Jewelry & Watches

Genuine diamond jewelry is being given a good chase by cubic zirconia jewelry. Cubic zirconia or CZ, looks just like real diamond and comes at anything between a tenth and a quarter of the price of a real diamond. Gemstone purists sneer at the cubic zirconia and call it “fake diamond”. Apart from the fact that a cubic zirconia is not a diamond, cubic zirconia commands a very large share of the jewelry market and is categorized as a semiprecious gemstone.

Calling it an imitation diamond is more appropriate. A number of diamond alternatives do exist and are regularly used in jewelry. Cubic zirconia happens to be the best of the lot. It matches the qualities of a diamond, in brilliance, durability, and hardness, more closely than the other alternatives.

A diamond is a diamond, no two ways about it. A diamond enjoys a unique intrinsic reputation and nothing can take its place. That said, if you are not primarily interested in its intrinsic worth but are interested in wearing brilliantly beautiful jewelry, then cubic zirconia is the logical choice. All the show of a diamond at less than half the price of a real diamond is a jewelry buyer’s dream bargain. The actual price can go far below the half price level, depending on the quality of the cubic zirconia, its size, cut and setting.

If you think that cubic zirconia and genuine diamond can be told apart by the casual onlooker, then think again. Cubic zirconia is slightly more colored than the absolutely transparent diamond, and is slightly less brilliant. Even experts can be taken in by the looks of cubic zirconia. The two gemstones will have to be juxtaposed for the diamond expert to tell the difference visually. More telling is the difference in weight by size, cubic zirconia being somewhat less than twice the weight of a diamond. The other difference is in hardness, with cubic zirconia being more brittle than diamond.

It is a fact that cubic zirconia is perfect. It has no flaws, no defects. This is because it is created under stringently controlled conditions, in high tech manufacturing facilities. Regular diamond has its share of flaws and defects, from those which are virtually undetectable to the ones that make the diamond worth less than a good quality cubic zirconia of comparable size.

The cubic zirconia is noteworthy for its close visual similarity with diamond. What is less known is that the similarity doesn’t end there. Cubic zirconia has all the qualities that are sought after in a diamond – brilliance, clarity, durability, and hardness. The fact that cubic zirconia has all these qualities at an affordable price, makes cubic zirconia jewelry ideal for general wear, where the intrinsic value of the gemstone is not important.

With cubic zirconia jewelry you can afford to look elegantly glamorous for any occasion, from the annual office social to celebrity shows. You can get very fine stones set in a brooch to larger sized singletons for rings and pendants. Cubic zirconia jewelry will suit any outfit you choose to wear.

Cubic zirconia can be worked into any form of dress jewelry. It takes the same cut and shape of a genuine diamond. Exquisite designs can be crafted using cubic zirconia. Why hold yourself back? Do what the world is doing, use cubic zirconia and set the room ablaze!

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