Diamond Shapes

The most common diamond shapes are round, emerald, princess, radiant, oval, pear, marquise and heart. Because round cut diamonds are the only shape that can achieve an ideal cut, they are the most brilliant of the diamond shapes. Fancy shaped diamonds adhere to different proportion guidelines and thus refract light in different ways.

Marquise Cut Diamond
The Marquise Cut takes its name from a legend relating to the Marquise of Pompadour. According to the legend, the Sun King desired a stone to be polished into the shape of the mouth of the Marquise. It is generally agreed that a length-to-width ratio between 1.75:1 to 2:1 is most pleasing. As with other fancy shapes, the consumer's individual taste constitutes an element of the evaluation as well. The typical marquise diamond contains 56 facets.

Princess Cut Diamond
The Princess Cut Diamond is a brilliant style shape with sharp, uncut corners. It is typically cut square rather as a rectangle. Brilliant style refers to vertical direction crown and pavilion facets instead of step style horizontal facets. A princess Cut Diamond generally has 76 facets, giving it more brilliance and fire than the round brilliant. The Princess Cut diamond is fast becoming one of the most popular cuts in the United States

Radiant Cut Diamond
The Radiant Cut Diamond is a straight-edged rectangular or square stone with cut corners. The radiant cut diamond has 62-70 facets. Radiant diamonds are principally used for important center stones primarily for rings but also for pendant. They are rarely used for earrings or as side stones because they are hard to calibrate and match. To get matched pairs you may have to sort through a hundred stones are re-cut to calibrate.

Emerald Cut Diamonds
An emerald cut diamond shape is usually rectangular. The flat planes of the outside edges allow for a variety of side stones shapes. Typical pairings would be two or three side baguettes, two half-moons, and other smaller emeralds, but not trillions ,as their sparkle makes the center emerald cut look flat. The length-to-width ratio should be between 1.5:1 to 1.75:1.

Pear Shaped Diamond
The pear shaped brilliant diamond is based upon the traditional configuration of the round brilliant diamond. More than other fancy shapes, length-to-width ratio is a matter of taste when it comes to pear shaped diamonds. Because pears may be used for engagement rings, suites in necklaces, dangles in earrings, and integral parts of custom designs, a wide variety of shapes is considered desirable. The typical pear shaped diamond will contain 58 facets.

Oval Cut Diamond
The oval cut diamond is based upon the traditional configuration of the round brilliant diamond and that's why its technical name is oval modified brilliant diamond. The oval was invented by Lazare Kaplan in the early 1960s. A length-to-width ratio of 1.5:1 is almost universally considered a pleasing shape for oval diamonds, with any variation beyond 1.4:1 or 1.6:1 beginning to be noticeable and become an aesthetic issue. However as with all fancies, a certain degree of individual taste is always factored into the desirability of a particular diamond's shape. Fifty-six facets are typical for oval brilliant diamonds. Over the last year or two ovals have become very popular as center diamonds for engagement rings

Heart Shaped Diamond
Romantic perfection for the special occasions. The perfect stone for the special occasion requirements. The Heart shaped brilliant is the hit item on Valentines day. Usually the width will be 10% wider than the head-to-point length.