Diamond Cuts
Discover how the diamond’s cut affects its overall appearance, including its sparkle, fire, and brilliance.
Shop Natural Diamonds
Shop Lab Grown Diamonds
arrow

Select a Shape

arrow

Cut

arrow

Color

arrow

Clarity

arrow

Carat

What is the point of the diamond's cut?

When looking for a diamond, the cut should be one of the most important factors to consider. The balance, symmetry, and polish achieved by the diamond cutter are what are referred to as the ``cut`` rather than the diamond's shape. The overall beauty of a diamond is directly related to the quality of the diamond's cut. The more light a diamond can reflect and refract, the better it has been cut. Using modern diamond cutting techniques, experts have learned how light travels through diamonds and have established a set of specific proportions and angles that best maximize the diamond's inner brilliance.

It looks like an octahedron of two square pyramids before they've been worked. The natural shape and polish of a point-cut diamond remain intact. Despite its beauty, this cut fails to maximize the light's impact on the stone.

The table, width, and depth of a diamond all play a role in how well it reflects light. According to the diameter of a diamond, the size and depth of the table can have a significant impact on light return. At the same time, the correct width ensures that light is reflected at the critical refraction point.

Most of the light entering a well-cut diamond design exits back through its top, perfectly balancing white light (brilliance) and intense flashes of colorful fire (dispersion).

A diamond cut that is even a few degrees out of proportion, on the other hand, can tunnel light out of the bottom of the diamond rather than redirect it back up towards the table, which is called light leakage. When a diamond is exposed to light, it loses its brilliance and its sparkle is obscured by a dark center.

How Are Diamond Cuts Graded?

To determine a diamond's cut grade, the Gemology Institute of America (GIA) spent 15 years researching how light interacts with round brilliant cut stones. They are: brightness, dispersion, scintillation, ratio of weight, durability, polish and symmetry, to name just a few.

Grades for each factor in the diamond's quality are assigned based on the following criteria: Excellent, Very Good; Good; Fair; or Poor. Finally, the lowest assessment is used to determine the final grade. It would be ``Fair`` if, for example, a diamond's lowest score in durability was ``Fair,`` despite the fact that it scored ``Very Good`` in all of its other components.

As long as the symmetry and polish are ``Very Good,`` a diamond can still be considered ``Super Ideal.`` According to the GIA, diamonds that have been rated ``Excellent`` by the organization will be listed as ``Ideal`` or ``Super Ideal.``

In order to distinguish between Ideal and Super Ideal, Elleroses uses the GIA's grading scale and specific diamond characteristics like polish and symmetry. A diamond's cut grade is not always available from a grading laboratory, so Elleroses combines the characteristics above, as well as depth, table, secondary measurements, and subjective factors, to determine the difference between diamond cuts.

Different Types Of Diamond Cuts

Super Ideal Diamond Cut

If you are looking for a diamond with maximum brilliance, dispersion and scintillation, look no further than the Super Ideal diamond cut. In its class, this grade demonstrates the highest level of craftsmanship and quality.

Ideal Diamond Cut

A diamond with an Ideal rating appears to the untrained eye to be just as dazzling and flaming as a Super Ideal diamond. Although ideal diamonds may have a lesser clarity or color grade, this is more than likely due to a small degree of light leakage. Because it has a similar appearance to Super Ideal diamonds, it is a popular choice for engagement rings.

Very Good Diamond Cut

Because most of the light entering the table refracts in the predicted way, a Very Good cut diamond will nonetheless present with great light return and exceptional brilliance. The proportions of a Very Good cut diamond frequently deviate from the proper weight-to-size ratio or jeopardize the facet equilibrium. This is a popular diamond cut because it reflects almost the same amount of light while costing significantly less.

Good Diamond Cut

Diamonds with a good cut are suitable for larger carats because they retain their weight while still reflecting a lot of light. A diamond of this grade will have only minor flaws in its proportions, allowing it to reflect the bulk of light. Good diamonds will not be as dazzling as comparable gems of a higher grade because the ratios will leave more dark gaps in the stone, leading it to appear duller.

Fair Diamond Cut

The lack of symmetry in the proportions of the diamond's light and dark areas means that a diamond graded Fair will have significantly reduced fire and scintillation. With light leaking through the pavilion, the brilliance will also be affected. The carat weight of a fair diamond is likely to be lower, making it a better choice for a side stone. Because of its diminutive size, it is more difficult to see a loss of sparkle. That is why it has a higher total carat count, an adequate amount of light return, but a lower price point.

Poor Diamond Cut

The pavilion and culet of a diamond with a poor cut lose the most light. Face-up, the facets can't refract or reflect light towards the table, so there are dark spots. Poor cut diamonds are not available at Elleroses.

How Cuts Affect the Cost of a Diamond?

Because a diamond's overall beauty is mostly determined by its cut, a higher grade is likely to be more expensive.

A brilliant cut can often mask flaws in clarity, color, and carat weight. Facets that have been expertly carved produce stunning light displays that hide inclusions and give the illusion of a larger diamond than it actually is.

Diamond Cuts Affect Sparkle in Different Ways

A diamond's sparkle, or the contrast between white light and distributed colored light within the stone, gives the gem its character. The diamond's seemingly limitless facets produce a spectacular display as they dance with the light within it, producing the ``wow`` factor.

Attention must be made to the interplay between the table, crown angle, pavilion depth, and overall depth when cutting a stone. Colorful bursts of flashes and hues add to the sparkling white brilliance when they're placed at the right angles and proportions.

Diamond Cuts FAQs

What is the difference between a diamond's cut and its shape?

Choosing a diamond’s shape is one of the most important decisions couples make when purchasing a diamond.

Round, oval, cushion, princess, pear and emerald shaped diamonds are just some of the many diamond shapes. The balance of proportions, symmetry, and polish that was achieved by the cutter of the diamond is what is known as a diamond cut.

What are the types of diamond cuts?

It is possible to have three different types of diamond cuts: brilliant, step, and mixed. The 58 facets of a brilliant cut diamond provide a stunning level of sparkle and brilliance. In order to create a brilliant descent of light, Step Cuts were made on each of the four sides. It’s a combination of the best of both worlds: a step cut on the pavilion, and a stunning cut on the table, which is called Mixed cuts.

Which diamond cut is the most valuable?

The stone must meet a difficult set of standards across seven components– brightness, fire, scintillation, weight ratio, durability, polish, and symmetry– to receive a “Excellent” rating based on the GIA’s standards for a diamond cut.