I was excited to make my first Moissanite purchase after seeing a 1 ct stone at a local jeweler. It was beautiful, clear, sparkly so I was pretty confident in my choice of Moissanite.

After much searching on sites in Canada and the U.S. I decided to purchase a pair of 3/4 ct tw 14k yellow gold four-prong earrings with screw backs from MoissaniteDiamond.com.

They're awful! Next to my engagement ring (I colour, VVS1) it is dull, cloudy, and they give off a strong green tint depending on the light. I can't even return them because in the fine print it says they have to be returned with the security tag intact (that was removed so I could try on the earrings – I threw it out not realizing I needed it to get my money back).

So now I'm stuck with a pair of earrings that are worse than the cheapest CZ earrings you can buy from the local drug store and I'm out of pocket for almost $300!!!

I really am intrigued by Asha diamonds but after this moissanite fiasco I'm scared.

I think I may just stick with real diamonds (even though they are over priced). I just wanted to share my story – if you're contemplating Moissanite be VERY VERY careful and make sure you can return the product if you're not happy. Read the fine print to find out what hoops you have to jump through to get your money back too.

Hi Vanillabeanz. I'm sorry to hear about your experience with moissanite. It sounds like you got a pretty old stone, and perhaps the first time you saw the stone was in really bad lighting. Moissanite is much better than that now, and even in poor lighting all you can see is a little tint of yellow. It no longer has the green or cloudy look you're describing.

I understand why you may want to stick with diamonds, but don't forget that first moissanite you saw in the jewelry store. Most moissanite on the market is like that rather than the stones you got in your earrings. And I can't really comment on the earrings you purchased because they didn't come from our company, but we also Moissanite, and it doesn't look like what you describe.
Here are some pics of a pair of our earrings taken in various lighting: outside in sunlight, outside shadow, inside under awful flourescent lighting and inside in a light box (white lighting).

Outdoor sunlight:


Outdoor Shade:


Inside lightbox:


Inside under florescent office lighting:

Do you have to pay a lot to get the "good quality" moissanites? The 1 ct. I saw in the store was priced at $800 a carat. While that is considerably cheaper than a 1 ct diamond, I don't want to break the bank buying a simulated diamond. It would be better to put that $800 towards the real deal even if it can't but a larger stone. At least it's $800 worth of diamond.

Which leads me to ask, does moisannite hold any resale value? I know diamonds drop quite a bit on the secondary market. How does moissanite hold up?

Going back to the earrings, they appear green in almost any lighting and they sure don't sparkle. My diamond out sparkles them in any lighting.

That's impressive. They certainly don't appear cloudy or coloured. I should try and take pictures of the earrings I have. I could almost cry when I think I've thrown away that much money.

aww that stinks so much! I avoided moissanite for the longest time because of the crap I saw at jcpenney, I really couldn't understand what people were talking about! I just got a moissanite ring of the bistro here and it does have a slight yellow to it, it is beautiful, like an MNO colored diamond. It is very clear and sparkles more than my real diamonds in the sun. I love it now, they same look as a diamond, to me anyways, extra blinding sparkle in the sun, just as hard, and way cheaper. I'm getting an enhanced moissanite ring soon.

No, you don't have to pay more for the higher qality moissanite. Most stores and websties don't even cary them anymore. The reason your store was charging so much more than a website is because jewelry stores tend to have higher mark-ups.

Moissanite does hold it's value very well. A lot of people know what moissanite is and so it's pretty easy to sell if you need to. Individuals usually have a lot of success on eBay and Craigslist.

I forgot to answer your question about durability. Moissanite is the second hardest gemstone, next to diamond. Nothing else is as hard including sapphires, so it will hold up very well. It's very hard to scratch or break. It takes a very good hit at exactly the right place to break a moissanite. It has been done before, but not often. We hardly ever have customers who break their stones.

What is an enhanced moissanite and does it cost more?

These are the earrings I thought I was buying:

http://www.moissanitediamond.com/Moissanite-14k-Yellow-Gold-Four-Prong-Stud-Earrings.aspx

I'll post pictures of the real deal tonight. Interestingly - the negative review I submitted is not appearing on the site and they never emailed me back when I expressed my dissatisfaction to them.

I think they treat it so there is no yellow or green hue. It's pricey but nothing like a diamond price.