The Finest Engagement Ring Brands
Choosing an engagement ring is a significant milestone in one’s life journey, and finding the perfect brand can make this experience even more memorable. Some brands stand out among the…
Clean Origin Review: These pages may reference products from companies that help to support PriceScope.
Clean Origin Review
Founded in 2017, Clean Origin is a relatively new option for consumers looking for engagement rings. In addition to focusing exclusively on lab-grown diamonds, they also boast an attractive price point for consumers who are looking for a savvier diamond sparkle.
Chemically identical to mined diamonds, Clean Origin’s diamonds are authentic, clean, and have all the sparkle you’ve always desired – without all the horrors that occur as a result of the non-ethical mined diamond market.
Is their website well-maintained? Have their reviews left a stain on their positive reputation? Are their sales representatives up to par? We’ve done the digging to see if Clean Origin can truly live up to its namesake below.
1. What is Clean Origin’s story?
Despite being a fairly new company, its team of industry experts has more than 100 years of combined experience. Established by Alex Weindling, a third-generation diamond merchant, Terry Burman, former CEO of Signet Jewelers, Sterling Jewelers, and Zale Corporation, and Ryan Bonificino, former marketing director of Alex and Ani – it’s an impressive lineup.
As consumers are becoming more informed and environmentally conscious, it’s something diamond retailers cannot ignore anymore. There’s an increasing demand for an affordable way to purchase diamonds online, without paying costs to big corporations or sacrificing morals. This was the market they wanted to target. Thus, CleanOrigin.com was born.
Millennials and Gen Z are now the key consumers of jewelry, and these industry experts clearly took that into consideration. This brand is all about ethics, you won’t find any mined diamonds here. Lab-grown diamonds are exclusively sold, removing the conflict element from diamonds completely. They even plant a tree for every purchase.
Clean Origin has a story that’s got soul, and certainly lives up to its namesake. We still need to dig deeper into the specifics to determine if these sustainable diamonds are worth it beyond their stance on ethical diamonds.
2. What is most appealing about Clean Origin?
Grading Authority
Diamonds certified by Clean Origin are evaluated by independent laboratories. They include the GIA, (The Gemological Institute of America), IGI (International Gemological Institute), and the GCAL (Gem Certification and Assurance Laboratory). Known for their distinguished reputations in the gem world, these internationally-recognized laboratories grade both mined and lab-grown diamonds.
Each loose diamond comes with its corresponding certification, which is promising, and for some of the diamonds, there are interactive images and 360 videos available for your perusal.
We couldn’t find any light reflector images (ASET/ideal-scope) of the stone available to illustrate how the light is reflected within its facets. There’s a crucial point here, because buying a diamond based only on a GIA report is almost like buying blind.
Your diamond should come fully equipped with all the certifications, images, and specifics to help you make an informed purchasing decision. Our vetted vendors Whiteflash, Blue Nile, and James Allen sell diamonds graded by top-tier laboratories. In addition to this, those vendors employ in-house gemologists to inspect their diamonds to ensure accuracy.
Variety
Lab-grown diamonds are genuine diamonds, make no mistake. There’s a lot of confusion between mined diamonds and lab-created ones, but you can rest assured they’re 100% real diamonds. Between lab-created diamonds and mined diamonds, the main difference is their origin.
Diamonds created in a laboratory are sometimes referred to as synthetic diamonds. Even though it is technically accurate, people might consider lab-created diamonds to be “fake” due to the term.
The diamonds sold by Clean Origin are produced using two main processes: High-Pressure High Temperature and Chemical Vapor Deposition.
Combined, the techniques allow them to sell diamonds of virtually any size and quality – and at much lower prices than mined diamonds. And without the negative societal impact nor carbon dioxide emissions.
Colorless lab diamonds, the icy hue we’ve all come to adore, as well as fancy diamonds, are available from Clean Origin as loose stones.
There’s a legitimate market for both natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds. In contrast to natural diamonds, which historically appreciate in value over time, prices of lab-grown diamonds continue to drop. However, due to the shorter supply chain, lab-grown diamonds can be between 20-30% less expensive than mined diamonds.
You can read more regarding our advice on purchasing lab-grown diamonds here.
