Oval, emerald, pear or radiant: choosing a stone shape

Brilliant cuts and step cuts

Almost every shape belongs to one of two families, and knowing which explains most of what you see.

Brilliant cuts are faceted in triangles and kites arranged to bounce light back at you. They sparkle: small, fast flashes as the hand moves. Round, oval, pear, marquise, cushion, heart and radiant are all brilliant cuts.

Step cuts are faceted in long parallel planes, like a staircase seen from above. They don't scintillate; they flash broad sheets of light, an effect people call a hall of mirrors. Emerald and baguette cuts are step cuts. They are calmer and more architectural, and they hide nothing, so they reward a clean stone.

The shapes, one by one

Round brilliant. The most light returned of any shape, and the reference everything else is measured against. It also loses the most material in cutting, which makes it the most expensive per carat.

Oval. A round brilliant stretched. For the same weight it presents a larger face-up surface than a round, and it lengthens the finger. Look for an even outline; some ovals show a faint dark bow-tie across the middle.

Emerald. A rectangular step cut with cut corners. Quiet, tailored, unmistakably deliberate. It looks larger than its weight because so much of the stone is spread across the top, and it flatters a long hand.

Pear. A round at one end, a point at the other. Elongating and dramatic. The point is the vulnerable part and wants a prong over it. Which way it faces — tip towards the fingertip or towards the hand — is worth deciding before you order.

Radiant. The outline of an emerald cut with brilliant faceting inside: the tailored shape, but with sparkle. A good middle path if you like the emerald silhouette and the round's liveliness.

Cushion. A square or rectangle with rounded corners. Softer than a princess cut, warmer in feel, and suited to a design with a vintage leaning.

Princess. A square brilliant: sharp and modern. More of the grown stone survives the cutting, so it is efficient. The four corners are its thin points and should sit inside protective prongs.

Marquise. A long boat shape with two points. It covers more finger than almost anything of the same weight, and it is bold by nature.

Heart. A pear with a cleft. It needs to be well cut, and a decent size, to read clearly as a heart.

Baguette and tapered baguette. Small step-cut rectangles, used along the shoulders of a ring rather than as a centre stone. They frame a centre stone with clean lines instead of more sparkle.

Which looks biggest?

Weight is not size. The elongated shapes — oval, marquise, pear, emerald — spread more of their weight across the top of the stone, so they look larger face-up than a round or a cushion of the same carat weight. If size on the finger is what you want, they are the efficient choice.

What each asks of its setting

Pointed and cornered shapes — pear, marquise, princess, heart — have edges that can chip if struck hard, so they want prongs over those points, or a bezel around them. Settings explained covers what each setting does.

Shape and price

Shape changes the price. Rounds cost the most per carat; fancy shapes generally cost less, because less of the grown stone is lost in cutting. Choosing an oval over a round at the same millimetre size is one of the few ways to get a larger-looking stone for less.

Quick answers

Which shape sparkles most?

Round brilliant, by design.

Which shape looks largest for its weight?

Oval, marquise, pear and emerald.

Which shape costs least?

For the same weight, fancy shapes generally cost less per carat than round.

Does shape affect durability?

Pointed and cornered shapes want protective settings. Rounds and ovals have no weak points.

Can I have a design in a different shape?

Send us the design and the shape you want, and we will tell you what is possible.