $10,000 in New York City at the Prada boutique. Next door a new handbag shop opens up and sells handbags that use the Prada name, design, leather, stitching etc, same workers etc.
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This is illegal. What you are describing is a counterfeit and they are illegal to sell. Prada owns the right to it's name and logo. Trademark law.

So, will I be buying Lab diamonds? Nope. Perhaps when they eventually become mass produced and sell for CZ or Moissanite prices I would buy for costume jewelry.
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That's fine, but I'm not sure why it's necessary to be so disparaging on them on a subforum for lab diamond lovers. I don't understand the comparison to illegal, knock off handbags, either. No one is attempting trickery. It would be illegal to sell a lab diamond as a mined one, but that's not what's happening here. It's legal to call a lab diamond a lab diamond because it is a lab diamond.
 
vintageloves said:
August Vintage released a video of a 2.4 ct lab created emerald cut, H/VS1, that he's selling for 9500. So that should give people a good idea of the prices a lab diamond can command. I tried to find it on the website, and it's not there, so maybe it sold already.
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So approximately (very roughly) half or less of what a natural mined diamond with similar specs would sell for.
 
I saw the lab diamonds go up on August Vintage last nice and was mildly disappointed. None are August Vintage cuts. I was excited about a renowned cutter getting aboard the lab train, but I was imagining the branded ovals, antique cushions and old european cuts for a significant savings. These are generic and the prices are way too high. I think this is because the industry is still comparing a D/VS1 mined with the lab equivalent. But if it's as easy to grow a D as a G lab diamond, I don't think it should command the same premium as a mined D. I expect a lab stone to be high in color and clarity.
 
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