The timeline
Lab-grown diamonds in fine jewellery, year by year.
- 2005–2021Who was the first jewellery brand to use lab-grown diamonds exclusively?
There is no single 'first'. A sourced, category-by-category record of who used lab-grown diamonds first: MiaDonna, Ada, Anabela Chan, Vrai, Courbet, Lark & Berry, Lightbox, Pandora.
- 2005–2015Who sold lab-grown diamonds before they were fashionable?
The bridal e-tailers who sold lab-grown diamonds a decade before luxury noticed: MiaDonna (2005), Brilliant Earth (2012), Ada Diamonds (2015), with sources and caveats.
- 2016–2018What were Diamond Foundry's designer collaborations and did they count as lab-grown brands?
Diamond Foundry's designer capsules 2016–18: Barneys with CVC Stones, Eva Fehren and Nak Armstrong; Twist bridal; Jennifer Fisher. Capsules, not conversions, and why that matters.
- 2014–2017When did Vrai switch to lab-grown diamonds?
Vrai & Oro launched in 2014 with mined diamonds, was bought by Diamond Foundry in November 2016, launched lab-grown bridal in February 2017 and was all-lab-grown by August 2017. Dated sources.
- 2018What happened in 2018, the year lab-grown diamonds went luxury?
Month by month, 2018: Courbet on Place Vendôme, Lark & Berry at Cannes, De Beers' Lightbox announcement on 29 May, Lightbox on sale in September, Kimaï in November. Every date sourced.
- 2017–2020When were lab-grown diamonds first worn on a major red carpet?
A cross-brand record of lab-grown diamonds on red carpets: Atelier Swarovski at the 2017 Oscars and Cannes 2018; Lark & Berry at the Fashion Awards 2018, Met Gala 2019, Tonys 2019, Golden Globes and Oscars 2020.
- 2015–2025Why did De Beers start selling lab-grown diamonds after years of opposing them?
De Beers funded 'Real is Rare' and vowed never to sell synthetics, then launched Lightbox in 2018 at $800 a carat, cut prices in 2024 and closed the brand in 2025. The sourced sequence.
- 2021–2022When did Pandora switch to lab-grown diamonds?
Pandora announced on 4 May 2021 it would stop using mined diamonds, launching Pandora Brilliance in the UK on 6 May 2021 and in the US and Canada in August 2022. The dates, the numbers and the industry backlash.
- 2015–2025How much have lab-grown diamond prices fallen?
Sourced figures on the lab-grown diamond price collapse: wholesale down 90–95% since 2015 (Zimnisky), a one-carat stone from $3,410 to $892, 26% in 2025 alone (Golan), and Lightbox's closure.