From Adele’s pear-shaped diamond engagement ring to Lady Gaga’s oval-shaped rock, via Selena Gomez’s marquise-cut solitaire to Zendaya’s unique East-West set stone, celebrity engagement rings have certainly put sparkling diamond rings back in the spotlight. And as the gemstone traditionally associated with enduring love, strength and beauty, it’s easy to see why they remain a popular choice for signalling your commitment. Until a few years ago, choosing the perfect diamond for your ring involved a host of decisions that revolved around ‘the four Cs’: colour, cut, clarity and carat weight.
Nowadays, it’s just as likely to involve an entirely new consideration: provenance.“It’s not at the top of everyone’s list yet, but more couples are becoming conscious of issues such as the circumstances under which a diamond was mined. Every couple’s values are different, and it’s essential to choose a ring based on what matters most to them,” says Priyanka Mehta, the founder and designer of Nue Fine Jewellery, an Antwerp-based company that specialises in lab-grown diamonds.
(Image credit: Nue Fine Jewellery )Indeed, according to market research firm Tenoris, the demand for lab-grown diamond jewellery rose by 51% last year, and man-made stones now account for around 20% of the total diamond jewellery market, with sales soaring to almost $12 billion in 2022 (compared to $1 billion in 2016). However, lab-grown diamonds may not be right for everyone. Whilst they do o.
