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.
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.
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.
The most popular cut for a diamond ring today is still the round, brilliant diamonds cut. It was developed in the 17th century in Venice. It is still preferred when the raw crystal is in an octahedron formation.
Even though as much as 50% of the stone is cut away in the process, often two stones can be carved from an octahedron.
More unusually-shaped stones are used for fancy cuts, such as a marquise, pear or heart-shaped diamond. The earliest brilliants had 17 facets on the top of the stone and were called double-cut. This was soon improved with stones cut with 33 facets and were called triple-cut brilliants.
There are now cuts such as the princess cut, trillions, ovals, pear and heart-shaped. Some innovative cutters have even fashioned star or butterfly-shaped diamonds! One patented diamond cut, the Ashoka diamond, is an oblong cut with rounded, brilliant ends, and requires a stone 3 carats or larger.
It’s an exceptionally beautiful (and pricey!) diamond shape. Tiffany has also patented a cut of diamond called the Lucida cut. It’s the lucky bride whose fiancé gives her one of these highly coveted stones!
Books about Diamond Cut
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Pokemon Diamond & Pearl (Prima Official Game Guide) List Price: $16.99 Sale Price: $8.89  |
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* Exclusive Poster - A large poster with exclusive Pokémon art.* Full Walkthrough with Maps - Each area of the new Sinnoh region will be comprehensively covered so players will be able to find all the new Pokémon. |
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Diamond Ring Buying Guide: How to Evaluate, Identify, and Select Diamonds & Diamond Jewelry (Newman Gem & Jewelry Series) List Price: $18.95 Sale Price: $12.00 |
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This is a full-colour book that will help you to select and evaluate diamonds and diamond jewellery. This updated edition has 140 new photographs of ring styles, coloured diamonds and contemporary diamond cuts... |
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Pokemon Diamond & Pearl Pokedex: Prima Official Game Guide Vol. 2 (Prima Official Game Guides) List Price: $19.99 Sale Price: $19.99 |
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* Fully details all 482 + available Pokemon. Providing stats, levels, learned moves, and more.* Exclusive Poster - The Pokédex will include an exclusive poster for fans.* Strategy Included - In addition to complete information for each individual Pokémon, this guide will include strategy for keeping, collecting, and raising the creatures in your collection. |
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Dugan & Diamond Carnival Glass 1909-1931: Identification & Value Guide List Price: $19.95 Sale Price: $45.00 |
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