The Look for Less - The Advantages of Cubic Zirconia Rings

Cubic Zirconia rings offer the fashion conscious an affordable alternative to real diamond jewelry. Affordable does not have to mean cheap looking though. Many high quality cubic zirconia rings are completely indistinguishable from the real thing without having the advantage of a jeweler’s trained eye.

Genuine diamonds are increasingly costly and these days they come with some controversy attached to them as well.

The tales of “blood diamonds” and “conflict diamonds” and the misery they caused to both those who mine them and people living in the countries they are mined in are quite harrowing.

Add to that the potential environmental effects of over mining certain areas in a hunt for diamonds and price becomes only one reason people are seeing cubic zirconia rings as a more viable alternative to the “real thing”

Unlike diamonds, cubic zirconia is simulated to be flawless. CZ can be perfectly structured, free of inclusions, totally transparent and possess a brighter fire. Like diamonds though, the cut, size and shape of each stone changes the way that the light refracts off the gem, causing a variation in the brilliance from stone to stone.

Cubic Zirconia (also often called CZ) is completely synthetic but that does not detract from just how beautiful a cubic zirconia ring can look. Cubic Zirconia can be set into any metal that a genuine diamond can, be it precious or semi-precious.

Some people are concerned that a cubic zirconia ring will not wear as well as a diamond one over the years. Although not quite as hard as genuine diamond CZ is still considered by those in gemstone industry to be a very hard gemstone. The average diamond has a hardness rating of 10 on the Mohs scale of hardness, while cubic zirconia usually scores about an 8.5. 

Cubic zirconia can also be created in different colors, mimicking the appearance of emeralds, tanzanite, rubies and many other precious gemstones.

When shopping for cubic zirconia rings the consumer has a lot of options open to them. Many high end designers now incorporate cubic zirconia pieces as a part of their lines and most upscale department stores carry a wide range of them as well, proof that CZ is being “more acceptable” to the fashion conscious.

Like many other items these days a great many different items off CZ jewelry can be purchased online. Some of the offerings available on the Internet are truly stunning and certainly very unique.

If you are buying online though take a few minutes to read the descriptions carefully. What kind of metal is the setting made from? Does the site you are shopping have a good reputation? Do they post buyer feedback about their products? What is their return policy if the ring happens not to fit when it arrives? These are all things you should take into consideration before actually clicking “buy”.

In a time when money is tight for almost everyone finding ways to save without sacrificing too much is high on most people’s agendas. Cubic Zirconia rings offer a way to get the jewelry look you want for a lot less, which makes them an alternative everyone should consider.