Diamond Cut Meaning:-
The cut is one of the characteristics by which the quality of a diamond is judged. But did you know there is a perfect cut? Let’s find out why this is significant.
Diamond cutting is how a finished stone is formed from rough diamond material. The cutter will strive to create a diamond with certain proportions and a predetermined number of facets.
The ability of a diamond to reflect light and exhibit brightness depends on how it is cut, or rather, on the proportions of its various parts about each other.
What is the Perfect Diamond Cut?
A perfect cut means the diamond is sized to refract and reflect light in a way that maximizes radiance and brilliance. On the other hand, the farther the dimensions of the diamond are from the proportions that are considered ideal, the more light entering the stone flows out of it.
Because the edges of poorly cut diamonds are not well adjusted to retain maximum light, they look dull and lifeless.
The perfect cut is a concept that is of paramount importance when deciding which diamond to buy. But what are the exact standards for the ideal, and what dimensions should a stone have to be close to it?
There are several widely used standards for what an ideal cut should look like. However, the basic concept of each of these guidelines remains the same – the best cut should maximize the beauty of the diamond.
History of Diamond Cut:-
That’s a difference between the quality of the cut and the cut of a diamond. Diamond cut in the brilliant shape has 56 facets; a well-cut diamond gives optimum sparkle and sparkle.
The model (cut) in which the diamond is cut is more an issue of individual taste. This cut has hardly any impact on the value. A rough diamond loses on average about 50 percent of its original weight during the polishing process.
The diamond determines its shine from the reflection of light. The sharpener must arrange the facets in such a way that the light from the top is reflected optimally from one side to another.
The knowledge for this demanding profession has been passed on from generation to generation in the popular diamond cities of Amsterdam and Antwerp for centuries. The accuracy and finesse of the cut determine the brilliance of the stone.
Why is the Cut Quality of a Diamond Important?
Main of Diamond Cutting.
Cut affects the three main characteristics of a diamond that determine how light interacts with the stone: brilliance, dispersion, and shimmer.
A glitter is seen when light hitting the stone is reflected. If the depth (or height) of the diamond is too high or too low, then light entering it will not bounce back, creating a sparkle, but instead will flow out of the stone, remaining invisible. As a result, the brilliance of too deep or too shallow diamonds leaves much to be desired.
Dispersion consists of the fact that the structure of a diamond breaks up when light hits the spectrum of colors. The result is seen as a play of colors when looking at a diamond, and is also called “fire”.
Shimmer is the ability of a diamond to sparkle in intermittent flashes when you move it in front of your eyes. A well-cut stone shows a lot of brilliance, while a poor-cut diamond looks a lot less alive.
How to Check the Quality?
To determine the quality of a particular cut, you can check how it is graded, look at the luster of the stone, or measure the diamond.
Variety check:-
One of the simplest methods to check the diamond cut quality and is to look at the grade, given that the stone comes with an attestation certificate.
Using grades to determine quality works best with round diamonds. Other cuts do not have such well-defined grading standards, but you can use some important diamond proportions as a benchmark for quality.
Gloss check:
Brilliant cuts like round and princess are designed to increase the brilliance of a diamond. Which is why you can use this characteristic to determine how well a stone is cut.
You can compare two diamonds of the same cut, and if one has more brilliance than the other, the brighter stone likely has a higher quality cut.
This method is still only applicable for comparing brilliant cuts. If you are evaluating stepped cuts such as emerald and Asher, which are not intended to improve brilliance. Then it is best to look at the size and proportion of the diamond.
Checking Sizes & Dimensions/Proportions
One of the most perfect ways to discover the cut quality of a stone is to examine some key dimensions and calculate proportions.
How to check the quality of the diamond cut before you begin checking the proportions. You should be close with several terms that are regularly mentioned when measuring and evaluating a cut:
Belt: This is the outer edge of the stone, and most proportions are expressed as a percentage of the belt diameter. (for round stones) or width (for non-circular shapes).
The belt itself can be classified based on its thickness, and cuts with extremely thin or extremely thick belts are undesirable. Something in between these two extremes is acceptable.
Caletta: This is the facet at the very bottom of the diamond. The stone may not have a culet at all, and this is also acceptable. The ideal culet is very small, medium, and large is less desirable.
Pad: This is the topmost facet of the stone. And its percentage is calculated by dividing the pad diameter by the width of the girdle.
Depth: This is the distance from the platform to the bottom of the stone divided by the belt diameter or width.
How are the Types of Diamond Cut Classified?
The cut is one of the most significant quality characteristics of a diamond. Therefore, it is very important to know what types it is classified into to make the best choice when buying a diamond.
Let’s discuss what kinds of diamond cuts exist and what their characteristics are.
