Moissanite Engagement Rings

What Is A Moissanite Gemstone?

While engagement ring shopping you’ll soon realize there are more gem options than you once imagined. Moissanite is one of your options, this gem can occur naturally, but it’s rare to come across them in their natural form because its crystals are so tiny. When shopping for moissanite, you’re typically shopping for synthetic lab-grown moissanite which is a more environmentally friendly option.

Lab-grown moissanite is curated from a naturally occurring mineral called silicon carbide. Silicon carbide typically can’t be found in nature large enough to cut into a 1-carat center stone. It has to be lab-grown so we can achieve the cut of larger-sized carats.

Continue reading to learn more about our beautiful, ethically sourced, lab-grown moissanite and diamond stones.

Moissanite Vs. Diamond

Moissanite is often used as a diamond simulant but shouldn’t be confused with one. diamonds are well known for their brilliance and durability; being a 10 at the top of the Mohs Scale of hardness. Moissanite is not far below them, falling at a 9.25, being the second most durable gem. This is why they are a great diamond alternative.

Four C’s

Just like a diamond, moissanite is also classified by the Four C’s; Cut, Color, Clarity, and Carat Weight. Selecting your moissanite can be similar to selecting a diamond in a few ways because of this aspect. Below we display the 4C’s of our 2-carat round moissanite.

Now our expert jeweler at Slate & Tell breaks down the four C’s so you can better understand.

Cut: Diamond and moissanite are both cut similarly. While discussing the four C’s, cutting your gemstone doesn’t refer to the shape of which you want your gemstone to be. The cut is the precise pattern you are using to create the faucets in your stone. These faucet patterns reflect light, giving your gem its brilliance and fire.

Color: Understanding the color grade scale will help you select your stone. While color grading we are deciding the color within your stone, not the flashes of color that dance around in the sunlight.

Today there are three different color grades for Moissanite:

  • Colorless (D-E-F)
  • Near Colorless (GHI)
  • Faint Color (J-K)

The diamond color grading scale is different because diamonds come in a variety of hues, ranging from colors D-Z. Because diamonds have a larger color variety, they require a trained eye and professional equipment to determine a stone’s color grade.

Clarity: When determining a stone’s clarity, we are looking for any inclusions and imperfections. Those can poorly affect a stone’s light passages. Gemstones can have inclusions and imperfections that are so small it doesn’t affect clarity grading. Because moissanite is essentially lab-grown, we are able to control the clarity. This allows for flawless grading in moissanite.

Below is a Perfect Example of a Flawless Round Moissanite Stone from Slate & Tell.

Carat Weight: The physical weight of any diamond is measured in carats. At our Slate & Tell workshop, we use precise digital scales to measure carat weight. Each diamond, gemstone, and moissanite we work with is measured using these scales. Carat weight is not comparable between a diamond and moissanite, making millimeters (mm) the measurement unit of choice for moissanite.

If you’re looking to achieve the look of a 2-carat diamond, you would select an 8mm moissanite. This is because moissanite weighs significantly less than diamond. This makes it easy to get more bang for your buck when selecting carat size.

All four C’s play a role in determining the price of your moissanite or diamond. When shopping for an engagement ring you might be surprised to find out that moissanite can save you quite a bit of money compared to a diamond.

How to choose your Moissanite?

There are a lot of factors that go into choosing your stone, but it mainly boils down to personal preference. Are you looking to achieve the look of a diamond? Or do you simply love what moissanite has to offer and want to embrace it? Here at Slate & Tell, we embrace every dazzling detail this stone offers. Our team takes pride in selecting the perfect moissanite for your dream piece.

Each stone is selected using the highest grading scale. If you are wanting to achieve the look of a diamond, we recommend sticking around a 1-2 carat diamond equivalent-sized moissanite.

Larger-sized moissanite produces more fire, this causes color flashes when light passes through. If you are as passionate about moissanite stones as us, then we say the bigger the better!

This 4 carat moissanite and diamond engagement ring is the perfect example of how elegant moissanite can look in larger sizes.

Using Moissanite in your Ring Setting

If you have fine jewelry containing accent stones in its setting, we refer to those tiny stones as melee stones. Melee stones are selected with the same grading scales as your center stones. Allowing you to get the best quality gemstones.

Melee’s range in sizes from 0.8mm-2.9mm. These stones are often used in the setting of your engagement ring or any fine jewelry piece that requires accent stones in the setting. Melee Stones are often used to accent center stones.

There are many ways to accent your fine jewelry pieces such as halos and side accents. Our fine jewelry expert at Slate & Tell breaks down the difference between the two, making it easier for you to decide which style suits your liking.

  1. Halos: A center stone can be surrounded by a halo, which is made of tiny melee stones wrapped around your center stone. This causes the effect of a halo to enhance your center stone and make it appear larger.
  • Side Accents: If you like extra bling, side accents are for you. These melees run down the shank of your engagement ring adding extra sparkle to its overall look. Side accents can vary in shape and size, depending on what look you’re going for.

Selecting moissanite for your engagement ring is a joyous experience and we wish to provide you with all the knowledge we have on this precious stone. Slate & Tell recommend you reach out to our team at [email protected] for any questions regarding our moissanite and diamond jewelry.

Continue reading our Slate & Tell blog posts here or return to shopping.

At Slate & Tell, we love to share all of our jewelry on Instagram to give you a real-life view of our designs.

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