(ANTWERP) – In 2017, in celebration of the 10-year anniversary of Dutch Diamond Group, CEO Ton Janssen and his team created the first full diamond lab-grown ring. This was an innovative and experimental process to show the unique abilities of the DD Group and was not made for commercial use.
The piece is still visible today in the DIVA museum in Antwerp. That piece created so much attention worldwide, that Janssen got an order from the oldest European Jewellery house, Heursel, to make a second version, but this time as a high-end luxury piece of jewelry. It took two attempts and more than 1,600 hours, but they did it again.
From Germany to China: a story of love, passion and a 1.300 hours failed attempt
What proved to be a challenge in 2017, remains a complex operation today. That it wasn’t smooth sailing, was made very clear when his first attempt at reproducing a full diamond ring shattered at Christmas 2021 during the cleaning process – after 1,300 hours of work. After restarting the process, materials were shipped in from Germany and together with the Antwerp company Spitsdiam they started on a new design.
Ton Janssen, CEO Dutch Diamond Group stated: “This ring is an example of how old craftmanship and new technology are combined to make something really unique. The challenge was even greater, because this time it was an order for a real wearable ring customized and tailored to the client. DD Group has a strong reputation on making some of the most difficult products out of lab-grown diamond. Failure was not an option and when you start this, you know it’s a labor of love, passion and a lot of work. ”
It took exceptional talent to get to the end result. The pre-grinding took about 80 hours in-house at DD Group. The facets were done in Belgium and took almost 300 hours. But the hardest part, was by far the inside polishing which took more than 750 hours. A big difference in comparison to an average small diamond where you polish for about 8 hours.
After certification by HRD Antwerp, the ring will go to New York and through Hong Kong to its final destination in China, where the client will be able to wear the first full diamond lab-grown ring. DD Group is not planning to sell this design commercially.
HRD Antwerp graded the ring with the following results: Diamond Type: CVD lab-grown diamond – Carat Weight: 4.04 ct – Shape: Ring – Clarity: VVS2 – Color: D – Polish: EXC – Symmetry: EXC
Ellen Joncheere, CEO HRD Antwerp stated: “We are honored that the Dutch Diamond Group chose to come to HRD Antwerp first to showcase and certify their extraordinary work. Grading jewelry is becoming more and more important and for that reason we are creating a new package of services for jewelry owners. The fact that the DD Group came with a lab-grown jewel to HRD Antwerp is not a coincidence. We worked hard on delivering a consistent service to our clients and our expertise and reputation in grading in lab-grown diamonds is rapidly growing.”
