womzilla: (Default)
womzilla ([personal profile] womzilla) wrote2003-08-22 01:26 am

Diamonds are for the near future

This month's Wired has an article on synthetic diamond manufacture which has launched discussion about the soon-to-be-plummetting price of authentic carbon-crystal jewelry. I was talking it over with [livejournal.com profile] nellorat and she said that if I was ever going to get her a wedding ring, I'd better move quickly while it was still possible to waste two months' salary on one. I pointed out that if the cheaper of the two methods described in the article (the Apollo Diamond method, which promises to make diamonds for $5 a carat) takes off, I could buy her a diamond bigger than her hand on my current salary.

Now I'm picturing a diamond wheelbarrow.

(Wired link courtesy of TNH's [livejournal.com profile] makinglight.)

[identity profile] rysmiel.livejournal.com 2003-08-22 02:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Give it another couple of years, and it sounds like you can get her a ring that is one solid diamond. Which would be cool.

(Anonymous) 2003-08-22 02:41 pm (UTC)(link)
Would that be a wheelbarrow full of diamonds, or a wheelbarrow made of diamonds? Personally I'm imagining late night informercials for the Bedazzler, now featuring real diamonds! Little girls and mall rats cheerfully punching diamonds all over their jean jackets. --Sarah

Sigh...

[identity profile] jayspec.livejournal.com 2003-08-22 07:17 pm (UTC)(link)
I only wish I'd known what a horrible, exploiting, price-controlling, racketeering cartel that DeBeers is before I purchased Paula a diamond engagement ring...

A diamond is forever, indeed.