People often use the terms “cut” and “shape” mutually when talking about diamonds. However, the meanings of the two terms differ slightly from each other. The term “shape” refers to the general characteristic of a stone.
On the other hand, a specific cut implies a certain shape. The term “cut” technically refers to the limiting numbers, locations, shapes, and proportions of the facets of the stones.
Thus, the shape of a diamond tells you what the stone looks like, and its cut provides information regarding how that shape was achieved through processing.
Technically, two diamonds may have similar or identical shapes, but their cuts will be considered different if their facets are arranged or shaped differently.
Two Methods: Brilliant Cut and Mixed styles.
The brilliant cuts are designed to maximize the brilliance of the stone. Classic round cut – brilliant cut. In contrast, step cuts have facets that are parallel to each other and are located at the edge of the stone; they do not increase the brilliance and radiance of the diamond. An example of a stepped cut is emerald.
Mixed cuts have both brilliant and stepped details. For instance, “Radiant Cut” is a type of mixed cut.
“Fantasy” cuts.
A fancy cut is any diamond cut that differs from the classic round cut. For example, pear, heart, and oval are unusual diamond cuts.
Cut evaluation.
There are various methods for certifying a diamond cut, but in general, a cut is graded based on how close it is to generally accepted proportions.
The grading of a round cut is the most common standard for certification, and the recommendations for its proportions are very detailed. The standards for certifying other cuts are not as detailed and are usually less stringent.
Single Cut and Full cut: what’s the difference?
You may have also discovered the terms “single cut” and “full cut”, and if you are wondering what they mean, you must read here. Let’s take a look at how these diamonds compare and how the differences between them influence their value. How a diamond is cut depends on several factors. Typically, the choice depends on its size, color, clarity, and the need to use as much raw diamond as possible.
Depending on their size and clarity, for instance, the visual appeal of the resulting diamond can be greatly improved or diminished by the cut selected. Oftentimes, cutters attempt to strike a balance between several quality considerations to come up with the diamond cuts that have the greatest potential to sell well.
What is the Full Cut?
It is a stone that is shaped into a round brilliant cut and has 57 or 58 facets. Its considered the classic diamond shape, as opposed to the so-called “unusual cuts”, which can take many different shapes and have a variable number of facets.
It should be remarked that a diamond can be cut into a round shape and have more sides than a standard fifty-seven or fifty-eight. In this case, it will not be considered fully cut.
What is the Single Diamond cut?
Single Cut Diamonds that are cut as round but have less than the standard 57 or 58 facets are called “single cut” diamonds. Most often, they will only have 17 or 18 faces (several have 16).
Typically, round diamonds are single-cut first, and then additional facets are added, turning the stone into a full-cut diamond. It occurs most often with small diamonds, for which having some facets doesn’t matter when it happens to appear.
Different standards for a Perfect Cut
Speaking of the classic round brilliant cut, the main characteristics that determine the quality of a diamond are the size of its top, the diameter of its girdle (the widest part of the stone), and its depth (or height).
In addition, the facets of a diamond are judged on how standard their shape is and how well they fit together. While it may seem that the definition of an ideal cut is general, there is no universal rule as to what its exact proportions should be.
There are at least one and a half dozen standards for measuring cuts. The most widely used standards today are the American Standard, Practical Fine Cut, and Scandinavian Standard. The first one is used in North America, while the other two are mainly used in Europe.
Perfect cut proportions.
Although it’s different standards for a perfect cut, the proportions they use don’t significantly change in meaning.
The first thing you should know about diamond measurements is that they are expressed as a percentage of the diameter of the diamond’s belt, which is simply the edge of the stone and also the widest part.
Let’s take look at the most important dimensions of a perfect diamond. The numbers are given as a range of values that include the standards of the most commonly used criteria:
Pad diameter: 53% -57.5% (This is the diameter of the flat top of the diamond, i.e. pad.)
Crown Height: 14.4% -16.2% (This is the vertical distance from the waist to the top of the stone; the crown is the top from the waist to the ground.)
Pavilion depth: 43.1% -43.2% (This is the vertical distance from the waist to the bottom of the diamond; the pavilion is the lower portion from the waist to the lowest point.)
Thus, using the numbers above, we can conclude that the ideal diamond should have a top 53% -57% wide from the girdle, a pavilion approximately 43% deep, and a crown approximately 14.5% -16% high. The total height of an ideal diamond, measured from its flat top to the sharp bottom of the stone, is approximately 60%, plus or minus 2-3 percent.
If you buy a diamond, you probably don’t need to measure all of these values yourself: they will be included in the grading report, and you just have to find at Gemistone Jewelers. It is not recommended to buy diamonds that do not have such a certificate confirming their quality.