Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

bbc.co.uk

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 686 posts

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#31

Post by chrisseaton »

croo wrote: post #29
chrisseaton wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> a gold or silver ring is acceptable As in not having a ring is 'unacceptable' somehow then?

Not op, but yes. Engagement traditionally is giving a ring to your desired future wife. I don't understand your point. Of course you can ignore tradition but then why marry in the first place?

I mean who is it unacceptable to? Who complains if you don't have a ring and what do they do about it?

If someone told me they thought it was unacceptable that I didn't have a ring I'd laugh at them.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#32

Post by Mauricebranagh »

La1n wrote: post #2

Biggest jeweller is not biggest diamond seller in this case. Still this seems like a great initiative. >Although diamonds have traditionally only been a very small share of the 100 million pieces Pandora sells worldwide each year, Mr Lacik believes that will be boosted by lower prices.

Yeh its more the Ratner end of the market - not Hatton Garden

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#33

Post by djdjdjdjdj »

TekMol wrote: post #15
cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

Honest question: Why marry in the first place? Why practice a personal relationship in a way others have designed? Isn't it somewhat contrary to the theme of Hacker News? To me, the term "hacking" describes the habit of doing things in a more interesting/efficient/fun way than how they are usually done.

You have to if you want to be close to your partner if something happens and they are in the hospital.

For me it was a great way to reproduce an image I liked very much, an old image of my baptism/christianing (I'm no longer part of that Organisation) where all my family was together.

We invited them all and we're planning things to make sure it is a great experience for our guests and based on the feedback it worked out.

It should be possible to do this without a crazy event but it is easier with something people know.

Also I was sick to my stomach for a while week and very nervous on the wedding day. I do assume that this experience is unique in itself but I'm not sure how significant this is in a relationship.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#34

Post by brobdingnagians »

cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

Lab grown diamond was much cheaper for the size; looks just as great; I have no emotional attachment to dirt grown or lab grown. I think diamonds are kind of ridiculous since they were a PR campaign by De Beers, but they are quite beautiful, and lab diamonds are high quality for cheap. Social judgement is a real thing and it is nice to just sidestep it with a "good enough diamond" (I think social judgment of diamonds is completely ridiculous, that is the one reason why I considered just not getting a diamond at all so I wasn't in that game). But it is nice to never even have to think about it and people tend to just say "oh that's a nice diamond" (I went for an average "nice" size for my area, not gaudy) and move on, and if it was lost or stolen, I could actually afford to buy another one...

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#35

Post by Nursie »

Good for them. It's literally the same material, and we can now use scientific and engineering advances to remove the need for people to toil and die underground to get them.

Hopefully the process is more environmentally friendly too.

They are real diamonds.

I find it hi-goddamned-larious that the moment these became viable, the industry switched from "Diamond purity is the be-all and end-all and you must have the clearest, most pure" to "Oh, well of course it's all about having the right impurities to increase sparkle and character, lab-grown diamonds don't have character"

Just like with sapphires, if we're not there already I'm sure it won't be long before exactly the right type and number of impurities or faults can be introduced to mimic any natural diamond.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#37

Post by ihalip »

cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

I opted for a moissanite engagement ring from Charles & Colvard. There really isn't any perceivable difference between moissanite and diamond, except the light reflected by moissanite seems a bit more colourful.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#38

Post by cwingrav »

cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

My SO did not want a traditional diamond gold engagement ring due to normative ways, consumption, global diamond trade, etc. but it’s hard to not buy such a thing number one, and two, u have to wear it each day. I bought a polar bear diamond (Canadian) which in addition to being mined in a friendly way (environment, labor, etc), uses a cut that hides its size. It’s brilliant in the light and sparkles like no other. Then I chose platinum as it isn’t as showy as gold and doesn’t corrode like silver. So overall, it’s an amazing ring to look at, isn’t traditional but so too hides its cost. Rings are for spending time thinking about your partner and what they want to be shackled with. She really liked it, even though she never would have expected it to look like what it is.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#39

Post by trapexit »

TekMol wrote: post #15
cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

Honest question: Why marry in the first place? Why practice a personal relationship in a way others have designed? Isn't it somewhat contrary to the theme of Hacker News? To me, the term "hacking" describes the habit of doing things in a more interesting/efficient/fun way than how they are usually done.

This is kind of a lazyweb question because the "why marriage?" question has been discussed many times before on HN. https://www.google.com/search?q=marriage+site%3Anews.ycombin...

Beyond the social convention that "it's the thing to do" at a certain point in a relationship, some reasons are:

- Marriage provides financial assurance for a spouse who will defer their career to raise children.

- Some friends and family (particularly those of the spouse) will absolutely treat you differently when you're married to someone versus in a long-term unmarried relationship.

- Depending on the jurisdiction, spouses have certain rights that unmarried partners do not, e.g. with regards to the legal system and hospital visitation. I know a couple that got married because one of them was an activist/journalist and frequently attended protests in which he was at risk of arrest.

- In some circumstances, it makes it easier to purchase a home together and make other large joint financial investments.

- Under some tax regimes, you pay lower taxes when married.

- U.S. citizens living abroad in a low-tax country with a foreign spouse can engage in advantageous tax planning.

Re: Pandora says laboratory-made diamonds are forever

#40

Post by Jiejeing »

cyberpunk wrote: post #3

Married members of HN, what did you do if you think diamonds are utterly ridiclious however due to societal constraints some kind of ring is required for your SO?

I am curious, is the diamond thing a US-centric trope? I do not know anyone here who genuinely cares about that sort of thing, generally people want some discreet metal ring. It may be a precious ore to symbolize the commitment but otherwise I have not seen anything outlandish among my friends or family members who got married.
Post reply on HN