Weddingbee Blog

I think science is really cool.

There, I said it. I’m not what you’d call a geek (not cool or clever enough to be), but I enjoy science-y things. I like space and the universe, I like Facebook pages to do with science jokes, and interesting facts about sea creatures. I listen to podcasts by Professor Brian Cox before I go to sleep. I find this stuff really interesting.

Hilarious image via 9GAG

So when I happened upon a stone that was a little bit different from the norm, I thought it was really, really cool.

I always thought I’d have a diamond engagement ring. I was never a fan of coloured stones because, although they are very pretty, I thought a clear stone would suit everything I wore and little things like that made me happy.

The problem I had with diamonds was the cost. Being in England, it’s unusual for someone to have a diamond engagement ring that is over half a carat. And half a carat is big for the vast majority of people. If you have a larger, more expensive rock, you are automatically considered a show-off and us Brits don’t really like show-offs.

But I didn’t like smaller stones. I would wander around the jewellery district in our city and be drawn to the huge diamonds that cost thousands and thousands and thousands and I would sigh—why did they have to be so bloody expensive?!

About a year ago I met a girl at work with the prettiest engagement ring I had ever seen; one night whilst we were at a bar I found myself staring at it and I realised in that moment what it was about the larger diamond that I liked—the sheer amount of sparkle. Smaller diamonds sparkle, sure, but the larger surface area meant more surface to sparkle off, and I fell in love. I had to talk to her about it and she mentioned that her husband bought it online from Blue Nile and it cost thousands less than it would have done if they’d bought it in a shop over here.

So what did I do? I did as any girl in a relationship does when she’s not even remotely engaged. Start looking at rings online! I had my hopes up when I visited Blue Nile and, although I couldn’t deny that they were cheaper, they were still expensive and there was no way I could ever expect Jack to fork out that much money for a piece of jewellery. Still, I couldn’t get over her diamond. I started thinking—what about a lab-made diamond? Would they be cheaper? Nope. Not even close. So I started thinking about other options and I thought, what if I found something better than diamond? And that’s exactly what I Googled.

So what do you know, Better Than Diamond appeared in my search results! At first I read nonstop about the Amora Gem and seriously got my hopes up, but then found out that it wasn’t going to be available until 2015 and I was kinda hoping that I’d get engaged before then. But although I was disappointed about that, it didn’t stop me reading more about the Amora Moissanite, and the more I read the more fascinated I became by it. Discovered in a meteorite. Clear like a diamond. A stone which won’t deteriorate. Insanely sparkly. None of my friends would have one. Not cheap, but affordable.

But would it be obvious that it was 10 times less than what a diamond would cost? I wasn’t bothered about it looking like a “knock-off” because the fact that it wasn’t a diamond didn’t bother me; what I was worried about was that it wouldn’t make me go “oooooh” like a diamond did. But then I found a picture that made me know I didn’t need to worry—that this was the stone I was looking for. And it was from Weddingbee.

Image via MissMarriage on the Weddingbee Ring Board

This was the picture that almost sold it to Jack. I had casually mentioned that I’d seen a stone that was amazing and beautiful with qualities like a diamond but without the price tag. He listened and then said, “Great, but I’d never not buy you a diamond for your engagement ring.” Um…why?? “Because you deserve the best!” “Then why would I want a small, low-quality diamond within budget, when I could have this?! That’s pretty and sparkly, and awesome because it was originally found in space!” Then his face changed. I needn’t have mentioned the sparkle or the durability or anything else—the word “space” was what did it. “That is soooooooo cool!!! What’s it called again?”

And he got me one. Ten months later and an Amora Moissanite was sat in my engagement ring, surrounded by platinum and yellow gold, and it couldn’t have looked more perfect.

It is a different colour in almost every light. It sparkles like a bad boy in the lift at work, and I capture glimpses of its multi-coloured flashes all day.

I volunteer the information on my moissanite stone when someone I know asks me about it. A 1.25 carat rock is hard to ignore, and my British head tells me that I need to explain that it’s not a £6k ring, just like my colleague had to announce that “he got it cheaper online!” I have had an overwhelmingly positive response to it, with most people having never heard of it and thinking it’s awesome. Jack’s friend even told his own family!

My Amora Moissanite was definitely the best choice for me. I used to say that if money would allow, I would have gotten a diamond, but now I’m not so sure. I just love it so so much. And I hope I can spread the word in the UK so more girls like me won’t have to compromise to get their dream ring.