Lightbox to Provide Basic Grading Info on its Lab-Grown Diamonds
February 23, 20
(IDEX Online) - Lightbox is to provide limited grading information with its mass-produced lab-grown diamonds. The De Beers lab-grown brand decided not to grade its diamond when it launched in September 2018. But CEO Steve Coe says the company is now responding to consumer feedback by providing basic grading information. All LGD stones above 0.2 carats will come with minimum specifications for cut, color, clarity and carat weight. Lightbox will use general ranges rather than specific grades, to maintain a distinction between lab-grown and its natural mined diamonds. Instead of using the standard GIA color and clarity scales, it will specify minimum qualities - colour between G and J; clarity VS or better; cut Very Good. It won't grade individual stones. Lightbox will retain its across-the-board pricing structure of $800 for one carat, £$400 for a half and $200 for a quarter. It says all stones undergo a rigorous quality-control process, so they don't require detailed reports like mined diamonds. "Every white Lightbox lab-grown diamond has been measured as near colorless," says the company's website. "This is technically defined at between G and J. Every white Lightbox lab-grown diamond has been measured as VS or better. Every Lightbox lab-grown diamond has been measured as 'Very Good'."