LEARN ABOUT DIAMOND CUT

CARAT    CLARITY    CUT    COLOR    CULET    VALUE    SYMMETRY    GIRDLE    CERTIFICATION

Learn How Diamonds Are Cut: Diamond Cutters must choose between More Weight or More Brilliance.  When a diamond crystal comes from the ground, the brilliance, fire, and scintillation that constitute the unique beauty of a polished diamond are still locked within it. The way in which a diamond cutter decides to cut the new diamond ultimately determines the diamonds beauty and brilliance. The cut of a diamond is made up of many elements to determine the quality of a diamond's cut.  Gemological laboratories use sophisticated measuring devices to determine how well a diamond is cut.

The Sarin Porportion Analyzer is used by GIA and other gemological laboratories to analyze the following aspects of a diamond's proportions.

length, width & height, measurements, depth percentage, table percentage, girdle thickness, culet size, crown angle, crown height, pavilion angle,
pavilion height, diamond symmetry.

The Cut Of A Diamond Is The Most Important Element Of Diamond Beauty.

Learn Why Most Diamonds Today Are Improperly Cut:

Many diamonds today are cut improperly. A flawless, colorless rough diamond crystal can be cut to very fine or ideal proportions to deliver the greatest balance of dispersion and brilliance, or it can be cut to inferior proportions which yield a diamond that displays very little brilliance but weighs slightly heavier.

Many people who buy diamonds today are unable to identify a diamond with inferior cut. Because diamond cutters have financial incentive not to remove weight from the rough diamond crystal, a great amount of diamonds sold on the market today have heavy or deep cut.

Learn To Identify the Common Heavy or Deep Cut Diamonds:

Diamonds are frequently cut for weight retention rather than to produce maximum brilliance. These “undersize diamonds” often weigh more than if they were cut correctly and can therefore can be sold for for a larger profit.

For example: an ideal or very fine cut one carat diamond measures 6.4 to 6.5 millimeters in diameter.  If you were to measure the diameters of most one carat diamonds on the market today, you would find many to measure between 5.9 and 6.3 millimeters.

These 1.00 carat, inferior cut “undersize diamonds” are no larger in diameter than ideal or fine cut diamonds which weigh 0.75 to 0.99 carats, and they exhibit significantly less brilliance.  We encourage you to choose a diamond that has ideal to very fine cut.

Understanding The Behavior Of Light In Diamond:

To understand diamond cut, it helps to understand how light reacts within a diamond. When light enters a diamond or any given material it bends or refracts.  The degree to which it bends is called the refractive index. The refractive index of diamond is 2.41, the highest of any natural transparent gem. In diamond the maximum angle of refraction is 24.5 degrees.  This is called the critical angle. Light traveling through a diamond is reflected if it strikes a surface outside the critical angle. Light striking a surface inside the critical angle will be refracted out of a diamond. The critical angle is represented as 24.5 degree cone in the diagram.

In a well-made diamond, a high percentage of light entering through the crown starts out striking the pavilion outside the critical angle. Thus it is totally reflected to the other side of the pavilion. There it strikes outside the critical angle again, and again and is totally reflected, this time towards the crown, where it strikes within the critical angle and leaves the diamond traveling in directions in which it can be seen. Such controlled release of light is planned leakage. If the pavilion is too deep, or too shallow, much of the light strikes inside the critical angle and leaks out the back of the stone rather than reflecting through the diamond and back through the top to the eye.

Learn What GIA & AGS Have To Say About Cut:

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), and the American Gem Society (AGS), two highly respected gemological institutions, have developed different systems for evaluating diamond cut quality.  GIA has defined a range of proportion standards in which diamond cut quality is classified... Currently GIA's diploma study courses teaches GIA students seeking degrees in Gemology a system that assigns diamond cut grades in four separate cut classes: (See illustration below) Please note, GIA's Gem Trade Laboratory does not use the GIA cut class grade on its popular diamond quality report.

Guidelines For Ideal To Very Fine Cut In A Round Cut Diamond: (AGS 0 - 2)

The Information included below is based on information made available by Gemological Institute of America and the American Gem Society. These two institutions are the most honored in the world of gemological science.

This information below is a brief overview of diamond cut, and what you should look for in regards to diamonds of all shapes. Print this page and use it as a reference when choosing your diamond. You can refer to the diagrams to provide you with details that will help you select a round brilliant cut diamond that has ideal to very fine cut.

GIA’s Cut Classification System Defines CLASS 1 As Ideal To Very Fine Cut.

GIA’s research indicates that diamonds with slightly larger tables also provide exceptional brilliance. Because of this evidence, GIA maintains its current position not to specifically define ideal proportions as narrowly as the Towkowsky theoretical ideal cut or AGS grade 0 ideal cut.

CLASS 1 = IDEAL       CLASS 2 = FINE         CLASS 3 = FAIR          CLASS 4 = POOR

Round Brilliant Cut Guidelines, Ideal To Very Fine Cut:

The AGS uses a system that assigns a numerical grade from 0 to 10. 0 is considered perfect ideal cut. 10 is the lowest grade. The AGS grade 0 is based on the Tolkowsky theoretical ideal

The AGS 0 ideal cut will cost slightly more and fewer ideal cut diamonds are available. Diamonds with proportions with the range of AGS 0 and 2 are considered very fine cut and provide exceptional brilliance.

Fancy Shape Cut Guidelines, Ideal To Very Fine Cut:

The Gemological Institute of America and the American Gem Society have not conclusively determined or published ideal cut proportions in regards to fancy cut diamonds. Information published by other sources has proven to be incorrect.

Because fancy shaped diamonds are not symmetrical like a round diamond, a broader range of parameters are needed in regards to proportion. It is with great care that United Diamonds, has compiled this information.

The standards for fancy cut diamonds shown in this diagram were determined by analyzing hundreds of diamonds in fancy shapes. Fancy diamonds that fit into the ranges described below offer the greatest amount of brilliance.

The Certified Gemologist-Appraisers carefully analyze every fancy shape diamond that is requested by our customers. Every fancy shape must display great brilliance in cut quality before the diamond is considered for shipment to you.  Hundreds of diamonds have been sold by United Diamonds to very knowledgeable diamond buyers who expect a perfect to near perfect cut.  United Diamonds is very successful in delivering fabulous fancy cut diamonds in every shape and size.

CARAT    CLARITY    CUT    COLOR    CULET    VALUE    SYMMETRY    GRIDDLE    CERTIFICATION