I’ve been engaged for 4 months, showed my ring to dozens of people, and that nightmare scenario that has played out in my mind many times has never happened. Not even once.

My fiancé and I chose a moissanite stone for my engagement ring and it is among the best decisions we have ever made.

Why I chose a diamond alternative for my engagement ring?

Two years into dating I knew my fiancé was the one. Like many girls, I started dreaming about what type of engagement ring I wanted.

I played around on sites that allow you to custom design your engagement ring.

I liked jeweler’s Facebook pages in order to enter contests to win expensive engagement rings. (Facebook awkwardly started displaying that I liked those pages to my friends, who then messaged me about it. Thanks, Facebook!)

Given my success with travel rewards and my optimism about life hacking, I was convinced that there was a way to hack the engagement ring as well.

I.  What is moissanite?

Moissanite, or natural silicon carbide, was discovered over a century ago when Nobel prize-winning French chemist, Dr. Henri Moisson found tiny particles of the substance at the site of a massive meteorite strike in Arizona.

The stone was named moissanite in his honor.  Years later, scientists created the gemstone that we know as moissanite today.

II.  What does moissanite look like?

Although moissanite may look like a diamond, its higher rate of refraction and dispersion make it much sparklier than a diamond. It actually bends light more than twice as much.

The brilliance and fire make moissanite stones stand out compared to other gemstones.

III.  How does moissanite compare to a diamond?

First, Moissanite is much less expensive than a diamond.  A 1ct moissanite goes for $300 retail whereas a 1ct diamond could run anywhere from $4,000 to $25,000 depending on cut, color, and clarity.

Secondly, moissanite is more refractive than a diamond as mentioned above, which gives it more fire and sparkle.

Third, moissanite is not as hard as a diamond (about 9 to 10 on the mohr scale) but the difference is negligible. I’ve banged mine against hard surfaces many times and it’s fine.

Like diamonds, moissanites can range from colorless to some color and you pay more as you get closer to colorless – although the cost for a colorless moissanite is much less than the highest grade of diamond comparatively.