holeydonut
Shiny_Rock
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2018
- Messages
- 263
Naturally this is just my opinion but, I wanted to give my feedback comparing BGD's Lab vs his Mined round brilliant cut diamonds. This isn't meant to bash or promote BGD, I'm just providing my thoughts.
In 2018, I purchased an engagement ring from BGD (pics in the thread here). In my opinion, BGD's round brilliant cuts are second to none. I think any stone you get from BGD will be very good; they take the guesswork out of whether you're getting high quality. The quality of his rings/settings are also up there with some of the premium brands I looked at (HW, Cartier, etc). But back in 2018, BGD wouldn't touch a MMD. Things changed this year, and BGD started offering MMD with their high standards for cut quality.
I had been investigating giving my wife a matching pendant to go with her engagement ring. But with the prices for similar-sized mined diamonds costing the same as a few bathroom remodels, it didn't make financial sense.
So, learning earlier this year that BGD was cutting MMD gave me a great opportunity to compare the two. My iPhone camera isn't going to do these stones justice, but BGD's round brilliant MMD (1.74 carat) pendant looks amazing paired to BGD's "Brian Gavin Black" mined diamond (1.81 carat). With my limited tools now, I won't be able to get up close like did in my original thread about the engagement ring.
I don't think the average person or even a Pricescope user (haha!) would be able to tell the difference between the two options as an eye-clean view. They both sparkle like crazy and have the brilliance you'd expect from BGD. So if you're prioritizing the appearance of the stone and cut, MMD from BGD will check all the important boxes.
While the appearance of the two looks great together, the main drawback is that you know these MMD bring in less profit/margin compared to normal mined diamonds. BGD's normal "Black" and "Signature" lines have the AGS report laminated and presented in their respective fancy cases. And the presentation is very curated to communicate the quality of their products. This may only be a few bucks of extra cost; but it's margin lost nonetheless for BGD. (I still have my reservations on whether his "Black" ring case can be used for an engagement proposal, but you can tell Brian Gavin cared a lot about putting the presentation together to highlight the diamond and cut of his "Black" line)
But the BGD Lab just comes with a 8 x 11 copy paper of the AGS folded and stuffed in a plastic sleeve. The pendant is presented in a decent cardbox box, but it's meant more for rings/earrings. The box has a few notches to hold the chain, but doesn't have a clip on back to float the pendant. Instead they use scotch tape to hold the chain to the box insert. I've purchased bargain pendants from Blue Nile that had a better presentation... so BGD is definitely making a statement that these MMDs slot somewhere between cosmetic and low-end.
I'm still on the fence around Lab Grown diamonds, but they offer enough pros to be worth a consideration for the right occasion and right recipient. But since MMD are simply "not mined". So MMD starts to evoke some of the feelings shared with CZ/Diamonique jewelry. Rightfully or wrongfully, the stigma is there. The Diamond industry is no slouch; they've carefully developed the luxury/premium element of a mined diamond over decades. So there's a strong cachet around the premium pricing and overall end-to-end luxury of a mined diamond.
I don't think I'll buy another MMD for a while. I agree the value is there for the appearance and "true diamond composition", but MMD comes with drawbacks due to how mined diamonds are marketed and perceived by the public at large.
In 2018, I purchased an engagement ring from BGD (pics in the thread here). In my opinion, BGD's round brilliant cuts are second to none. I think any stone you get from BGD will be very good; they take the guesswork out of whether you're getting high quality. The quality of his rings/settings are also up there with some of the premium brands I looked at (HW, Cartier, etc). But back in 2018, BGD wouldn't touch a MMD. Things changed this year, and BGD started offering MMD with their high standards for cut quality.
I had been investigating giving my wife a matching pendant to go with her engagement ring. But with the prices for similar-sized mined diamonds costing the same as a few bathroom remodels, it didn't make financial sense.
So, learning earlier this year that BGD was cutting MMD gave me a great opportunity to compare the two. My iPhone camera isn't going to do these stones justice, but BGD's round brilliant MMD (1.74 carat) pendant looks amazing paired to BGD's "Brian Gavin Black" mined diamond (1.81 carat). With my limited tools now, I won't be able to get up close like did in my original thread about the engagement ring.
I don't think the average person or even a Pricescope user (haha!) would be able to tell the difference between the two options as an eye-clean view. They both sparkle like crazy and have the brilliance you'd expect from BGD. So if you're prioritizing the appearance of the stone and cut, MMD from BGD will check all the important boxes.
While the appearance of the two looks great together, the main drawback is that you know these MMD bring in less profit/margin compared to normal mined diamonds. BGD's normal "Black" and "Signature" lines have the AGS report laminated and presented in their respective fancy cases. And the presentation is very curated to communicate the quality of their products. This may only be a few bucks of extra cost; but it's margin lost nonetheless for BGD. (I still have my reservations on whether his "Black" ring case can be used for an engagement proposal, but you can tell Brian Gavin cared a lot about putting the presentation together to highlight the diamond and cut of his "Black" line)
But the BGD Lab just comes with a 8 x 11 copy paper of the AGS folded and stuffed in a plastic sleeve. The pendant is presented in a decent cardbox box, but it's meant more for rings/earrings. The box has a few notches to hold the chain, but doesn't have a clip on back to float the pendant. Instead they use scotch tape to hold the chain to the box insert. I've purchased bargain pendants from Blue Nile that had a better presentation... so BGD is definitely making a statement that these MMDs slot somewhere between cosmetic and low-end.
I'm still on the fence around Lab Grown diamonds, but they offer enough pros to be worth a consideration for the right occasion and right recipient. But since MMD are simply "not mined". So MMD starts to evoke some of the feelings shared with CZ/Diamonique jewelry. Rightfully or wrongfully, the stigma is there. The Diamond industry is no slouch; they've carefully developed the luxury/premium element of a mined diamond over decades. So there's a strong cachet around the premium pricing and overall end-to-end luxury of a mined diamond.
I don't think I'll buy another MMD for a while. I agree the value is there for the appearance and "true diamond composition", but MMD comes with drawbacks due to how mined diamonds are marketed and perceived by the public at large.
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