About Charles and Colvard

Charles and Colvard are the exclusive creators of the Moissanite jewels making waves in the jewelry industry. Celebrities such as Vivica Fox, Kiko Elsworth, the members of (the former group) Destiny's Child, and Marc Anthony are buying and wearing moissanite jewelry.

Who is Charles and Colvard? They are the exclusive worldwide marketer and distributor of moissanite. They have the proprietary patents for the manufacturing process as well as the usage of the jewels. It is in their labs that the jewels are created under specific conditions. Since 1955 they’ve been combining technology and engineering with artisan skill to produce the bold and beautiful stones.

Officially debuted in 1998 under Charles and Colvard, it was back in the 1980’s that Cree, Inc., developed the proprietary process for producing moissanite. It wasn’t until 1995 that a gem cutter suggested that the stones could be faceted into a unique and beautiful jewel. In that same year, the company incorporated and conducted extensive research to enhance and generate the look that Charles and Colvard are now famous for.

As of Spring 2000, Charles and Colvard started to distribute the moissanite jewels to select independent jewelers. Doing this has allowed them make the jewels more readily available to consumers.

Natural moissanite was originally discovered in 1893 by French scientist Dr. Henri Moissan, for whom the jewel was named. He discovered the gem fragments in a meteor crater in Canyon Diablo, Arizona. Dr. Moissan concluded that the material was a new mineral called silicon carbide.

The Sarah Ferguson Foundation

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, has dedicated a great deal of efforts for charitable causes. Some groups she has worked with included the Motor Neurone Disease Association, SOS Children’s Villages, and the Ronald McDonald House Charities. Sarah’s Foundation is the vehicle through which she supports all of her charities. Children in Crisis (based in London), and Chances for Children (based in New York) are a primary part of The Sarah Ferguson Foundation.

The Sarah Ferguson Foundation helps children’s charities all over the world. The charities are specifically aimed at caring for children whose dire living conditions are either neglected or simply ignored. Care and consideration is given to the cultural diversities that define the organizations that provide aid to the children.

In 1993, The Duchess of York first founded Children in Crisis which assists disadvantaged children. It also provides education and trauma counseling as well as food and medicine. It’s American counterpart, Chances for Children, was founded in 1994 and is aimed at provided help for children in America that are overlooked, neglected and abused. It also provides aid to children affected by HIV and AIDS.

A portion of the proceeds from Sarah’s Jewelry goes to the funding of these charities. The Sarah’s Moissanite collection offers a wide selection of brilliant Moissanite rings, earrings, pendants, necklaces and bracelets. The pieces sell at Macy’s, Lord and Taylor, and Bielk’s. For more information about the Sarah Ferguson Foundation and Moissanite jewelry, please visit Sara’s Jewelry website.

How Moissanite is Set Apart from Diamonds

Moissanite is a fine gem that provides more brilliance and fire than a diamond. Although comparisons to diamonds are made all the time, it is important to note that moissanite is not fake or synthetic. Placed side by side with a diamond, it could be compared to diamonds of the I-J color range. However, when placed in a setting, the moissanite will appear brighter because of its “intense scintillation”.

In terms of handling, moissanite should be cared for the same as any other gem stone. Like diamonds, they can be cleaned with steam, solution or ultrasonic cleaners. Since the physical qualities are different from that of a diamond, it is graded differently. Among the differences in physical qualities is its weight. A moissanite jewel weighs slightly less than a diamond. It is typically priced based on the cost of the gold or platinum and its setting in addition to the cost of the jewel.

Given its unique qualities, moissanite is inspected on a specific scale. All moissanite jewels that are sold are of “very good” quality so there would be little to no variances in color or imperfect stones. Even trained jewelers are unable to tell the difference between a moissanite and a diamond. Fortunately, there’s a device available (Charles & Colvard's patented Tester Model 590) that distinguishes between the two.

What Is Moissanite?

Moissanite is a rare mineral that was discovered in 1893 by Nobel prize winning scientist, Dr. Henri Moissan. Found in a meteorite, Dr. Moissan originally thought he had found diamonds in space, but instead, he had found a unique, brilliant jewel. Moissanite is so rare, it would be almost impossible to make even a single pair of stud earrings. However, Charles & Colvard has spent 100 years and over 40 million dollars to develop patented groundbreaking technology for creating large Moissanite jewels by growing the jewel from a "seed" in a high-tech crystal grower.

Moissanite is has a hardness of 9.25 on the Mohs scale. The only jewel harder than Moissanite is a diamond, which has a 10 on the Mohs scale, making Moissanite is harder than a Ruby or Sapphire. Some fine jewelers cannot tell the difference between moissanite and diamonds, because of the fire, brilliance and luster of Moissanite is comparable to the finest diamonds.