Cultured diamonds, anyone?

MANILA, Philippines – The allure of diamonds never fades as these celebrated gems are indeed among nature’s most precious creations. Their magnificent beauty can hold one spellbound. That’s why these luxurious, most sought-after gems have become man’s objects of desire for thousands of years.

Before man even started its love affair with diamonds, these gems have been forming beneath the earth under extreme heat and pressure for more than a billion years. According to the Gemological Institute of America, diamonds first gained their popularity in India where they were gathered from the country’s rivers and streams (just like how diamonds were found in Brazil in the early 1700s). In 1866, explorers discovered a huge diamond mine in Kimberley, South Africa, which broadened the demand for diamonds. This 1866 discovery was also reportedly the birth of the modern diamond market.

Today, with the help of science and technology, diamonds can now be cultured or grown in a laboratory.

In the Philippines, jewelry boutique Golcondia, established in 2014 by Thomas “Tomy” Florencio, who comes from an established family of jewelers, brings a new definition of luxury through its cultured (or lab-grown) diamonds. Golcondia’s cultured diamonds reportedly possesses the same chemical, optical and physical properties as diamonds mined from the earth.

“We call ourselves pioneers in Asia and in the Philippines,” says Golcondia COO Daniela Fenix San Agustin at the Bulong Pulungan forum at Sofitel Philippine Plaza recently. “We are able to acquire these (cultured) diamonds for the Philippine market through the network of the Florencio family. We were able to open the world’s first cultured diamond showroom,” she adds.

Golcondia — whose name was inspired by “Golconda,” which was India’s legendary mining town famous for its perfectly pure diamonds — has access to these cultured diamonds via IIa Technologies, the world’s largest diamond-growing facility based in Singapore. This company employs some top Filipino engineers and scientists. Tomy Florencio and IIa Technologies CEO and co-founder Vishal Mehta forged a friendship when they were classmates at the Gemological Institute of America in the early 2000s.

Every colorless Golcondia cultured diamond is certified Type IIa — the purest and rarest grade of rough diamond. (Less than two percent of the world’s mined diamonds are rare Type IIa.) The company also offers pink and yellow cultured diamonds, which are said to be almost impossible to source from mining companies.

“Growing” these diamonds is closely related to how flowers are grown in greenhouses. Much like flowers are cultivated in a greenhouse, cultured diamonds are grown in replicated conditions that result in the same product. This is made possible by technology breakthroughs combining High Pressure, High Temperature (HPHT) and Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) processes to grow rough diamonds.

A splice of a diamond “seed” is placed on a dish and then put inside a chamber, where it is subjected to tremendous levels of heat and temperature. The seed is left in the chamber for four up to 12 weeks, depending on the preference in size and quality, for the growth process to be completed.

According to Daniela, when the cultured diamonds come out of the chamber, they are rough diamonds similar to what are mined in Africa and Canada. It also goes through a cutting and polishing center in Israel or Antwerp. “Mined diamonds and cultured diamonds in the rough go through the same pipeline, supply chain, from cutting and polishing to grading to certifications to the stores down to the consumers,” Daniela shares.

Because of this process, the price of cultured diamonds is significantly lower than mined diamonds.

According to reports, there has been an increasing demand for lab-grown diamonds because, aside from their lower price compared to mined diamonds, they are environmentally friendly and guaranteed 100-percent conflict-free, which resonates what Golcondia advocates — the environmentally-friendly (minimal environmental impact), conflict-free (Golcondia fully discloses its diamonds are laboratory grown), ethical and socially responsible choice in diamonds.

“It’s not to say that all mined diamonds are bad,” Daniela says. “There are mined diamonds, like those in Canada and Australia, that are conflict-free and authentic. But I believe our product is better because it speaks the language of the times. (Cultured diamonds) are cleaner diamonds not just because of less impurities but because it is really cleaner diamonds, without issues.”

The splendor of a diamond, which has always been a symbol for steadfast love, has stood the test of time, never losing its luster as it encapsulates its owner’s treasured memories.

For Golcondia, as it ushers its consumers to the new age of luxury, “The new age of luxury is upon us and with it comes a higher calling and sense of stewardship.”

(Golcondia is located at Mid Level, Shangri-La Plaza Mall East Wing, Mandaluyong City.)