When most people think about synthetic gems, the first thing that comes to mind is a misconception that these are “cheap imitations” compared to the real, natural gems that they are patterned after˳ However, what most people do not know is that there are many types of man-made or modified natural gems whose quality and appearance can easily rival those of “natural” gemstones while costing much less than their original counterparts˳
Defining Natural and Synthetic Stones
A lot of different terms are used in the gemstone industry today, and you have to know what the terms mean to keep yourself from getting ripped off˳ A natural gemstone is, by definition, exactly that – a natural stone mined from a quarry, and the only human intervention regarding it’s appearance is to cut and polish it, nothing more˳ Natural gemstones of high quality and beauty are the rarest and most expensive types of gemstones˳ Treated gemstones, on the other hand, are natural gems which, despite cutting and polishing, would have normally fallen below the standards of high quality natural gems˳
These gems are treated with chemicals and several procedures to enhance their appearance to match higher quality gemstones˳ Lastly, there are synthetic gemstones˳ These are man made gems created completely inside a factory or laboratory˳ Synthetic stones are, in chemical composition, exactly like their natural gemstone counterparts˳ As a matter of act, they are TOO perfect in appearance, because their physical parameters and composition are made expressly for jewelry purposes˳
Different Types of Synthetic Stones
There are two main types of synthetic stones based on how they were created˳ The first is factory-produced synthetic stones˳ Basically, these are stones created using the same elements as a natural stone, and fused together under artificial conditions (like superheating and pressure) to make a gemstone in much less time than it would take for one to develop naturally˳ These can be churned out at a rapid rate and in very large volumes˳ The second type is lab-grown gemstones˳ These are a half-way compromise between mass-produced synthetic stones and natural ones˳
The same elements as natural gemstones are again used to create a synthetic one, BUT instead of speed-fusing them, the elements are placed in a lab whose conditions approach that of the natural processes which create natural gemstones˳ While the process itself is sped up to make a gem in much less time than nature would, it takes more time to “grow” a gem in a lab than it would under a factory processor˳ However, lab grown gems are able to approach the qualities of a natural gem more than a factory-made synthetic one˳
The Qualities of Synthetic Stones versus Natural
Physically, there are several differences between a synthetic stone and a natural one˳ Again, the most ironic difference is that synthetic stones are TOO perfect˳ Created expressly for jewelry purposes, their basic shapes are made to fit the type of jewelry they are meant to be set in˳ Even their crystal structure is mathematically precise with no deviations whereas a natural gemstone will often have a flaw or two in it’s matrice (and if it does not, a perfectly unflawed natural gem’s price will be HUGE)˳ The chemical composition of the gem is likewise pure for synthetic gemstones, whereas natural gemstones may often have trace elements mixed into it˳ These small imperfections are how most jewelers tell the difference between a natural and synthetic stone˳ Price wise, synthetic gems can offer a person much more beauty and value for their money; natural gemstones of high quality are very rare and thus expensive, whereas the mass produced synthetics are physically the same but cheaper by anything from half to a quarter of the price˳
For long term investment, however, natural gemstones of high quality are a better deal because of their rarity; their value appreciates over time, whereas the price for a synthetic remains constant˳ The price may even drop over time, especially for factory-made synthetic gemstones; natural stones and lab grown stones have no physical degradation over time, but factory-made stones, being made in a hurry, are not quite as durable as the real thing˳ For this reason, lab-grown synthetic gemstones are becoming more and more popular over quick factory machine-made synthetics˳
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