MAN-MADE MATERIAL

Most man-made gemstones have the same properties as natural gems, but they are created in a laboratory.  These gems are becoming more common and more popular throughout the jewelry industry.  As gem mines all over the world start to be depleted of their natural rough material the price for this rough is steadily increasing.  Mine owners are constantly trying to find new sources for gem material.

Now you have scientists in laboratories figuring out what properties are in different gemstones. After the mineral compounds have been found they are fused together (this is one of many ways man-made materials are developed).  In the end what you have is a gem material that is the same as its natural counterpart, but a much larger size and almost flawless, because the environment in which it was created was controlled by scientists - not mother nature.

This man-made material has made it to the gemstone market in colors and quality that are almost perfect when compared to different kinds of natural gems. The quality is so high that it takes special meters to determine if the stone is real or man-made.

There is another type of man-made material which has nothing to do with duplicating the correct mineral properties - synthetic.  These go by many different names, but some of the more commonly used materials are Y.A.G (Yttrium Aluminum Garnet), C.Z. (Cubic Zirconia) Cristinite and Corundum.
What makes man-made gems so appealing to customers is that they are durable, available in dozens of unique colors - each with incredible sparkle and shine - and the cost is only pennies per carat. 

Of all the gemstones in the world today approximately 75 to 80% are man-made.

At Ashton Gems, we enjoy cutting man-made stones, but our main business is cutting natural gems.  If you prefer a man-made stone because of color, size or cost savings, we will do our best to find it and cut it to your particular liking.