Square Cuts

[indecisive]

I would love to see the Dream and a great Square H&A compared... the Square H&As at GOG look so beautiful but it is hard not having seen them in person to compare with the Dream I have seen.

 

[ecf8503]

Date: 12/11/2005 11:54:14 PM
Author: Kim N
ecf8503, those pictures are very informative! How would the HOF Dream, Lucida, and the cushion cut differ from the ones you've shown?

Let me see what I can find for you - I have quite a few pics saved.

To be fair to cushions, I don't think you can post one or 2 pics and really understand the true range of looks that are out there. GOG has a few good pics of various styles on their cushion tutorial page, and if you search PS you'll find a ton of cushions, and they all look different. Radiants can be the same way - terminology is loose sometimes, I've noticed.



Here's an interesting one that I saw in person once - it's called the Arctic Empress by Sirius

 

[ecf8503]

Flanders (which I believe is the non-branded version of the Elara)

 

[ecf8503]

Flanders next to a Royal Asscher and a square emerald (photo originally posted by Diamond Brokers of Florida)

Sorry pic didn't attach - see below -

 

[ecf8503]

Here's a pic that I believe Ana posted - shows the cut plots of Lucere and Lucida (very similar cuts), and images of Lucere and Regent

 

[ecf8503]

Date: 12/12/2005 8:47:08 AM
Author: ecf8503
Flanders next to a Royal Asscher and a square emerald (photo originally posted by Diamond Brokers of Florida)

Here it is:

 

[ecf8503]

You can see the Lucere cut official slick on GOG''s site, and there is a finished ring in their gallery section you can see. Here''s a pic that shows the faceting pretty well:

 

[ecf8503]

Corona cut:

 

[ecf8503]

Slick for HOF Dream:

 

[ecf8503]

Hand shot or a real Dream: 0.65ct posted by gooloo

 

[ecf8503]

WF calls this a Radiant - I just think it is so unique

 

[ecf8503]

Antique called a square cushion from sjphillips

 

[ecf8503]

A 0.55ct Tiffany Lucida from Signed Pieces:

 

[princessv]

I have to add my experience with Tiffanys. I recently walked into Tiffanys to look at a silver bracelet. The lighting in there is just awesome! My Jubilee was just shining and sparkling away and the salesgirl was very impressed and asked me all sorts of questions about the cut, etc. I also went and browsed some of the rings. I honestly think there is no comparison when it comes to the Lucida. There is no hearts and arrows pattern in those. And my Jubilee definitely outshone them (I have to say LOL) I also go to try on the Legacy. I love the setting!

The legacy has a cushion cut and to me I thought the cushion cut center at Tiffanys looked way too rounded.

ecf8503: I don''t suppose that there is an IS for the Dream? They are just too expensive.

 

[ecf8503]

Date: 12/12/2005 9:46:59 AM
Author: princessv
I have to add my experience with Tiffanys. The lighting in there is just awesome! My Jubilee was just shining and sparkling away and the salesgirl was very impressed and asked me all sorts of questions about the cut, etc. I honestly think there is no comparison when it comes to the Lucida. There is no hearts and arrows pattern in those. And my Jubilee definitely outshone them (I have to say LOL)

ecf8503: I don''t suppose that there is an IS for the Dream?

I was in a Tiffany recently too - they do have nice lighting - then again, the skeptic in me always thinks of jewelry store lighting as a sales gimmick - a totally unrealistic environment designed to make "frozen spit" look good. He he. Tiffany''s rounds are nice, but I keep looking for arrows in them all the time... I like the idea of the Lucida - but in person they they just don''t grab me. (The Luceres I saw in person were more appealing to me.) I''m sure your Jube was by far the best performer in the store!

I do not have an IS image of a Dream - the topic comes up around here every now and then. Perhaps one of the experts has one or has seen one and could comment. It is said that the Dream is a nice square cut stone, but as you said the price premium is a put-off.

 

[princessv]

Thank you ecf for your compliment!

I did view the Dream a long time ago and I''m 90% that it only has hearts not arrows. I really really like and look for arrows since that is what one sees once the diamond is set.

I really also like the look of the Arctic Empress

For the others that are asking about square shapes. My advice is to make SURE that the prongs of your setting enhances the squareness or else the diamond will end up looking more round than square.

Ecf: I also think that there was a post in a past thread somewhere about what an IS of a Lucida would look like by combining a Regent and something else. I''ll have to look for it....personally for me it showed a good bit of light leakage.

 

[KTM300]

http://mail.google.com/mail/?view=att&disp=inline&attid=0.2&th=107ddc12d4a9a9ca

 

[Chinchy]

I didn''t get to directly compare the HOF Dream with the Sq H&A. But both sparkle like crazy.

One of the reasons why I also chose the Square Hearts and Arrows over the Dream was pricing (Dream is more expensive) and as mentioned above, the Dream doesn''t have both hearts and arrows, while the newer cuts like the Square Hearts and Arrows and the others do.

Also, one of the reasons I chose the Square Hearts and Arrows over the Jubilee is the placement of the arrows.

In this picture posted by ecf8503:

Notice that the arrows point at the centers of the edges, and at the diagonals. That means that if the diamond is set in a traditional 4 prong setting (at the corners), then the arrow tips will cover the arrows, and for me, I want the arrows unobscured.

But for the Square Hearts and Arrows:

Notice that the arrow placement leaves the corners open for prongs.

Either way you can''t lose, because the new fancy squares are really built for optimal optics. It just comes down to personal preferences for the small differences in shape.

Once the square hearts and arrows is set, it looks very square.

Here''s a pic of my fiancée''s ring after it has been set.

and here''s another image where, if you look hard, you can see that the arrows are not covered by prongs.