Ease of Use
Among Clean Origin’s nearly 18,500 lab diamonds, you can choose from diamonds of varying diamond quality. Diamond shapes, colors, and clarity grades are easily selected using the sliders. You can even check a little box if you’re looking specifically for quick shipping.
The number of 18,500 diamonds may seem substantial, but the selection is still limited for shapes other than round. If you wanted a marquise diamond, you would be presented with less than ten diamond choices – and that’s without specifying the cut and clarity to something decent.
We can, hopefully, look forward to seeing more variety on Clean Origin in the future.
With lots of little features, Clean Origin has an extremely elaborate 360-degree view. It makes sure that you can see the diamond from almost every angle, though I’m not sure if they’re all necessary.
There are a number of ways to manipulate the diamond, such as selecting which sides play back-and-forth in a loop or seeing the diamond in grayscale. If there are inclusions that could be hidden in the normal view by sparkle, this little feature will be useful.
Unfortunately, this 360-degree viewer is not available on all diamonds. Some diamonds only display looped angles when you click on the 360 view which isn’t as helpful.
In spite of not being as sophisticated as the pioneering Whiteflash or James Allen; they’re among the very best, and most buyers will be delighted with the level of due diligence that can be performed on the Clean Origin site.
Looking for a little more detail when choosing the perfect diamond? Discover more than a million loose diamonds for sale with all the specifications you need and find the diamond that is right for you.
The Selection
The variety of items they offer is significantly smaller than that of some of the other online retailers we have reviewed. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.
As a new company, this is understandable. Most likely they do not have as many vendors as some of the other veteran diamond companies in the space. And keep in mind there aren’t many companies that manufacture lab-grown diamonds either.
Diamonds can be purchased loose or in a ring setting. Choose from ready-to-ship jewelry or pick out your own lab-grown diamonds, matching them with your favorite settings of any style, metal, or type for complete customization and a unique piece of jewelry.
Our recommendation is always to pick your own diamond for your preferred setting. That way, you’ll get exactly the diamond you want. You can live up to their byline – Diamonds without compromise.
With around 190 ring settings, Clean Origin has a pretty good collection. Styles of rings include solitaires, vintage rings, halo rings, classic rings, three stone rings, and pave rings. Despite their small collection, they have some lovely and unique ring settings.
We encourage you to browse Astor by Blue Nile, Whiteflash A CUT ABOVE, and James Allen True Hearts – these premium vendors guarantee diamonds with superior cut quality and exquisite ring settings.
The Experience
They are on a mission to “improve the diamond shopping experience”. By taking the process online, choosing lab-grown over mined, and keeping prices affordable; they have certainly improved efficiency and kept costs low. Which are all conducive to a better diamond buying process.
Customer service has always been at the core of Clean Origin’s success. The shopping process is incredibly easy, and you can initiate a chat anytime you have a question to get a real-time answer, from a real person.
Although primarily online, they do have a showroom located in Dallas-Fort Worth that carries a selection of their lab-grown diamond jewelry offering alongside some trained staff. With limited overheads, that’s just one of the reasons why Clean Origin’s prices can be so competitive.
Nevertheless, you will want to order online so that you can browse their inventory of diamonds and pick out the most appropriate one.
A comprehensive education section is also available on the site, which offers easy-to-digest materials covering topics such as Diamond Shape, the 4C’s: Cut, Color, Clarity, and Carat, as well as guides on setting types and metals.
Clean Origin also ships within the USA, to Canada, Australia, and the UK which is definitely nice to know.
3. What diamond and jewelry products does Clean Origin offer?
While there is a strong focus on their lab-grown diamonds and helping you design your own engagement ring, Clean Origin also offers some other jewelry pieces to get excited about.
Low cost and equally beautiful, the brand offers a range of jewelry for special occasions like anniversaries and any other time you’d like a little sparkle in your life.
Here are some details about their ethical offering:
- Create your own engagement rings
- Wedding bands
- Pink diamond jewelry
- Blue diamond jewelry
- Diamond earrings
- Diamond tennis bracelets
- Gifts for graduation
- Diamond pendants
We know that some readers may wonder if Clean Origin can compete with Brilliant Earth. They both pioneer strong ethics and we’d like you to see for yourself if Brilliant Earth aligns with yours. You can take a look at our Brilliant Earth review here.
