Diamond Cuts and Shapes

The Quality of Diamond Cut and Shape Determines its Value

In their most natural form, diamonds are – well – quite ugly. They have no luster or shine, and in fact, look like nothing more than broken glass. A diamond must be cut, and then polished before it actually becomes a thing of beauty.

Various Diamond Cuts

Diamonds are cut with saws, into round shapes. From the rounded shape, other shapes may be cut, such as heart shapes – but the shape is less important than the quality of the cutting that is being done. If the diamond is poorly cut, it will lose light, and it will not sparkle and shine very well.

Each facet of the diamond must be carefully cut into the geometrical shapes that allow the diamond to sparkle and shine, then the entire diamond is cut into a specific shape, such as an emerald cut or a princess cut diamond.

Diamonds are shaped into different cuts, depending on the diamond's natural shape, which often determines its price and value.

Different or fancy diamond cuts are:

• Asscher cut 
• Cushion cut 
• Emerald cut 
• Heart cut 
• Marquise cut 
• Pear cut 
• Princess cut 
• Radiant cut 
• Oval cut 

Emerald Cut Diamond

Originally designed for cutting emeralds, the emerald cut was soon proven to be effective in cutting other precious stones, including diamonds. Emerald cut is known for its stunning beauty and elegance. Being one of less known diamond cuts, emerald cut also tends to be less expensive than other better known diamond shapes.

Princess Cut Diamond

The princess cut diamond is a square cut, with pointed corners. These 4 corners are usually shaped to be rectangular, to avoid them chipping. While other square or rectangular shape diamonds don't sparkle as much, princess cut diamonds give best sparkle brilliance. This makes princess cut diamond one of the best known and most trendy diamond cuts.

Once the cut is done, the diamond is put into a dop, which resembles a cup with another diamond – only a diamond is strong enough to smooth the edges of another diamond. Once the diamond has been cut and shaped, and had the edges smoothed in the dop, it is polished on a scaif or a diamond polishing wheel.

Guide to Buying Diamonds
Artificial Diamonds Difference	Buying Diamonds Online	Common Diamond Scams	Diamond Brands Meaning
Diamond Cuts and Shapes	Diamond Grading Criteria	Diamond Grading Scale	Diamond Mining Methods
Diamond Weight in Carats	Diamonds Clarity and Grade	Diamonds Insurance Types	Diamonds Through History
Fake or Real Diamond	Fancy Color Diamonds	Fully Bonded Diamonds	GIA Diamond Certificate
Guide to Buying Diamonds	Most Famous Diamonds	Selling Your Diamonds	Synthetic Lab Diamonds
Why Diamonds Are Rare