The cut in a diamond can affect the way it looks as well as the price. It is important to understand the basics to ensure you will be happy with your choice. We have put together a summary with the important factors you need to know when it comes to a diamond cut. As you can see the article has been split in to two parts, Part 1: Round diamonds and Part 2: Other shapes.
PART 1: ROUND DIAMONDS
Round diamonds are the only shape where labs specify in their certificates the cut grade of the stone. For all round diamonds there is already an established global set of dimensions on which diamonds get assessed against. In the case of IGI certificates the highest is Ideal then Excellent, Very good, good and so on.
WHAT DOES THE CUT MEAN IN A SIMPLE TO UNDERSTAND TERMS?
To the untrained naked eye it is practically impossible to differentiate between an “ideal cut” and an “excellent cut”, or from an “excellent cut” to a “very good cut”. However if put side by side you might start noticing a slight difference in sparkle between an “ideal cut” and a “very good cut”. The cut is a good indicator on how well a diamond reflects light. The lower the cut grade the more tendency to have leakage in term of light.
We recommend to our customers that it comes down to your own personal budget. As you might’ve notice there is a slight difference in price between cuts, however if you have to sacrifice one for the other, opting to get a bigger size stone its generally the winner as the size its clearly visible to the naked eye.
If you are looking at saving some money while getting a great deal, you can go for an “excellent cut” stone. And if you are on a tight budget but still want to get a good size stone, a good viable option would be a “very good cut”.
For those who live in cities where we have showrooms, feel free to book an appointment and come and see for yourself the differences in cuts.