There’s a lot of information online about diamonds and jewelry, and it can be difficult to know what’s reliable. With the help of a team of diamond and jewelry experts, PriceScope offers users an easy-to-use online platform for accurate diamond information.
4. What sets Clean Origin apart from others?
Perfect Fit: Perfect Fit is a collection of styles of rings with sculpted sides to fit comfortably against the pinky and middle finger. In addition to being comfortable, this design claims to be the best ring style for those with an active lifestyle or who tend to be harder on their hands than the average person.
Unique Return Policy: Many of you are familiar with 30-day returns, such as those offered by Blue Nile and James Allen, and typically the standard. There are also 60-day returns by Kay and Zales. In the event that you return the product within 100 days of purchasing it, Clean Origin will fully refund you. Shipping is on them! That’s a whopping 100 days to decide if you love your lab-grown diamond purchase; we’ve yet to see any other return policy as extensive as that.
When you're looking for diamond retailers who offer you a seamless selection process, great unique selling points and a wide variety of options, take a look at James Allen, Blue Nile and Whiteflash whose online diamond shopping experience offer you exceptional value - even after purchase.
5. What does Clean Origin’s packaging look like?
A seemingly plain cardboard box containing your Clean Origin purchase will arrive via FedEx. Inside, a custom Clean Origin ring box crafted in eco-friendly paper awaits.
Designed to fit discreetly in your pants or jacket pocket, this blue box is perfect for keeping your diamond engagement ring a secret before the big day. It may not be the most extravagant of packaging, but it rings true to their ethos of more sustainable practices.
You can also purchase a loose lab-grown diamond by itself, which is secured within a beautiful suspension box. Your diamond will seem to float within a transparent window, allowing it to be held up and observed in the light.
6. Are you the ideal Clean Origin customer?
The Clean Origin brand has ethics at its core and is a modern brand for those who care about the origin of their jewelry. So, Clean Origin is an excellent choice if you’re interested in lab-created diamonds.
Besides having GIA and IGI-certified diamonds, they also have a great selection of engagement ring settings and gorgeous jewelry pieces made with their diamonds. The price of Clean Origin’s lab-grown diamonds is especially competitive, making it a great option for budget-conscious shoppers.
Lab-grown diamonds are inherently and significantly less harmful to the environment since it takes vastly less energy to grow a diamond in a lab than to dig it out of the ground.
In many cases, engagement rings start out with a lower-cost diamond ring with a smaller center stone. Then for a special occasion or an anniversary, they upgrade their ring for a more expensive one. James Allen, Blue Nile, and Whiteflash, among others, offer generous trade-in policies for their diamond jewelry.
Typical trade-in policies allow the customer to exchange their current ring and apply the value to a new piece worth at least twice that amount. With this, there’s a chance to save up to 50% on a brand new ring – a deal savvy buyers cannot ignore.
As Clean Origin only offers lab-created diamonds, their jewelry does not represent a good investment. They have no resale value. While they may be cheaper, they will likely not resell for more (and may even be less) than what you originally paid.
You cannot upgrade or trade in any of Clean Origin’s products. While it isn’t important to everyone, it is a big selling point for most places. The reality is that many online diamond retailers are now offering lab-created diamonds to appeal to consumers as well.
Dedicated to lab-grown diamonds entirely, Clean Origin gives them every bit of attention.
The most important thing is what you value. Some people choose mined diamonds because they believe they are one of nature’s miracles and have a mysterious origin.
Perhaps you are attracted to lab-created diamonds since they represent modern love and technology’s advancement. If you’re looking for the best in lab-created diamond jewelry, look no further than Clean Origin.
An established company, Clean Origin Diamonds has a great website and provides excellent customer service. In every review, we encourage you to make sure you’re well informed and know what’s important to you when choosing a diamond.
You can explore diamond education extensively with PriceScope before you purchase one. When you have a resource like ours on hand, you’re more informed and confident.
For an in-depth understanding of the many diamonds we have online and in stock, check out our large selection of loose diamonds, which contains all the information you need to be confident in your purchase.
Get fast answers to any question: Ask our community of unbiased independent helpers or use our diamond search to find your ideal diamond.
The information in this review is current, to the best of our knowledge, as of June, 2022.
