What’s the one thing that catches your eye when you see someone wearing diamonds? For most people, it’s the sparkle. And while most people want to buy diamonds with the most sparkle, they don’t know how to identify such gemstones.
Sparkle is a result of many factors such as diamond cut, the shape of diamonds, color, etc. If you understand some basics of these factors, it becomes easier to identify diamonds with a good sparkle.
So, let’s dig deep into diamond sparkle.
What is the Sparkle of a Diamond?
The quality of diamond sparkle depends on the diamond cut. A well cut diamond reflects light. But this brings us to the question—what makes diamonds sparkle?
Diamonds display sparkle when there is internal reflection of light—when light rays travel from a more optically denser medium to a less optically denser medium.
But different diamond shapes display different levels of sparkle. Let’s understand how diamond cuts and shapes affect its sparkle.
Diamond Shapes and Sparkle
Before we get into the details of different diamond shapes and their sparkle, take a look at the different shapes below.
Round Brilliant Cut diamond
Round brilliant cut diamonds have the most sparkle among all shapes of diamonds. Round brilliant diamonds have 58 facets including the culet. This allows light to enter the diamond and reflect from every facet, thus, creating a beautiful sparkle.
Princess Cut Diamond
As seen in the diagram of the princess cut, this type of diamond cut has the ability to split up and reflect light. High quality princess cut diamonds display excellent sparkle.
Pear Cut Diamond
The pear cutdiamond has a facet pattern similar to the round brilliant cut diamond. It has 58 facets just like the round cut diamond that reflect excellent light. Well-cut pear-shaped diamonds display high quality sparkle.
Oval Cut Diamond
The elongated oval cut diamonds have 56 facets, which display brilliance when reflecting light, producing a beautiful sparkle. The oval diamond, when studden in different pieces of jewelry, displays different sparkling effects.
Marquise Cut Diamond
The marquise cut diamond, too, with its 56 facets, displays similar brilliance as brilliant cut diamonds. In addition, it also looks bigger than other diamonds due to its shape. This accentuates its sparkle.
Emerald Cut Diamond
The emerald cut diamond is among the less common shapes, and perhaps, that’s because its shape doesn’t lend it brightness and sparkle such as other shapes. However, this shape displays better clarity and luster.
How to Choose Diamonds with Excellent Sparkle?
Observe the Diamond under Different Lights
Diamonds sparkle because of light, and the best way to examine its sparkle is to view the diamond under different types of lighting. But ensure the light is not overwhelming, or else, the diamond sparkle will get lost.
No matter the shape of the diamond, keep changing the intensity of the light to examine the sparkle. For example, view it under natural light as well as different types of artificial lights. If the diamond displays consistent sparkle under different types of light, it’s good to go.
Examine the Diamond Cut Quality
Another factor that can help assess diamond sparkle, is the diamond cut. When diamonds are cut well, they display an even pattern and good reflection of light. Good cut diamonds display bright areas evenly distributed with consistent sparkle.
The diamond cut is graded in the range of excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor. Diamonds graded excellent for their cut display good brightness and sparkle.
Avoid Myths and False Facts Behind the Sparkle
There are a lot of myths and false facts floating around. For example, bigger diamonds sparkle better. The truth is, while diamonds that are larger may appear to sparkle more, that's not the reality.
Diamonds that have identical proportions and facets, color, and clarity, have the same sparkle, no matter their size or carat.
Ready to Choose your Sparkling Diamonds?
Now that you know a little bit more about diamond cut, diamond shapes, and what makes them sparkle, you can make a more informed decision when buying diamonds.
No matter the type of diamonds—lab grown diamond or natural—you can assess its sparkle quality based on the factors mentioned above. From the shape to the cut to the diamond color, there’s a lot that makes the diamonds sparkle.
