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What are Swarovski Crystals and Diamonds?
What are Swarovski crystals?
Swarovski has been the premium brand for fine crystal embellishments since 1895. It is recognised for its innovative excellence and for its collaborations with world-class designers and brands from the fashion, jewelry, accessories, interiors and lighting industries.
Available in myriad colors, effects, shapes and sizes, crystals from Swarovski offer designers an unrivaled palette of inspiration born out of a passion for detail and high-precision cutting. These precious ingredients impart a refined glamour to everything they embellish and are produced according to the ground-breaking lead-free Advanced Crystal standard.
What are diamonds?
Diamond is considered the most attractive precious gemstone because of its intrinsic beauty and value. Diamonds are also rare, which accounts for its high price point anywhere you may be in the world. Diamonds are so rare that people even make up stories as to how they can be formed beyond the ambit of natural geologic processes.
There are myths that say that coal gave birth to diamonds. This is largely untrue. It is believe that most, if not all, of the diamonds that have ever been mined on the planet originated from the Earth’s mantle and are delivered to the surface by volcanic activity. It is also believed that diamonds are delivered through kimberlite and lamproite pipes in the mantle of the earth.
Diamond prospectors are always on the lookout for these natural geological vents when they are looking for likely spots to explore for diamonds. Real diamonds also require the most inhospitable and extreme areas in the mantle of the Earth. It is believed that in order for diamonds to form, the “stable zones” for diamond formation need to be about 90 miles down into the Earth surface, with a temperature of about 2000˚ Fahrenheit.
The major requirements for diamond formation cannot be found just anywhere on Earth, so diamond mining and production is limited to a few major countries. Blue diamonds have been found in trenches that are as deep as 400 miles down the Earth’s mantle. It is likely that these blue diamonds were formed along with the oceanic crust as well.
Comparison and Differences: Swarovski Crystals vs Diamonds
Color
Swarovski crystals come in over 84 different colors. Swarvoski crystals come in every gemstone color there is on the planet. You can also consult charts on the available colors of Swarovski crystals when you purchase some online.
Diamonds on the other hand, are often colorless and are valued more by how colorless they are. Colorless diamonds range from light tint to colorless. Colored diamonds exist too, and they can fetch millions of dollars depending on how many carats there are in the first place. Colored diamonds are also exceedingly rare, and they represent less than 1% of all diamonds mined around the world.
Cut
The cut is one of the most important aspects of gemstones, especially if you are investing a lot of money in jewelry.
Swarovski’s unique X-Cut technology is based on scientific principles developed by the Gemological Institute of America for grading diamonds. Advanced optical measurement and high-precision manufacturing deliver premium cuts characterized by the interplay of milti-layered surfaces and angles, with XILION and XIRIUS as the most prominent examples. This, “science of geometry” raises the crystals’ brightness, fire and scintillation to an unmatched level of brilliance.
Diamonds on the other hand, are not always as brilliant as Swarovski crystals because not all diamond manufacturers are the same. Diamonds that are freshly minded don’t look anything like the fancy diamonds in auctions and jewelry houses. Diamonds have to be cut, drilled and polished before they sparkle like magic.
A diamond’s cut is categorized into five: poor, fair, good, very good, excellent and ideal topping the chart. Ideal diamonds are often cut into round diamonds. Very good diamonds are able to reflect most of the light that enters them. Poor and fair diamonds barely reflect light. While the scale of the cut of diamonds affects their value, even the poorly cut ones will remain expensive, in contrast to other kinds of gemstones.
Clarity
Swarovski crystals are meant to have high clarity. Since the materials are softer compared to diamond, it’s easy for machines to create Swarovski crystals that are clear as the sky. Diamonds on the other hand, differ in the way they let in and reflect light. Diamonds have a special scale used to measure their clarity.
The scale begins with included, slightly included, very slightly included, very very slightly included, internally flawless, and finally, flawless. The flawlessness of a diamond is influenced by many factors, including the manufacturer’s guidelines and how the diamond was processed after harvesting. Diamonds that are graded as flawless will continue to exhibit pure structures internally up to ten times the magnification.
Diamond buyers and collectors are known for being particular with their purchases, and they will do anything to detect the smallest flaws in the diamonds being purchased. When a diamond is said to be “eye clean” it means you will not be able to trace any internal blemishes in the diamond by just looking at it. Unless you are a high end diamond collector, there is no need to look for diamonds that are graded “flawless” or “internally flawless”.
Price
Swarovski crystals can cost up to $125 per specimen, while diamonds can at the very least fetch $1000 per piece of jewelry. $125 Swarovski crystals are already on the high end, as some products with the same type of crystal are readily available online for $49 or less if the item is on sale. If you are looking for an accessible luxury jewelry that won’t break the bank, go for Swarovski crystals. However, if you need something that will stand the test of time, like a wedding ring or an engagement ring, you may want to invest diamond jewelry instead.
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