The Essential Fancy Cut Diamonds for Jewellery Lovers

Round brilliant diamonds have been coveted for decades, but now it’s scintillating fancy shaped diamonds that are enjoying a sparkling renaissance. Here are the fancy cuts you shouldn’t be without…

The gift of a diamond is hard to forget but presenting the special person in your life with a fancy cut diamond goes one step further.

The term ‘fancy cut diamond’ is interchangeable with ‘fancy shaped diamond’ and refers to the way in which a stone has been faceted to form a particular shape. Let’s not confuse this with cut quality, one of the 4 Cs (characteristics) of diamonds which refer to the sparkling light performance of the stone based on the precision of internal facets, rather than shape.

There are many beautiful types of fancy cut diamonds and the very best are those that blend shape, symmetry and proportion with exceptional brilliance and light performance. Whether you are a devoted diamond collector or someone with a passion for fine jewellery, there are certain fancy shaped diamonds you will want in your collection. Together they tell a fantastic story of diamond history, while being absolutely stunning to look at.

The Elegant Marquise Shaped Diamond

The marquise shaped diamond has soared in popularity in recent years and is now one of the most requested fancy cut diamond shapes in fine jewellery. This tapered, boat-shaped diamond is said to originate from the French royal court of King Louis XV and was especially crafted to look like his mistress’ lips!

Today, marquise diamond jewellery can be sleek and modern or elegant and traditional depending in its setting. There are also beautiful marquise cluster jewellery pieces, which mimic the iconic marquise sparkle with expertly set round brilliant diamonds.

The Art Deco Emerald Cut Diamond

The geometric emerald cut diamond may look contemporary, but its history can be traced back hundreds of years. The emerald shaped diamond has step-cut facets, which appear like staircases leading you down into the centre of the stone. This is paired with cut or cropped corners that create a beautiful rectangular shape.

The emerald cut diamond is typically associated with vintage-inspired designs, such as Art Deco jewellery from the 1920s and 1930s. These diamonds also sparkle beautifully as side stones in trilogy diamond engagement rings.

The Feminine Pear Diamond

The pear-shaped diamond is a complex combination of a marquise and round brilliant diamond, making it one of the most challenging to bring to life. This makes them extra special for diamond engagement ring centre stones. Just like the marquise cut diamond, the pear can maximise carat weight and has the added advantage of elongating the finger, creating the illusion of a much larger diamond when worn.

The Romantic Heart Shaped Diamond

A diamond cut into the shape of a heart isn’t a modern-day gimmick. In fact, this cut has been around since the time of Queen Elizabeth I, who supposedly sent a heart-shaped diamond to her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, as a symbol of friendship and goodwill. Today, the heart shaped diamond is notoriously challenging to create because of its need to be perfectly proportioned and symmetrical. When done by a skilled hand, a heart shaped diamond engagement ring or pendant is a classic way to show your devotion.

The Clever Baguette Cut Diamond

The emerald cut may commonly be thought of as ‘Art Deco’, but it was actually the clever baguette cut diamond that was the star of the show in the Art Deco and Art Nouveau periods of the early 1900s. These long rectangular stones have a chameleon-like quality and work in all kinds of diamond jewellery designs, from engagement ring side stones and eternity rings, to delicate stud earrings, halo diamond pendants and tennis bracelets. These sparkling multi-taskers have been a hit since the early 20th century and we don’t see them fading into the background any time soon.

The Ever-Popular Princess Cut

Princess cut diamond engagement rings are some of the most popular of all time, but they haven’t been around very long. In fact, the princess cut as we know it today was only developed in the 1960s to combine the brilliance of a round diamond with a statement square shape. This scintillating diamond shape makes for beautiful stud earrings, pendants and tennis bracelets in a twist on the traditional round cut. Look out for princess cut diamond engagement rings with a cushion-shaped diamond halo for an exquisite combination of hard and soft lines.

The Regal Radiant Cut Diamond

Finally, who can forget the regal radiant diamond? This diamond cut has more facets than other fancy shaped diamonds, which means it has intense sparkle. The stone originates from the 1970s and can be square (like a princess cut) or rectangular like an emerald cut. This diamond cut is fantastic for stones with smaller carat weights as it really catches the light and gives the illusion of a more substantial treasure.

The beautiful world of diamonds is complex and choosing the right stone is just as much about intuition as it is the Four Cs of cut, colour, clarity and carat weight. For a gift that truly expresses your love choose the fancy shaped diamond that captures a little part of her personality, whether she’s elegant like the marquise diamond or confident like the vintage-inspired emerald cut it’s a gift that signals devotion.