The Various Diamonds Shapes

Diamonds are a fancy item that is highly demanded by women and men throughout the world. The reason for this is their special shine, the beauty of diamonds shapes, the fact that they preserve their financial value, and the fact that it symbolizes for the owner of the diamond jewelry the fact that he upgraded his social status.

The diamonds that are set in the jewelry are the final product of a raw material that is billions of years old, and which was mined throughout the world from the depths of the earth. After the mining process, the raw diamond is transformed through the polishing process into the sparkling and familiar diamond that we all know, and a few of us hold in our possession a personal collection of jewelries that have diamonds set in them.
   
We can find in the nature the raw diamonds in a variety of shapes. Some of them are long as bottles, and some are squared and in a rhombic shape. The main role of a professional polisher of diamonds is to polish the diamond while losing the least possible portion of the diamond’s weight in the process.

Today, there are advanced computer programs that are able via lasers that scan the raw diamond to find a number of options to cut the diamond according to certain shapes and according to the maximal exploitation of the weight of the diamond, while losing as less as possible weight in the polishing process.

There are many diamond shapes. In this article we shall show the most common ones.

The Round Shape

A round diamond has 57 facets. There are 32 facets in the upper part of the diamond and 25 facets in the lower part of the diamond.
Another name for the round diamond is a brilliant cut diamond. The round shape is the most popular and most sold shape amongst all of the diamond shapes.

About 85% of the shapes of diamonds that are set in jewelry are round diamonds. In the beginning of the 20^th century a Russian scientist named Marcel Tolkowsky discovered that if you polish the diamond according to a certain physical and mathematical model then the coefficient of the light refraction is the largest because the rays of light shall illuminate the diamond in the most optimal way.

The Princess Shape

The princess diamond is the most famous square shaped diamond.
The princess cut diamond combines two different techniques. The first one is the step cut and the second one is the brilliant cut. The combination between the techniques grants the diamond a lot of cuttings in many angles that turn it into a very sparkling diamond. The shape of the princess diamond is the second most popular after the round diamond. The princess diamond is a shiny square with sharp and uncut edges.

The Emerald Shape

The emerald diamond has a rectangular shape. Inside the diamond the flaws are seen more easily, therefore it is recommended to purchase a diamond that has a high level of clarity. The cutting of this diamond is also characterized by steps, and therefore it is also called a step cut. This diamond has 50-58 facets.

Despite the fact that the emerald cut diamond is less shiny and less sparkling than other diamonds, it is very popular due to its unique vintage design. Its emphasis on the clarity and color turn this cut into an ideal one for whoever wants to demonstrate the high quality of the stone.

The Oval Shape

The oval shape is an elongated shape that has 56 facets in different proportions in the parts of the diamond. This shape is actually a combination of a round diamond and an emerald diamond in such a way that combines together the advantages that are in these two separate shapes.

The oval shape was invented in the 1960s by the American diamond corporation “Lazare Kaplan”. The oval shape especially fits women with thin fingers that do not want a wide diamond like the round diamond, but are interested in the shine and glamour of the round cut.

The color and clarity of the diamond are factors that influence the price of this diamond shape, and the ratio between the width and the length of the diamond also has a large influence on its price. The length of the diamond needs to be 1.5 up to 1.7 times larger than the width of the diamond. Every deviation from the customary proportions shall substantially decrease the shine of the diamond and its value.

The Marquise Shape

The marquise is a shape that has existed for many years. It was invented in France and it became very popular over the years. The marquise has an elongated shape that its ideal ratio is 1:2, which means that the length of the diamond has to be two times bigger than its width in order that the diamond would shine in its maximum form.

A diamond that is cut via the marquise cut needs to be sharp, shiny and in the shape of a boat. The elongated and narrow shape of the marquise creates an illusion of a diamond that is bigger than other diamonds that weigh the same but have other shapes. Its fancy and unique shape makes it stand out and be the center of attention. When the marquise shaped diamond is set in a ring, its elongated shape makes the fingers seem thin and long.

The Pear Shape

The diamond that is cut in the shape of a teardrop is also known as a diamond in a “pear” cut. This diamond is exquisite and very popular because of its unique shape, which is perfect for setting such a diamond in a large variety of jewelry, starting from rings and up to pendants and earrings.

The shape of the teardrop has 58 facets throughout its length and its width. The exact ratio between the width and the length of the diamond is 1.6, meaning that the length of the diamond will be 1.6 times larger than the width of the diamond in order to maximize the refraction of the light and the shine of the diamond.

The Radiant Shape

The radiant is a square shaped diamond that can also appear in the shape of a rectangular. There are a number of options for a radiant shape that range between 53 facets and up to 70 facets (depending on how deep the raw diamond was). The corners of the diamond are cut and they are not sharp.

This is a very popular shape when dealing with colorful diamonds, because its unique shape transfers the light and the color in the diamond in a maximum way, and it therefore emphasizes the color of the colorful diamond. The proper ratio in a square shaped radiant diamond us 1.05 in 1.10 and if the radiant diamond has a rectangular shape, then the optimal ratio is 1.20 on 1.50.

The Heart Shape

This is a diamond that is shaped as a heart. The heart shaped diamond has about 58 facets. Its polishing technique is very similar to the polishing technique of the teardrop diamond. The polishing of the heart shaped diamond requires a lot of skill because there are a lot of parameters of symmetry that need to simultaneously co-exist in order that the diamond will reflect the light in a maximum way. This diamond shape is very popular because of its symbolism and because you can set such a diamond in fashionable jewelry such as pendants and earrings.

The choice of a heart shaped diamond is a way to distinguish yourself from those that wear the rest of the popular shapes of diamonds, while maintaining at the same time the shine and fire in the diamond. The heart shaped diamond is very popular in necklaces, promise rings and earrings. Traditionally, the heart shaped diamond is not popular in engagement rings, and it is usually given in less formal events such as birthdays, anniversaries and on Valentine’s Day.

The Cushion Shape

The cushion cut diamond is of a rectangular or square shape. It is a quite old cutting form in the world of diamonds, which exists nowadays for more than 150 years. This is a polishing that became very popular in the recent years, especially in the American market because this shape combines a lot of techniques that complement each other into a very impressive final result.

Like the radiant shape diamond, the cushion shaped diamond upgrades colorful diamonds because of the concentration of the color that is evenly spread and emphasizes the color. The cushion is a demanded and very popular shape of diamond in the design of vintage engagement rings.

The cushion diamond is not filled with shine and fire like the other diamonds, but it has a wonderful, romantic and classic look, and it is definitely prominent amongst all of the round diamonds. The standard number of facets in a cushion diamond is 58.

The standard of cutting in a cushion diamond is diversified and it highly depends on the personal taste of a person. Therefore, you can easily find squared or elongated cushion diamonds, with tables of different shapes.

Conclusion

You can see in the trend that exists in the recent years in the jewelry market that the consumers are becoming less traditional and they are willing to consider purchasing an engagement ring or jewelry that the diamond that is set in it has a shape that is different from the round popular cut.

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and contact us.