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When engineer Cristina Montiel and her fiancé, Ruben Yrady, decided they were going to get married, Montiel wanted a ring that conveyed their years-long romance.
The couple met as high-school students in Venezuela, and both studied engineering in college before moving to Miami in the United States in 2019. In December, Yrady proposed to Montiel in Italy with a radiant-cut diamond almost as big as a gummy bear.
“Everyone and all of my girlfriends that see it are in love with it,” said Montiel, 30. “My friends that know me know it’s what I’ve dreamed of, shape-wise. Everyone compliments the ring.”
What most people do not know is that Montiel’s sparkling diamond was made in a laboratory.

In recent years, lab-grown diamonds have gained recognition for their similarity to naturally occurring diamonds – and significantly lower prices.
Montiel bought her ring from Liori Diamonds, a Miami jewellery shop that opened last year and specialises in lab-made diamonds.
“With inflation and where the economy has been, [lab] diamonds have integrated into the market way faster than expected,” said Jesse de Leon, partner at Liori Diamonds. “People are looking for better deals.”
De Leon, 35, was born and raised in Queens, New York. He worked in finance for years, but felt like he was stuck in the city’s “rat race” and pivoted into digital marketing. He worked with home decor brands and slowly got into jewellery after meeting people in that industry, joining Liori Diamonds five years ago.
After visiting Florida over the years and noticing Miami’s culture of glitz and glamour, De Leon saw an opportunity for Liori to expand to South Florida. Liori had begun selling lab-grown diamonds in 2020, and De Leon believed the South Florida store should focus on them.

“When people look to get engaged, there’s a lot of pressure about money you should spend,” he said. “It’s historically very pricey. What lab diamonds have done is allow people to get larger, fancier and shinier rings.”
De Leon believes the increased affordability of lab diamonds appeals to customers navigating a volatile economy. Even celebrities see the appeal: in December, Blood Diamond star Leonardo DiCaprio was seen shopping for his mother’s Christmas present – a necklace of lab-grown diamonds.
There has not always been such a warm response to lab-made diamonds. When De Leon started selling them in 2020 in New York, the responses from customers were mixed, he said.
[The creators] simulate extreme heat and cold. A natural diamond goes through millions of years, whereas this is simulated in months
Jesse de Leon, Liori Diamonds
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) began grading lab-grown diamonds in 2007 but stopped for several years. After the GIA began certifying lab diamonds again in 2019, lab-grown diamonds became more credible than ever before. Lab diamond sales around the world grew from under US$1 billion in 2016.
“It was like rocket fuel,” De Leon said.
The educational component of explaining lab diamonds to customers has made De Leon a professor of sorts. Just as organic diamonds are made of carbon, lab-made diamonds have the exact same chemical make-up.
To differentiate lab-made diamonds from natural ones, factories are supposed to make small incisions in lab-made diamonds to indicate that they were made in a lab.
“[The creators] simulate extreme heat and cold,” he said. “A natural diamond goes through millions of years, whereas this is simulated in months.”
The affordability of lab diamonds is not their only appeal.
The conflict-free aspect of lab diamonds’ production has also captivated buyers like Montiel and Yrady. Illegal diamond mining has led to violence. Montiel said she wanted her engagement ring to reflect her love for Yrady, not make her wonder what country it came from every time she wore it.

“I’ve been touched by [the violence] from a very young age,” she said. “I was always open to lab-grown diamonds. When the time came to get my own engagement ring, the topic hit close to home.”
For De Leon, being able to help customers make their money go further has been rewarding. One customer with nearly a US$20,000 budget was surprised that he could get the type of diamond he wanted for far less than that.
“We got him a deal for a five-carat ring, and he ended up spending US$8,000,” De Leon said. “He got a higher-quality stone for less than half his budget. We do not make anyone do anything, but he thanked us a million times.”
As well as bucking societal norms, buyers of lab diamond are able to put their savings towards other things, such as a holiday with a loved one or a portion of a down payment on a house.
“If you’re ready to start your life with someone you want to be with, money shouldn’t be a hindrance,” De Leon said.

He said he makes more money if he sells natural diamonds, yet he is pushing more of his customers to buy lab diamonds instead. He believes that lab diamonds will become more common in jewellery stores within the next three years.
De Leon likens the current emergence of lab diamonds to when faux-fur coats began trending. “Synthetic fur jackets became wildly popular because they’re the same and more affordable,” he said.
As Montiel prepares for a September wedding, she is happy with her engagement ring. She and her fiancé regularly plan large financial decisions with a spreadsheet. When it came to her ring, they did not worry about resale value.
“It did not mean anything for us to have a natural diamond ring that we would be able to resell,” she said. “An engagement ring is for you to hold onto for the rest of your life.”


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How Blood Diamond star Leonardo DiCaprio bought lab-grown stones for his mother

A laboratory-cut diamond ring from Liori Diamonds. Photo: Instagram/lioridiamonds

Leonardo DiCaprio in a still from Blood Diamonds.The star recently bought a necklace of lab-grown diamonds for his mother for Christmas.

A lab-grown diamond ring from Liori Diamonds-. Photo: Instagram / @lioridiamonds

Jesse De Leon, partner at Liori Diamonds. Photo: Linkedin/Jesse de Leon

A lab-grown diamond ring set in rose gold from Liori Diamonds. Photo: Instagram / @lioridiamonds

Customers can buy a much larger lab-grown diamond for their money than a naturally occurring stone. Photo: Shutterstock

No more new clothes: why a fast-fashion addict gave up shopping

South Korean Lee So-yeon was a fast-fashion shopaholic before she found out how wasteful it was. She has not bought any new clothes for the past six years. Photo: AFP

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Audemars Piguet’s calibre 7138 perpetual calendar movement a ‘game changer’

An Audemars Piguet Royal Oak perpetual calendar watch in sand gold with the calibre 7138 ticking away inside. All date functions can be set through the crown, an innovation in watchmaking. Photo: Audemars Piguet

An Audemars Piguet Royal Oak perpetual calendar watch in sand gold with the calibre 7138 ticking away inside. All date functions can be set through the crown, something totally new in watchmaking. Photo: Audemars Piguet

Audemars Piguet’s Calibre 7138 incorporates all the calendar functions in one layer. Photo: Audemars Piguet

An Audemars Piguet Royal Oak perpetual calendar watch in sand gold with the new calibre 7138 movement. Photo: Audemars Piguet

‘Fear is not an option’ for fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, ‘still kicking’ at 78

Diane von Furstenberg in 2023. The fashion designer reflects on her mother’s experiences in a German concentration camp, creating the wrap dress, and taking back control of her fashion business at the age of 78. Photo: AFP

Naomi Campbell presents a creation from the Diane von Furstenberg spring/summer 2014 collection at New York Fashion Week in 2013. Photo: Reuters

Instagram founder and CEO Kevin Systrom and Diane von Furstenberg at the 2015 CFDA Fashion Awards in New York. Photo: AFP

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Lifestyle

Fashion & Beauty

Cheaper than mined diamonds and with no conflict associations, artificially created stones are becoming more popular. Just ask Leo DiCaprio


Cheaper than mined diamonds and with no conflict associations, artificially created stones are becoming more popular. Just ask Leo DiCaprio.


Sustainability

Green living

Weddings