Editor’s Note
This article explores the significant shift in public perception towards synthetic diamonds following the 2007 film *Blood Diamond*, highlighting how media and celebrity advocacy can influence consumer awareness and industry trends.
In January 2007, “Blood Diamond,” the film directed by Edward Zwick and starring actor Leonardo DiCaprio, was released in theaters worldwide. It immediately had an earthquake-like effect on the very discreet diamond industry. By denouncing the market for “blood diamonds”—diamonds originating from the African continent that fuel numerous wars—the film prompts viewers to question their role in consumer society and the true social and human cost of certain luxury items. This awakening has encouraged a large number of them to turn to jewelers offering better traceability and, more broadly, better ethics for their stones.
Long shunned by renowned jewelers, synthetic diamonds are now finding their place in the most beautiful shop windows on Place Vendôme. Between sometimes misleading marketing arguments, environmental or economic stakes, here’s a look back at the duel between natural and synthetic diamonds.
adds the executive. Initially created for industrial purposes (mining drilling, oil exploration, increasing the range of electric vehicles), synthetic diamonds have recently carved a path into the high jewelry sector. De Beers, the famous South African diamond company, was one of the first houses to create a subsidiary entirely dedicated to diamond synthesis and its recognition. More recently, the jewelry house Courbet partnered with Diam concept, the startup of Alix Gicquel, to source synthetic diamonds.
To the naked eye—and even under a microscope—nothing distinguishes it from a natural diamond, unless one has specific equipment. At the molecular level, the two diamonds are identical and possess different qualities, meaning more or less pure and more or less white.
explains Alix Gicquel.
This timeframe increases depending on the desired level of whiteness.
While some houses choose to venture into synthetic diamonds, the jewelry sector remains quite wary of this newcomer, as highlighted by Edouard Monges, a gemology consultant.
Currently, the most widely used process is Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). Relatively low in energy consumption—although some critics point to its high electricity usage—it produces less than 20 kg of CO2 in France, whereas a one-carat cut and extracted stone emits about 160 kg of CO2. A process significantly less demanding than the HPHT (High Pressure, High Temperature) technique, which emitted about 511 kg of CO2 compared to 160 for a natural diamond.
In 2018, the jewelry house Gemmyo also began commercializing synthetic diamonds. By offering its customers a choice between the two types of stones, the brand goes against the mindset of houses like Cartier, Tiffany & Co., or Van Cleef & Arpels, which consider synthetic diamonds a heresy.
notes Charif Debs, CEO and co-founder of Gemmyo.
notes Charif Debs.