Brilliant Earth is a retailer of fine jewelry that emphasizes ethical diamond sourcing. In fact, they take their ethical commitment one step farther than the traditional definition of conflict-free diamonds demands by adhering to their own definition of ethical diamonds, which they call “Beyond Conflict-Free.”
In Brilliant Earth’s definition, Beyond Conflict-Free diamonds are diamonds that have been sourced from mines that demonstrate a commitment to the following standards and practices:
- Mined diamonds are not used to finance rebel movements.
- The mine protects its workers against human rights abuses.
- The mining practice does its best to minimize environmental degradation.
- The mine maintains safe and responsible labor practices.
- The mine supports community development.
Why does this matter?
The ethical sourcing of diamonds is essential because, for decades, warlords in some African countries have used diamonds to fund their wars. This is where the terms “blood diamond” and “conflict diamond” come from.
Although most brutal civil wars have now ended, violence in diamond mines is still a big problem. Additionally, many mines abuse their workers, force them to work in unsafe conditions, and mine by means which harm the environment.
Therefore, by only purchasing ethically sourced diamonds, you’re helping to support mines that treat their workers well and investing in sustainable mining means.
How Does Brilliant Earth Ensure Their Diamonds are Responsibly Sourced?
In general, diamond companies follow the Kimberley Process when purchasing diamonds. The Kimberley Process is a trade pact that was designed to prevent companies from buying conflict diamonds. However, Brilliant Earth goes a step further than the Kimberley Process requires by demanding that their suppliers conform to rigid labor and environmental standards.
To ensure that they only sell diamonds that meet their standards, Brilliant Earth employs the following strategies:
- Blockchain technology to trace where diamonds originate from.
- Origin documentation from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
- Lab-created diamonds.
- Recycled precious metals.
The Brilliant Earth Shopping Experience
Although most Brilliant Earth reviews will make mention of their several brick-and-mortar locations, it’s mainly an online retailer. Shopping for diamonds online can be difficult as customers don’t get to see or handle the gems before purchasing. Brilliant Earth circumvents this difficulty through several means:
- Allowing customers to filter diamonds by quality and price.
- Providing 360-degree interactive videos of each diamond.
- Giving customers the origin details of each diamond.
- Allowing customers to customize their ring.
- Offering a 30-day return policy with free FedEx shipping both ways.
Brilliant Earth’s Diamond Selection
Brilliant Earth offers customers a selection of more than 121,000 diamonds. Since this number can be daunting for the average client, Brilliant Earth offers a diamond quiz feature to narrow down a person’s list of diamond options based on their preferences and needs.
Brilliant Earth carries diamonds in the following shapes:
- Round
- Oval
- Pear
- Princess
- Asscher
- Cushion
- Emerald
- Marquise
- Radiant
- Heart
Again, Brilliant Earth recognizes that there are a lot of options for customers, so they offer a virtual try-on feature to help people narrow down the shape they want. This feature works by having the client take a picture of their hand and then superimposing the different settings, metal colors, diamond shape, and size onto the hand.
Customers can also choose a colored diamond in yellow, pink, blue, or black hues.
Lab-Grown Diamonds
The best way to ensure that a diamond is 100% ethical is to choose one that has been grown in a lab.
Lab-grown diamonds are made in a laboratory but are physically identical to earth-created diamonds. In other words, they have the same composition of chemical crystals as natural diamonds and demonstrate the same scintillation and sparkle. Furthermore, they tend to be less expensive than their earth-created counterparts.
The Quality of Brilliant Earth’s Diamonds
How do we know that Brilliant Earth’s diamonds are of good quality? Unfortunately, the only surefire way to determine this is to examine their diamonds in person. Fortunately, Brilliant Earth offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Therefore, if we receive the diamond and it’s not up to snuff, we can return it.
However, Brilliant Earth provides a great deal of information upfront about the quality of their diamonds that the average consumer should find reassuring. For instance, every diamond comes with a list of its specifications and details about its origins. It would be very easy for someone to verify this information once they receive the diamond. Therefore we must give Brilliant Earth the benefit of the doubt and assume what they say about their diamonds is true.
Brilliant Earth also offers customers “Real View” diamond videos. These videos provide a high-definition, 360-degree view of their diamonds. The video shows the facets, angles, color, and inclusions of the diamond. This gives online consumers the best view possible of the diamond they purchase in a virtual medium.
If this isn’t enough to convince the average consumer of the quality of Brilliant Earth’s diamonds, then perhaps the number of reviews from happy customers will serve. Brilliant Earth boasts thousands of reviews from their satisfied clients and several professional reviews as well.
Final Words
In our opinion, Brilliant Earth is a trustworthy and high-quality retailer of ethically sourced diamonds.
While most diamond vendors purchase diamonds in accordance with the Kimberley Process, Brilliant Earth goes a step above in ensuring their diamonds are conflict-free and are mined using fair labor and sound environmental practices.
In terms of quality, Brilliant Earth guarantees that their diamonds are of good quality by providing details about the diamonds’ qualities and cut, as well as their origins. They also offer interactive videos that customers can use to examine the diamonds closely. Furthermore, if someone receives a diamond and it’s not the quality they expect, Brilliant Earth will take it back and provide a full refund. Additionally, the thousands of positive customer reviews also lend credence to the belief in the quality of their diamonds. Therefore, for these reasons, we trust that Brilliant Earth offers good quality diamonds.