Radiant Cut Diamond Shape
If you love the fire of the traditional Round Brilliant Cut (the standard diamond engagement ring cut)
and the shape of the less fiery Emerald Cut and Asscher Cut, you just may love the
Radiant Cut Diamond.
Most square or rectangular cuts just don't live up to the round brilliant for sparkle, but the Radiant Cut was designed for
getting maximum brilliance. Like the emerald cut, the radiant cut diamond is often a rectangle
(sometimes square) with cropped corners,
but that's where the similarities end. Where the emerald cut has long trim lines, the radiant cut is faceted for fire.
Choosing a Radiant Cut Diamond
When purchasing a radiant cut diamond online, be sure to check width and length -- there are no
"rules" for length/width ratios for the radiant cut and you must review these numbers to determine
if the stone is rectangular or closer to square.
The radiant cut diamond is more forgiving of diamond flaws and weaknesses than the less sparkling
Emerald Cut Diamond
or the
Asscher Cut Diamond, so we provided two sets of "minimums" --
one giving more weight to quality and one giving more weight to budget.
Our minimum recommendations for buying radiant cut diamonds are as follows (please remember these
recommendations are opinion only, and your tastes may vary):
- Cut: Very Good
- Color: G
- Clarity: VS2
- Depth Percentage: 58-69%
- Table: 58-69%
Now if you're on a tight budget, you can still find a nice stone going with these minimums:
- Cut: Good
- Color: I
- Clarity: SI2
- Depth Percentage: 56-78%
- Table: 53-76%
Could you purchase cheaper radiant cut diamonds by going below these minimums? Absolutely. But we don't recommend it -- at some
point, one must consider the beauty of the stone, not simply the cost.
Radiant Cut Diamond Ring
While not the traditional selection, radiant cut diamonds are very popular right now and
make lovely engagement rings (either as a solitaire or with accent stones).
Radiant cut diamonds do require a minimum of afour-pronged settings (as pictured). Make sure to keep that in mind when making your selection.
To give you some ideas of what's available for a radiant cut diamond ring, we've preselected a range of certified radiant cut diamonds for you to
examine (all from Blue Nile, one of the premiere online diamond stores). These diamonds are within
our minimum requirements as listed above and are suitable for solitaire settings or settings with accent stones:
PLEASE NOTE: Most jewelers (including online) do not carry a wide range of radiant cut diamonds below one carat. If you're set
on a radiant cut diamond, but your budget won't allow you to purchase a one carat stone, give yourself some extra time for researching
a variety of stores to find the perfect diamond. You might also want to take a look at the more readily available
Princess Cut Diamond
or the
Asscher Cut Diamond.
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*PLEASE NOTE: All "Bargain Basement" diamonds fall below our minimum specification standards in one or more categories.
Where to buy Radiant Cut Diamonds
Not all dealers carry radiant cut diamonds, but for online purchase, we recommend
Blue Nile
