Laboratory-grown diamonds are booming in popularity, as newlyweds opt for a more sustainable alternative to mined gems. Some jewellers say interest has grown by more than 2,000 per cent in five years, as people look for more affordable options.
Physically and chemically identical to their natural counterpart, but costing up to 85 per cent less, lab-grown diamonds are increasingly being seen as the better-value alternative. And a study of 1,500 would-be husbands and wives found 70 per cent would be willing to opt for a lab-grown alternative.
Value for money (55 per cent), and sustainability (43 per cent), are the main reasons they'd make the switch to a diamond created in a laboratory. But 69 per cent admitted they wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two types of gems.
