With lab created gemstones, should one go for read gold or some cheaper metal jewelry?

I guess that depends on what kind of gemstone you are buying. If you buy expensive types of gemstones, lab or real, I think precious metal will do the gems justice. If you buy less expensive ones, you can go for gold or silver plated, copper or pewter. Exept from that it really is a matter of what kind of jewelry you want to make. You can make very elegant jewelry with less expensive gemstones and use precious metals. It is the overall result and the hours and soul you put into a jewelry that desides what you should use. If you spend hours and hours on a piece of jewelry, give it the real stuff. Don't waste so much time and effort on something with less value.

I hope this made sence for you, and answered your question. All the best!

Anne Cecilie

In most jewellery stores, lab created stones are usually limited to the higher value gems such as diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds and they are therefore placed into gold settings. My problem with this is that the cost is still high and they often just term them as "emerald" rather than "lab created emerald", so the customer isn't always clearly informed as to their purchase.

If you ARE informed and are happy to purchase a synthetic stone, then the metal choice is up to you. Some people have warm skin tones and look better in gold, others look better in silver/platinum/titanium etc. All of these precious metals (including silver) are strong and the stone is quite safe if the setting is made well, so don't be concerned about that side of things.