20 Lab-Grown Diamond Jewelry Pieces That’ll Last a Lifetime

Over the last few months, I’ve been slowly but surely growing my investment jewelry collection, from tennis bracelets to diamond studs. The sheer number of hours I’ve spent researching and agonizing over the current state of the diamond industry qualifies me as an expert at this point. Since I’m Gen Z, my priorities aren’t always set on dropping three months of rent on a diamond piece, making affordable, under-$1000 options my go-to when I’m picking out diamond jewelry to add to my cart. The biggest bang for my buck I’ve found? Lab-grown diamond jewelry.

Although mined diamonds have long existed, lab-grown diamond earrings, necklaces, and studs have only hit the mass market within the last few years. Prior to that, lab-grown diamonds were only considered legitimate by the GIA (the Gemological Institute of America, which sets the standards all diamonds on the market) from 2007 and onward. There’s a laundry list of pros and cons when it comes to lab-grown diamonds, but as a young shopper without a trust fund to spend who’s prone to losing pieces, I’ve found myself becoming a bigger fan of lab-grown diamonds since beginning my investment-jewelry hunt.