He did it:
He bought a ring, got down on one knees, and asked that question.
Did you say yes?
Of course you said yes! Look at that ring!
But now, it’s been a few weeks, a few months, and you can’t help but wonder:
Is my diamond real, or is it fake?
It looks real. You think. But you just want to know. You can rest assured that, if your diamond engagement ring came from Midtown Jewelers, the rock you got is solid.
But if you need to know for sure, there are a few ways to tell if your diamond is real, or if your guy took a more… cost-effective method toward purchasing your engagement ring. (You’ll still love him anyway, right?)
Test your diamond engagement ring with a little hot air.
The fog test is a great way to tell if a diamond is real, or an impostor. With the setting-mounted stone in front of your mouth, blow: Like you would fog a mirror. If the stone fogs, and stays fogged for more than a few seconds, it’s probably not a real diamond. The properties of a real diamond make it so that the heat from your breath disperses immediately, and fog is hard to come by.
Check the setting and mount of your diamond engagement ring.
Speaking from experience, as Reston’s go-to fine jeweler, a real diamond is not going to be set in a cheap metal. If you can find any of the following stamps on your ring (10K, 14K, 18K, 585, 750, 900, 950, PT, Plat), you can be sure that it’s real gold or platinum, and probably a real diamond. But if you find a C.Z. stamp instead, I’m sorry to say your center stone is Cubic Zirconia.
Use a jeweler’s loupe to inspect the diamond in your engagement ring.
Or bring your ring to Midtown Jewelers, and we’ll inspect it for you.
Mined diamonds are naturally imperfect — no two are the same, which is part of what makes them so special and sought-after. These imperfections are called inclusions, and they can be seen with a loupe. Your Reston fine jeweler will inspect the stone for small flecks or minerals or color changes that indicate a real diamond.
Synthetic, lab-grown diamonds are, typically, perfect. Why? Because they’re grown in a sterile lab, instead of in the earth. A stone that appears perfect is probably a fake, but it may not be. The best way to find out if that diamond in your engagement ring is real or fake is to visit Midtown Jewelers in Reston, and have an experienced fine jeweler inspect it for you.