A diamond is not yet a gem until it is intricately cut into the brilliant piece of stone we all are familiar with diamonds.Diamonds are fairly unnoticeable and unappealing when uncut or in its rawest form. In order to best utilize the stone’s stifled luster, diamond cutting is an essential process. A diamond cut consists of symmetrical arrangements of facets (flat faces on geometrical shapes) that altogether modify the overall appearance, brilliance, and shape of the gem. The practice of diamond cutting can be traced back to the Middle Ages, but the scientific approach on diamond cutting was only developed at the turn of the 20^thCentury.

Diamond Cut

Diamond cutting used to be solely done by hand but because of the technological advances of modern times, lasers and computers aid to the overall design and cutting process of diamonds.Diamond cutting is not only an art, but also a science of creating a gem out of a mined rough diamond. Anyone can cut a diamond, but not everyone can cut it to perfection. There are mathematical guidelines for the angles and length ratios at which the stone is to be ideally cut in order to reflect the maximum light. It is the brilliance of diamonds that makes it a prized gem after all. Precise cutting and facet placement, stone depth, all affect the amount of brilliance one diamond can ‘produce’. Simply put, if diamonds are cut poorly, it will be less luminous thus lesser value.

Kinds of Diamond Cut

There basically are two kinds of diamond cuts – round brilliant and fancy. The most common and popular cut, is the round brilliant cut. This cut has been developed circa 1900s, and has been perfected by both mathematical and empirical analysis. It is the more popular cut because of its saleability, desire optics, and insurability. Fancy cuts come in a variety of eccentric shapes (hence, fancy), and among the most popular like the rose, princess, emerald, oval, pear, drop, heart, marquise, asscher, and cushion.

Diamond cuts are then evaluated by highly trained graders, with higher grades are given to pieces that most closely match the “ideal” symmetry and proportions.

In general, there are 5 grades from high to low, namely: Ideal, Premium, Very Good, Good, and Fair & Poor. Ideal and Premium cuts are of course the diamonds that display the maximum amount of brilliance, and are of course, the most eye-catching. Very good and good cut diamonds have a brilliance just below of Premium cuts but have larger carats. Fair and Poor cut diamonds are the least brilliant as it allows the least light to be reflected. Compensating the brilliance is the carat (size and weight) of these diamonds, which makes them equally valuable to brilliant cut diamonds.

Stages on How to Diamond Cut

Planning – the fate of diamonds today are decided entirely from an economic perspective. The first objective that influences the outcome of a rough diamond is that of maximum return on investment for the diamond or simply how much the manufacturer can get from the stone at an effective and long term rate. The second objective is how fast the finished diamond can be sold.

Today, technology have made planning a whole lot easier, for diamond cutters now use scanners that can create a 3-dimensional computer model of the rough stone. That way, they can determine the optimal way to cut the stone (whether it be ideal, premium, very good, good and fair and poor).

Cleaving and Sawing – cleaving is the process of separating a bigger piece of rough diamond into smaller pieces to be made into individual gems. Sawing involves using a diamond saw or laser to cut the rough stone. (The diamond is the hardest natural material known to exist, and no other material can cut diamond, but diamond itself.)

Bruting or Girdling – bruting is the process of grinding two diamonds onto each other, spinning in different directions. This grinding process makes the rough diamonds shape into round pieces.

Polishing – polishing is the most painstaking process as it requires intense concentration, precision, and a keen eye. This is also the process where the facets are cut onto the diamond. The whole polishing process takes blocking, faceting, and final polishing.

Final Inspection – in the final step, the polished diamonds are thoroughly cleaned in acids, and are examined whether the gems meet the exact standards of the manufacturer.