colored diamonds/shapes to maximize color

[:)]

In general I always think of a radiant to be a good choice for a colored diamond. I think b/c often I think back to the pic Garry posted long ago of an M recut from a round into a fancy yellow radiant. I certainly have seen other shapes that were beautiful colors too including emeralds which I thought would lose some body color due to the step cut. Budgets aside, for a yellow or a pink diamond, what shapes best maximize the color to the eye?

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

Round is worst, crushed ice stlye radiants and cushions are best because they have a longer ray path. Some emerald cut / asschers can work well, especially if they have that wishing well effect

 

[diagem]

Date: 3/26/2008 3:04:56 AM
Author: Garry H (Cut Nut)
Round is worst, crushed ice stlye radiants and cushions are best because they have a longer ray path. Some emerald cut / asschers can work well, especially if they have that wishing well effect

Crushed ice style..., without the crushed ice part...
To get an even appearance in the face-up position..., you need to paint the brillianteering on the pavilion as the contrast kills the evenness!

 

[:)]

Thanks guys! DG, does the brillianteering comment refer to all pavillions (meaning all shapes or just certain shapes?)

 

[webz]

The Radiant cut will have the best color and Brilliance.
I would venture to guess that somewhere around 90% of all fancy color diamonds are cut to this shape to achieve maximum color saturation while maintaining high Brilliance.

Second to that would be the Cushion, the Oval and the Pear.
All three cuts have the ability to retain strong color saturation and nice tonality without sacrificing Brilliance.
In all three cases you must be on the lookout for a bow-tie or other areas that either diminish or extinguish Saturation and Brilliance.

Emerald cut fancy color diamonds can be either gorgeous or complete dogs.
I can think of a really amazing Intense Yellow Emerald cut that was what I would call a "stop and stare at me for awhile" kind of stone.
On the other hand a Vivid Orange Emerald cut also comes to mind that I remember not having been able to see really any trace of color in the entire middle section of the stone.
Apart from losing color in the step cut Crown, you can also get the hourglass effect which is that shape across the very center of the stone that is almost completely devoid of color. Think of a bow-tie x10.
Due to rarity, that is to say the lack of availability, Emerald cut fancy color diamonds diamonds will sell at a premium relative to more common cuts.

The Round Brilliant cut is also a rarity in the natural colored diamond world.
However, a well cut Round that does show color well will sell at a massive premium over any other shape again because of very limited availability.

After that I suppose there are some Princess cut colored diamonds that make the grade.
I recently had a Fancy Deep Pink Princess cut that was just amazing. Argyle material that you couldn''t extinguish, even by cutting it to a Princess.
Again, it is either a case of really beautiful or simply horrid.
There is no middle ground with this cut.

Heart shape diamonds can be very beautiful but so much depends on the shape of the stone.

I haven''t addressed the Marquise cut.....

I''ve been seeing a lot of mixed cuts recently.
I must say that they make for some really attractive stones.

Regardless of the shape it is important to note that the proportions of a natural colored diamond can have a very different set of characteristics than the "ideal" proportioning of a colorless stone. It should make sense when you think of it in these terms;

One of the goals of the proportioning of a colorless diamond is to reduce as much color from the crystal as possible given that a "D" color is still more valuable than a "G" color.

With fancy color diamonds it is quite the opposite with the intensity of the color saturation really being the primary determinant of value.
The more intense or saturate the color, the more rare and valuable the diamond.

All this being said I realize that I am slowly meandering off topic and the bottom line is, the Radiant is still the King of natural fancy color diamond cuts.

Note: I would have added some really nice images as examples of everything I am referring to but noticed in BOLD print that we should only add images from pricescope.com....

 

[diagem]

Date: 3/27/2008 12:30:12 AM
Author: IceStore, Inc.
The Radiant cut will have the best color and Brilliance.
I would venture to guess that somewhere around 90% of all fancy color diamonds are cut to this shape to achieve maximum color saturation while maintaining high Brilliance.

Colorless Radiants and colored Radiants are usually cut with different facet structures and always to different facet angles!

Second to that would be the Cushion, the Oval and the Pear.
All three cuts have the ability to retain strong color saturation and nice tonality without sacrificing Brilliance.
In all three cases you must be on the lookout for a bow-tie or other areas that either diminish or extinguish Saturation and Brilliance.

Shapes do help retain color..., but the main factor for retaining color is (A) the body color itself and (B) the faceting structure, sizes, angles and shapes. For example: a squarish cushion brilliant (57-58 facets) will act just about the same as a round brilliant (maybe a little more because of the the shape).

Bow-tie effect on fancy colored fancy shapes can be a plus (if applied at the right angle), dont forget one of the reasons for bow-tie effects is the painted lgf''s..., which helps minimize the contrast needed for even color distribution!

Emerald cut fancy color diamonds can be either gorgeous or complete dogs.
I can think of a really amazing Intense Yellow Emerald cut that was what I would call a ''stop and stare at me for awhile'' kind of stone.
On the other hand a Vivid Orange Emerald cut also comes to mind that I remember not having been able to see really any trace of color in the entire middle section of the stone.
Apart from losing color in the step cut Crown, you can also get the hourglass effect which is that shape across the very center of the stone that is almost completely devoid of color. Think of a bow-tie x10.
Due to rarity, that is to say the lack of availability, Emerald cut fancy color diamonds diamonds will sell at a premium relative to more common cuts.

A nice great saturated EC will command premiums of 2, 3 or even 4 times the price of its counterpart modified cut or shape that is cut to retain or try to catch color.

