Can anyone give me advice on how to convince my girlfriend of this though without her thinking I love her any less :)?
From reading this, just show it to her. It says people can't spot the difference.
Diamonds Suck (2006)
21–30 of 618 posts
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#22The worst part of the diamond industry is how much space is wasted here in New York for diamond stores. Around Midtown there are whole blocks of sketchy diamond stores. No way all are profitable.
I'm sure you appreciate how easy selling diamonds makes avoiding taxes. Diamonds and High-End Art make it nearly impossible to not help launder.
What about gift shops and massage parlors? Both take over Manhattan blocks as well.
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#23Great advice. Possibly coming from someone who doesn't have a girlfriend. :) try to give such a stone to a girl and see how amused she is gonna be. You are just gonna sound "cheap". Diamonds are a status, not a beautiful stone. edit: I see many downvotes. Guys, seriously, was it for me, I would buy nothing. It's just how this world works. You can express your anger by downvoting me, I'll be fine, but please don't fal…
If it's great advice from your perspective as a man then surely it's also great advice from the perspective of any woman who thinks the same way you do. Women have as much interest in the ethics of the things that they wear and the value (which isn't just the price) of things that their partner buys as any man does.
Plus, to be honest, I imagine if you gave a woman the choice between an engagement ring that cost $6000 and a much cheaper engagement ring that their boyfriend spent 6 months finding, most would choose the ring that their boyfriend spent time thinking about and choosing. Women have as much money as men do for buying status symbols; when it comes to an engagement ring they're looking for something that mere money can't buy.
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#24I got my wife a moissanite ring, and it indeed sparkles amazingly...but so do cubic zirconiums
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#25Can anyone give me advice on how to convince my girlfriend of this though without her thinking I love her any less :)?
If you're old enough to be thinking about marrying your girlfriend, your girlfriend has probably decided already what she thinks about diamonds and spending money on pretty but useless things. And if you've been dating her long enough to think about marrying her, then you should probably have a pretty good guess about how she thinks about it.
First and foremost, it's a proof of social status between her and her peers, so you need to know who her friends are. But there are so many factors to weigh in. Someone I know got a sapphire ring to propose to his girlfriend, and she commented about how she was glad that he remembered that she hated diamonds. A couple I know have silver wedding bands which were made by an artist that they both know. The rings are unique and special—and this is important—in a way that they can brag about. They don't brag about it, but they could, if they were that kind of people.
However, if you are unable to express your concerns about diamonds without worrying that she'll think you love her less, then you are NOT ready to propose. Consider premarital counseling—which is something you do to get ready for marriage, not something you do because you have problems.
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#26According to Wikipedia[0], the patents for the creation of Moissanite expired in 2015 in the US and in 2016 for the most of the rest of the world. [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moissanite#Applications
Interesting. Moissanite (silicon carbide) has a number of similar characteristics to diamond. So I decided to see whether, like diamond, its use as a high-temperature semiconductor had been investigated. Turns out the answer is yes, specifically by Toyota for its hybrid cars' power control units (PCUs):
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#27Can anyone give me advice on how to convince my girlfriend of this though without her thinking I love her any less :)?
From reading this, just show it to her. It says people can't spot the difference.
Lying is a great way to start a relationship. Then when she goes to get the ring insured or tries to add it to your homeowners or renters insurance and the appraisal comes back you can have the informed, rational discussion of your thought process with no fall out. Just in case someone wants to avoid that approach, it might be helpful to have some specific arguments. I think it is good to point out what you could use the money for instead. If you show that the money could be used to strengthen your relationship over the long term, that should show deep concern and love for your partner.
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#28Similar arguments can be made about almost any fashion item. People don't buy fashion due to it's great quality, and most of the time not even due to good design, but mostly just to show off.
oh the humanities
Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)
#29After reading about Moissanite I went out and got a nice custom diamond ring. I've seen it in person and sometimes you CAN tell, because of the 'fire' its way more rainbowy than diamond, diamonds are 'whiter' looking. I'm not even opposed to CZ if it looks pretty, but I wanted to give her a diamond and gold, and anything else would have felt like a substitution.
This is what annoys me. The geek and idealist in me doesn't want to give her a diamond because it's not that valuable. Yet, I don't want to be cheap. I don't want her to feel like I don't value her enough.
The argument given in the article is that you can spend significantly more on a setting and still come out spending less.