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The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

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Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#281

Post by javaunsafe2019 »

xivzgrev wrote: post #46
brink wrote: post #3

I would like to take this moment to thank https://diamondssuck.com/ for preventing me from buying my wife a diamond, and getting her a much prettier moissanite instead. It's been on hn's front page several times.

Guys, buying diamonds, can complain all day about what a rip off it is (it is). But if you apprise your fiancé of the alternatives / opp costs (moissanite, man made, second hand, etc) and she still wants a new diamond, just get her a new diamond. It will make her happy for years. My wife had her heart set on a pink diamond, so that’s what I got her. I made it clear though that if I got this, she is not getting a new…

Wow you really live in a different universe then me.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#282

Post by javaunsafe2019 »

ciconia wrote: post #183
brink wrote: post #3

I would like to take this moment to thank https://diamondssuck.com/ for preventing me from buying my wife a diamond, and getting her a much prettier moissanite instead. It's been on hn's front page several times.

Fun fact: when my wife and me got married, we went to the flea market and got ourselves two simple silver rings that cost us about $5 each and that was it (we were both kinda broke at the time). 15 years later, we're still wearing the same rings.

This is the way

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#283

Post by jl6 »

Diamonds are a scam and an ethical minefield, but I disagree with the notion that women are brainwashed or shallow for wanting one.

It’s not about the diamond.

It’s about wanting a man with enough resources to waste on a diamond. A diamond’s lack of intrinsic value or utility is a feature. The waste is the point. In a sea of potential mates, finding one who can throw away $3000 as though it were nothing, is a great filter.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#284

Post by pauldenton »

vel0city wrote: post #26
gumby wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The origin of diamond engagement rings was insurance: with the decline of "breach of promise" suits, the fiancée at least had something to sell as a settlement if the fiancé reneged on the promise of marriage. All of that nonsense is long gone; the fetish for engagement rings is just a residual and empty metaphor. Good riddance. My US gf was astonished and dubious that my relatives (in various other countries) didn't…

This was really never true though. Second hand diamonds have been incredibly cheap compared to retail for a long time. Good luck reselling that engagement ring, the pawn shop has a box overflowing with them.

Why don't more people buy diamond rings at pawn shops?

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#285

Post by sneak »

blindhippo wrote: post #274
atleastoptimal wrote: post #261

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't marry anyone whose happiness is dependent on a artificially expensive hard and shiny rock whose prestige was inflated for years by an industry built on slave labor, especially when far less expensive alternatives exist. If she is apprised of the alternatives and still demands "No I want EXPENSIVE shiny thing" then it's cultural shaming factoring into the decision making. You have to reevaluate what she see…

Yikes, that's quite the binary distinction... Surely there is room between those subjective descriptions of people for "hey, I like this thing even though it's irrational, ok?" Let people live their lives and you do you. People aren't a "provider mannequin" just because they like to make their partner happy.

People who make irrational choices about large financial purchases don’t make good long term life partners.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#286

Post by lelanthran »

escapedmoose wrote: post #90
WheelsAtLarge wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you think about it, a ring is just as unneeded as a diamond. The situation is that a diamond ring has become a social norm. I would bet that if you ask most women whether they want a diamond engagement ring or another type of rock, they will pick the diamond ring by an overwhelming majority. Imagine a woman telling others about their engagement and showing a rock other than a diamond. It would be a disappointment…

I and most of my friends (late 20s to early 30s) have non-diamond engagement rings. The consensus is that diamonds are outdated, exploitative, and scammy. I also think they’re not as pretty/eye-catching as my lab-grown emerald.

I thought that lab-grown emeralds were more expensive than diamonds.

If that is true, then buying something more expensive than the usual thing doesn't invalidate any of the arguments against diamond engagement/wedding rings.

If emeralds are cheaper, then while I'd rather have the emerald anyway (it's prettier to my eyes), I can't see any person (male or female) preferring the cheaper jewelry.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#287

Post by tomp »

bcrosby95 wrote: post #219
WheelsAtLarge wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tend to agree. This falls in the same realm as a fancy wedding versus a trip to a courthouse to get married. Some couples are fine with going to a courthouse, others will never accept it even if they have to borrow to accomplish it. When it comes to big weddings there is no such thing as a smart expense. Most couples would be better off by going to a judge to get married but that just can't be accepted by many. Dia…

Your wedding and funeral are the only two times everyone you care about will be in one room. And you only get to experience one of those. It's one of the few smart things to spend money on.

Sounds like a great way to not spend a lot of time talking to any of them.

Precisely why I prefer small intimate events with my friends and don’t want a big event like a wedding.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#288

Post by lelanthran »

xwdv wrote: post #176
pbj1968 wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s the version he gave you. Think critically.

If she had said no for some other reason why would he come up with that diamond story instead?

> If she had said no for some other reason why would he come up with that diamond story instead?

Less damaging to his ego?

A woman rejecting a man because the ring was not good enough portrays the woman poorly.

A woman rejecting a man because she can do better portrays the man poorly.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#289

Post by tomp »

jl6 wrote: post #283

Diamonds are a scam and an ethical minefield, but I disagree with the notion that women are brainwashed or shallow for wanting one. It’s not about the diamond. It’s about wanting a man with enough resources to waste on a diamond. A diamond’s lack of intrinsic value or utility is a feature. The waste is the point. In a sea of potential mates, finding one who can throw away $3000 as though it were nothing, is a great f…

This sounds like a sensible argument unless you think about it for about 5 seconds.

In reality, most of those women absolutely wouldn’t want said man to literally burn $3k or even $20k.

Absolutely 100% brainwashed.

Re: The diamond world takes radical steps to stop a pricing plunge

#290

Post by lelanthran »

bcrosby95 wrote: post #219
WheelsAtLarge wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tend to agree. This falls in the same realm as a fancy wedding versus a trip to a courthouse to get married. Some couples are fine with going to a courthouse, others will never accept it even if they have to borrow to accomplish it. When it comes to big weddings there is no such thing as a smart expense. Most couples would be better off by going to a judge to get married but that just can't be accepted by many. Dia…

Your wedding and funeral are the only two times everyone you care about will be in one room. And you only get to experience one of those. It's one of the few smart things to spend money on.

> Your wedding and funeral are the only two times everyone you care about will be in one room. And you only get to experience one of those.

And yet, during both those times you will have no meaningful engagement with all those people you care about.

If you want your wedding to be a meaningful event, you need to keep it small; the larger a party[1] is, the less engagement the host will get with the average attendee.

[1] You shouldn't forget that a wedding is nothing more than an expensive party that everyone else will forget.

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