For our first episode of the series, we speak to jewellery collector and GIA-certified gemmologist, Paige Parker, on the topic “Natural vs Lab-Grown Diamonds”.

“I am a collector and became a gemmologist in 2013 through GIA, the Gemological Institute of America. I was a client of Christie’s and Christie’s Singapore took their team to GIA to learn. I had been collecting jewellery for a while, and I loved the classes so much and found it fascinating so I continued the course and did all the grading of stones. One of the best things my husband jokes about is that when I became a gemmologist I started buying less. Because once you’re educated, you understand that 96 per cent of stones are treated and really understand the quality and when to buy quality versus aesthetic. It makes you a smarter buyer”, introduced Parker.

“I think people would be shocked at how much better it is now to know that 99.8 per cent of diamonds are now part of The Kimberley Process. So that means you can track and prove that it’s not a conflict stone. Beyond that, there are millions of people around the world who are working in the diamond industry—and a third of those miners are women. Many of the companies that are mining in these small places are building schools and hospitals; they are helping them grow food and are stabilising and educating these communities. So when you start thinking about cutting that out, and only having the lab grown, there are consequences that are different and maybe even bigger than what anybody is really talking or thinking about. It’s not as clear or easy, it’s not black and white, it’s not that one is sustainable and one is not. For everybody listening, it’s a choice. If you want to buy a lab-grown diamond, that’s excellent, and if you want to buy a natural stone, that’s excellent too—since 2020, Tiffany & Co.’s stones are all etched so you know where it came from, and you know it’s clean,” she adds.

From their creation processes, intergenerational appeal and aesthetic differences—or uncanny similarities—to Tiffany & Co.’s sustainability efforts driving environmental, social and economical change, tune in to our podcast to discover the evolution of lab-grown diamonds in the luxury space, and insights on made-man versus natural stones.