The Round Brilliant cut is also a rarity in the natural colored diamond world.
However, a well cut Round that does show color well will sell at a massive premium over any other shape again because of very limited availability.

After that I suppose there are some Princess cut colored diamonds that make the grade.
I recently had a Fancy Deep Pink Princess cut that was just amazing. Argyle material that you couldn''t extinguish, even by cutting it to a Princess.
Again, it is either a case of really beautiful or simply horrid.
There is no middle ground with this cut.

Heart shape diamonds can be very beautiful but so much depends on the shape of the stone.

I haven''t addressed the Marquise cut.....

I figure you are not too fond of MQ''s...

, but when not cut in the modified version to retain color..., a regular Marquise Brilliant with the right color saturation can be a killer Gem!

I''ve been seeing a lot of mixed cuts recently.
I must say that they make for some really attractive stones.

Regardless of the shape it is important to note that the proportions of a natural colored diamond can have a very different set of characteristics than the ''ideal'' proportioning of a colorless stone. It should make sense when you think of it in these terms;

One of the goals of the proportioning of a colorless diamond is to reduce as much color from the crystal as possible given that a ''D'' color is still more valuable than a ''G'' color.

With fancy color diamonds it is quite the opposite with the intensity of the color saturation really being the primary determinant of value.
The more intense or saturate the color, the more rare and valuable the diamond.

All this being said I realize that I am slowly meandering off topic and the bottom line is, the Radiant is still the King of natural fancy color diamond cuts.

Only as a cut for catching color! Thats why there are so many out there (as you''ve mentioned), kings are a very limited breed!

Note: I would have added some really nice images as examples of everything I am referring to but noticed in BOLD print that we should only add images from pricescope.com....

Most of the time the characteristics are different...., but when you get a real (not cut for color retention) colored Diamond (or what I call the REAL McCoy!!!)..., there is no need to get into the modified or tricky cuts to keep the color in the Diamond..., and then the characteristics are not too different (except for weight retention for extreme value purposes) than a colorless Diamond and thats where the crazy premiums start flying!

If any wishes to read about it here ya go...: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/fancy-light-yellow-fancy-or-cape.66898/

 

[diagem]

Date: 3/26/2008 9:24:32 PM
Author:
Thanks guys! DG, does the brillianteering comment refer to all pavillions (meaning all shapes or just certain shapes?)

, :-{)

Not step-cuts....,

But all the brilliant cut pavilions that need to trick the cut to even-out the colored appearance...
The real McCoys can handle any kind of brillianteering or contrast..., thats why they sell at crazy premiums!

 

[CaptAubrey]

Date: 3/27/2008 7:09:30 AM
Author: DiaGem

Most of the time the characteristics are different...., but when you get a real (not cut for color retention) colored Diamond (or what I call the REAL McCoy!!!)..., there is no need to get into the modified or tricky cuts to keep the color in the Diamond..., and then the characteristics are not too different (except for weight retention for extreme value purposes) than a colorless Diamond and thats where the crazy premiums start flying!

Some time ago, I was shown a fancy vivid pink that was also cut to superideal proportions (I have to be vague because such things are so incredibly rare). You would think weight retention would be paramount with such rough, but apparently the cutter wanted to make a point, and oh my goodness did he ever. Suffice to say that my socks were not just blown off but flew into the next county.

Of course, the asking price was enough to induce sticker shock into even the most jaded dealer... though I heard a while later that it actually sold for more.

 

[diagem]

Date: 3/27/2008 3:20:42 PM
Author: CaptAubrey

Date: 3/27/2008 7:09:30 AM
Author: DiaGem

Most of the time the characteristics are different...., but when you get a real (not cut for color retention) colored Diamond (or what I call the REAL McCoy!!!)..., there is no need to get into the modified or tricky cuts to keep the color in the Diamond..., and then the characteristics are not too different (except for weight retention for extreme value purposes) than a colorless Diamond and thats where the crazy premiums start flying!

Some time ago, I was shown a fancy vivid pink that was also cut to superideal proportions (I have to be vague because such things are so incredibly rare). You would think weight retention would be paramount with such rough, but apparently the cutter wanted to make a point, and oh my goodness did he ever. Suffice to say that my socks were not just blown off but flew into the next county.

Of course, the asking price was enough to induce sticker shock into even the most jaded dealer... though I heard a while later that it actually sold for more.

Yup..., Capt..., these puppies when you find them..., their prices are becoming record breakers in present day dealings!

Here an intense yellow RB (VG/VG GIA)

 

[tberube]

Date: 3/26/2008 3:04:56 AM
Author: Garry H (Cut Nut)
Round is worst, crushed ice stlye radiants and cushions are best because they have a longer ray path. Some emerald cut / asschers can work well, especially if they have that wishing well effect

what''s the wishing well effect?

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 3/27/2008 3:29:50 PM
Author: DiaGem

Yup..., Capt..., these puppies when you find them..., their prices are becoming record breakers in present day dealings!

Here an intense yellow RB (VG/VG GIA)

That''s not puppies!
This is puppies!! rofl!

 

[:)]

Sorry I had unexpected things come up so I could not come back sooner to thank you all after asking my questions here - I really appreciate all of your extremely detailed and informative input - I am going to study it in depth including links.
I guess the best is to stick with a ''real mccoy'' Diagem referred to - if only the bank account doesn''t suffer sticker shock - although most of us need to resort to such tricks as maximizing the cut tricks to maximize the color!!!