Diamond Shapes: A Guide to Choosing the Right Diamond Shape
Choosing a diamond starts with one of the most noticeable decisions: the shape. From the classic round brilliant diamond to elegant oval, emerald, cushion, pear, and marquise shapes, each diamond shape has its own look and personality.
At Devon’s Diamonds & Decor in Boca Raton, we offer natural and lab-grown diamonds in a variety of shapes for engagement rings, wedding bands, custom jewelry, and other fine jewelry.
Understanding the differences between diamond shapes can help you narrow down your options and find a diamond that fits your style.
Diamond Shape vs. Diamond Cut
The terms diamond shape and diamond cut are often used interchangeably, but they mean different things.
Diamond shape refers to the diamond's overall outline or appearance, such as round, oval, pear, or emerald.
Diamond cut refers to how a diamond's facets, proportions, symmetry, and angles are arranged to interact with light. Cut quality has a major effect on a diamond's brilliance and overall appearance.
Round is the only diamond shape that receives an official GIA cut grade. Other shapes are evaluated using different factors, including proportions, symmetry, polish, and how the diamond handles light.
Popular Diamond Shapes
There are many diamond shapes to choose from, but the following are among the most popular options for engagement rings and fine jewelry.
Round Brilliant Diamond
The round brilliant diamond is the classic choice for an engagement ring and one of the most popular diamond shapes. Its symmetrical shape and brilliant faceting are designed to maximize light return, creating a bright and sparkling appearance.
Round diamonds work beautifully in virtually every engagement ring style, including solitaire, halo, pavé, three-stone, and vintage-inspired settings.
Oval Diamond
The oval diamond offers the brilliance of a round-style faceting pattern with an elongated outline. Its length can create an elegant appearance on the finger while offering a distinctive alternative to a traditional round diamond.
Oval diamonds can vary from narrow and elongated to wider and more rounded, making the proportions an important part of choosing the right stone.
Emerald Cut Diamond
The emerald cut diamond features a rectangular outline with cropped corners and step-cut facets. Rather than producing the intense sparkle associated with a brilliant-cut diamond, emerald cuts are known for their broad flashes of light and clear, open appearance.
Because the large, open facets can make inclusions and color more noticeable, clarity and color are particularly important considerations when choosing an emerald cut diamond.
Cushion Cut Diamond
The cushion cut diamond combines a square or rectangular outline with rounded corners, creating a soft, classic appearance. Cushion diamonds can have different proportions and faceting patterns, so some appear more square while others have a more elongated shape.
Cushion cuts are a popular choice for vintage-inspired and romantic engagement ring designs.
Princess Cut Diamond
The princess cut diamond is typically square or rectangular with pointed corners. Its geometric shape and brilliant faceting give it a modern, crisp appearance with plenty of sparkle.
Princess cut diamonds can work well in solitaire, three-stone, halo, and contemporary engagement ring settings.
Radiant Cut Diamond
The radiant cut diamond combines the rectangular or square outline of a step-cut diamond with brilliant-style faceting. Its cropped corners give it a distinctive shape while its faceting pattern creates significant sparkle.
Radiant diamonds are available in both square and elongated proportions, making them a versatile choice for engagement rings.
Pear Shaped Diamond
The pear shaped diamond combines a rounded end with a pointed tip, creating its distinctive teardrop outline. It incorporates characteristics of both round and marquise shapes.
Symmetry is especially important with pear shaped diamonds. Many people choose to wear a pear diamond with the point facing toward the hand, although it can also be set in the opposite direction.
Marquise Diamond
The marquise diamond has an elongated shape with pointed ends. Its long outline can create an elegant, elongated appearance on the finger and may appear larger than other diamonds of the same carat weight because of its larger surface area.
Symmetry and the proportions of the stone are important considerations when choosing a marquise diamond.
Asscher Cut Diamond
The Asscher cut diamond has a distinctive octagonal outline and step-cut faceting. Its geometric appearance is closely associated with Art Deco-inspired jewelry and creates a hall-of-mirrors effect with broad flashes of light.
Asscher cut diamonds are a distinctive choice for someone looking for a vintage-inspired or architectural engagement ring.
Heart Shaped Diamond
The heart shaped diamond features a symmetrical heart outline and is an unmistakable symbol of romance. Because the shape depends heavily on symmetry, proportions and the definition of the cleft are important when selecting a heart shaped diamond.
Heart shaped diamonds can be especially striking in solitaire and three-stone engagement ring settings.
How to Choose a Diamond Shape
There is no single diamond shape that is right for everyone. Your choice can come down to personal style, the engagement ring setting, the proportions of the stone, and how you want the diamond to look on the hand.
Consider these factors when comparing diamond shapes:
Personal style: Do you prefer classic, modern, vintage-inspired, or distinctive jewelry?
Sparkle: Brilliant-cut shapes such as round, oval, radiant, and many cushion and princess diamonds are known for their lively sparkle. Step-cut shapes such as emerald and Asscher offer a different look with broader flashes of light.
Finger appearance: Elongated shapes such as oval, pear, and marquise can create a lengthening effect on the finger.
Engagement ring setting: Certain shapes pair particularly well with specific settings. Your jeweler can help you compare how different shapes work with solitaire, halo, three-stone, pavé, and other engagement ring designs.
Diamond proportions: Two diamonds with the same shape and carat weight can look very different depending on their length-to-width ratio and overall proportions.
Diamond Shapes for Engagement Rings
The shape of the center diamond plays a major role in the overall appearance of an engagement ring. Round, oval, emerald, cushion, radiant, pear, marquise, princess, Asscher, and heart shaped diamonds can each create a very different look in the same ring setting.
When choosing an engagement ring, consider the diamond shape together with the setting, metal, band width, accent diamonds, and overall design.
At Devon’s Diamonds & Decor, we can help you compare different diamond shapes and find an engagement ring design that fits your style.
Natural & Lab-Grown Diamonds
Diamond shape is independent of whether a diamond is natural or lab-grown. Both natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds are available in many of the same popular shapes, including round, oval, emerald, cushion, radiant, pear, marquise, princess, Asscher, and heart.
If you are deciding between natural and lab-grown diamonds, our team can help you compare available stones based on shape, carat weight, color, clarity, cut, and overall design.
Diamond Shapes for Custom Jewelry
Choosing a diamond shape is especially important when creating a custom engagement ring or other piece of fine jewelry. The shape of the center stone can influence the proportions, setting, accent diamonds, and overall design of the piece.
Devon’s Diamonds & Decor offers custom jewelry design in Boca Raton, allowing you to create an engagement ring, wedding band, or other piece of jewelry around the diamond shape you love.
Find Your Diamond Shape in Boca Raton
Whether you prefer the classic sparkle of a round brilliant diamond, the elongated look of an oval or marquise, the clean lines of an emerald or Asscher cut, or something more distinctive like a pear or heart shape, exploring different diamonds in person can make the decision easier.
Visit Devon’s Diamonds & Decor at Royal Palm Place in Boca Raton to explore natural and lab-grown diamonds and discuss your engagement ring or custom jewelry ideas with our team.
Devon’s Diamonds & Decor
502 Via De Palmas, Suite 78
Boca Raton, FL 33432
(561) 430-6988
