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Home > Education > Moissanite
Asha� vs Moissanite

That GIA diamond color issue:  Moissanite will commonly grade as J, K, L
color diamond on the GIA scale. By comparison, Asha� grades E on average
(the consensus of five gemologists).  So, if you prefer the look of a low-grade
diamond, you may want to consider moissanite. But, since most people strive
to buy the D,E,F range (colorless) diamonds, you will be disappointed if you
envision moissanite having the color of the most desired diamonds. It is
important to note that the color grades are better in the small, round
moissanite thus, for smaller rounds (.10 - .50ct), we feel Moissanite can be
an option for you to consider.  The round cut, being one designed to sparkle,
helps hide the color problem  However, even in rounds, the larger you go, the
worse it gets as far as how it rates on the color scale. Fancy shapes are poor
in color grade regardless of size.

It is helpful to remember that Moissanite, in its natural state, is a green
stone! The synthetic moissanite manufacturers try to remove the green in
order to get it to appear more diamond-like in color, but they still have a
ways to go!

Photo shot in outdoor, natural daylight. It is also important to note, that in daylight, moissanite tends to 'fluoresce' green. It looks whiter than it appears in this photo under artificial lighting, but customers have told us they used to hide their rings whenever they were outside to avoid this problem.

That fuzzy look:  A gem quality diamond will exhibit a crisp, clear look to it.
This is because its internal crystal structure is face-centered-cubic. By
comparison, Moissanite is hexagonal...which means that it will not handle light
the way a diamond does, and creates what is termed "bi-refringance".
Basically, light waves are split inside the crystal and their velocity becomes
unequal...thus things appear doubled in appearance. The end result is that
Moissanite does not look like a diamond when examined closely. Instead, it
will appear fuzzy or blurry to the eye.

By comparison, Asha� perfectly mimics the diamonds crystal structure
(face-centered-cubic) resulting in a virtually identical look as fine diamond.

Moissanite is not cut like a diamond is:  Because Moissanite has a different
crystal structure, it is cut to a different style than diamond to try and optimize
its particular strengths. However, the different cut is also a key to the
knowledgeable observer that it is not a diamond.

By comparison, Asha� is hand-cut to the highest diamond specifications
possible (Hearts and Arrows), something which very few diamonds in fact will
achieve (but they all strive for).

Compare the cuts under the H&A proportion scope

Moissanite Asha�

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