Diamond Cut
What is a diamond cut?
Diamond cut refers to how well a diamond is cut and polished. The best diamond cut is perfectly proportioned, symmetrical and beautifully polished so that the highest amount of light can enter and reflect out of the stone. A well-cut diamond will appear sparkly and bright, while a poor-cut diamond will appear dull and lack-lustre. When creating diamonds, symmetry is an incredibly important factor in making sure the diamond delivers the best return for maximum light reflection (or in less fancy terms, sparkle).
How do you cut diamonds?
Diamonds are cut with precision and skill by a qualified diamond expert. The cutting process consists of five parts: planning, cleaving, bruting, polishing and inspecting. After cutting, the diamond is sent for assessment and graded on the 4Cs (including cut).
What is the difference between diamond cut and diamond shape?
Contrary to popular belief, there is a difference between diamond cut and diamond shape. Diamond cut refers to how a diamond is cut and polished so that its facets can absorb and reflect light. A diamond shape is a geometric shape the diamond is cut into and describes its silhouette.
Types of diamond cuts
Each diamond is assessed and graded on its cut quality - otherwise known as the diamond cut grade. A diamond cut grade is assessed on several factors such as brilliance, symmetry, polish and fire and ranges from excellent to poor. The higher the cut quality, the more sparkle the diamond is likely to have, so you should consider the cut when buying a diamond.
Excellent Cut Diamond
An excellent cut diamond is the best diamond cut and also the most beautiful. It means that it is perfectly proportional and has the best brilliance, symmetry, polish and fire. An excellent or ideal cut diamond reflects almost all the light that enters it, so it sparkles beautifully.
Very Good Cut Diamond
A very good cut diamond is almost the same compared to an excellent cut diamond. It still enables most of the light that enters it to reflect but attracts a lower price.
Good Cut Diamond
A good cut diamond reflects a substantial amount of light that enters it. The diamond does not have the same amount of fire or brilliance that an excellent cut or very good cut diamond has, but it is a more affordable choice for those on a budget.
Fair Cut Diamond
A fair cut diamond typically reflects a small portion of light. For those looking to maximise the carat weight over other things, a fair cut diamond may be the only choice for a higher carat weight on a budget.
Poor Cut Diamond
A poor cut diamond is a diamond that has been cut too deep or too shallow. When this occurs, the diamond will lose significant amounts of light. The only benefit of this type of diamond is the price. A diamond that is a poor cut will be significantly lower in price than any other diamond cut grade while also lacking sparkle.
Diamond cut chart
Ever thought about how are diamonds cut to make jewels? Our diamond cut chart illustrates how light passes through different types of cuts. As you can see here, cut quality directly impacts how a diamond sparkles due to the way light enters and reflects from the stone.
Ideal
Deep
Shallow
FAQs
A fancy shaped diamond refers to a diamond which isn’t round. The GIA (Gemological Institute of America) does not currently offer a cut grade for fancy shaped diamonds. However, research is currently underway in making this happen in the future.
Known for being the most popular of cuts, a round brilliant diamond is the most expensive as it requires the most precision, craftsmanship and raw material to manufacture. When a round diamond is cut, a large amount of the rough stone is lost during the cutting process, therefore making it a more expensive cut.
Coming in as the most popular diamond cut is round brilliant. With a whopping 57-58 facets, its brilliance really does make it stand out by miles amongst the heavily saturated diamond crowd. A round brilliant cut will also sit perfectly in any setting, whilst giving ultimate eye-catching sparkle.
Diamond price varies on many factors with cuts playing a large part. The two cheapest cuts of diamonds are emerald and asscher diamonds because they are step-cut, meaning there is less wastage when these diamonds are cut from the rough stone. This doesn’t mean to say that an emerald or asscher diamond is any less beautiful though – these radiant designs are incredibly unique and known for their charming look and feel.
Coming in top spot for the diamond with the most sparkle factor is a round cut diamond. A standard sized round cut diamond contains 57 or 58 facets, which allows the light to enter the diamond to effortlessly reflect off each facet, creating the most incredible sparkle. If you’re looking for a diamond that hits the top spot for sparkle-factor, a round cut diamond is always the best choice.
There are many factors that determine the size of your diamond, and there are some diamond cuts that will certainly appear larger than others to the naked eye. Often the cuts that carry their weight at the top will inevitably look larger per carat in comparison to other shapes where the weight is more equally distributed. So, if you are looking for a cut that looks the biggest, we recommend picking one of the more elongated shapes and go for a marquise, pear or oval cut diamond.