This is the Lei è Engagement Ring Journal.

Discover how to maximise your budget, decode the diamond industry, and ensure a smooth consultation experience.

Bespoke Consultation Series,
…what you’ll need know at each stage.

Here is the roadmap;

1. Are you looking for a gemstone or diamond?

2. What type of stone are you after?

3. What colour gemstone or diamond?

4. What cut (shape) for the stone?

5. What design style are you interested in?

6. What is your budget range?

QUESTION THREE & FOUR

“What colour gemstone or diamond?” & “What cut (shape) for the stone?

Due to the

What colour stone?

This is somewhat covered in your previous answers and we’ll be riding shotgun through this decision to guide you, if needed. So don’t stress.

Colour will be a significant rationale for your choice of ‘type of gemstone’. However, as I mentioned in previous emails, we will always be here to entice the ‘oh woah, I didn’t know sapphire or tourmaline or… garnet, came in that colour’.

You just need to set the crosshairs in the right direction. We’ll ask for a base colour range that you are looking at and then let us get to work.

If you haven’t considered colour as a driving force in your decision making process, this can actually be a good thing. It gives us a bit more flexibility on the backend once we are designing. So again, no need to sweat it.

One thing I would add on colours is… I’m assuming most of you understand that every colour can be found in the ‘gemstone world’. However, it is far less known about the colours of diamonds that are available.

Where we find the greatest opportunity and value, is within the ‘in-between’ colour categories. By which I mean, diamond colours that are unclassified in that colour range. For example, a warm white diamond that isn’t yellow enough to be classified as a ‘Yellow Diamond’ or grey/light brown diamonds, that have an amazing unique appeal, yet are not technically ‘champagne’ diamonds. These options come at a significant price advantage.

Believe me, we have much more on this later. I don’t want to confuse things at this early stage, much of these finer points will come during the education stages once you are ‘all in’.

So, the only main takeaway is; you are either staunchly convicted on a certain colour or you are happy for the other variables (cut, type, uniqueness etc.) to swing the choice for you.

This will be enough to get your tires pumped for the next stage...

What Cut / Shape?

The choice of shape won’t often need guidance, as this is usually one of the design aspects that is known coming in.

However, there are a few key aspects that we can unpack for you that might change the way you approach the design.

So let me start with a very basic breakdown of each cut, then I’ll give you some considerations and reasons to think about alternatives. Sound good? Alright, let’s crack on…

1. Round; You know this one. Round solitaires makes up 80% of all engagement ring choices. But, if we know our audience… That’s not why you are here, is it? In our world, rounds can make for great centre stones in a cluster design with a spray of diamonds down the shank.
   

2. Oval - the most popular choice for our customers. Very versatile and a great showcase of a centre stone that has ‘something to say’.
   

3. Pear - a really, really good option for millimetre size. What we call ‘spready’. As in, it has a wide spread. A 1 carat pear will look far bigger than a 1 carat oval.
   

4. Emerald - rectangle shape, with cut corners. This is the first of our ‘step cut’ shapes. Meaning, the facets (the individual flat angles that are cut onto the surface of the stone) are rectangular in shape. This provides a longer viewing window for the internal elements of the stone, therefore great for bi-colours and unique patterning.
   

5. Radiant - similar to emerald cut in that it is a rectangular shape, with cut corners. However the radiant cut as triangular facets, which creates more ‘brilliance’. Brilliance essentially meaning; ‘sparkle’.
   

6. Asscher - square shape with cut corners. Same as an emerald cut, just square. This style also has step cuts.
   

7. Marquise - “pointy oval”. I can hear the jewellery industry groaning at that description, however we’ve heard customers say, ‘Oh yeh the pointy oval type’. I love it.
   

8. Princess - square cut, but sharp pointed corners. You can get princess cut in both step cut and triangular facets.
   

9. Irregular - any freeform cut, which we work a lot with. Very unique and individualistic. Cutters have usually chosen this approach in order to get the highest yield from the rough. Meaning, that the roughs are an organic shape, therefore to cut a symmetrical stone will mean losing a lot of the rough. Therefore an irregular cut makes the most of its natural shape.
   

10. Kite/Shield cut - again, let the names doing the heavy lifting. Kite cut, will look like a kite. Four sides, two of which are longer than the others. Shield cut will be very similar however it will have five sides. Typically this is cutting the bottom off the shorter sides.

11. The rest… These rarely are used as centre stones, they are most often accent (side stones).

    1. Baguette

    2. trillion

    3. Trapezoid

    4. Tapered

    5. Half-moon

    6. Cadillac

What and why to consider different shapes…

This is my hierarchy when designing;

1. Stone TYPE/Colour

2. Ring Design

3. Cut/Shape

So although it is less important in this hierarchy, it actually then becomes the funnest side of the decision. We can play around with different options, find little cost-effective benefits to certain approaches… Enjoy this stage! Here’s some thought starters:

• Unless you have your heart set on emerald cut OR unless it is a bi-colour stone, we believe radiant as a better option due how the triangular facets make the light dance.
  

• Emerald and radiant will hold a lot of the weight in their butt. By which I mean the pavilion (domed area that sits within the setting). So you pay for the weight that you can’t see from the top. A good alternative is asscher cut. Although similar with the big ass, it’s strong ratio once paired with a good set of accent stones, seems to have a bolder presence on the finger. Also, it’s a far cheaper cut.
  

• As previously mentioned, Pear cuts look massive. If they’re within your scope, you’d be mad not to at least strongly consider it. They also have a great traditional and timeless feel.
  

• We love irregular cuts. They come with such an immediate personal connection due to their being no recipe on how to cut this style, it’s at the judgment of the stone cutter and it will never be done again. They’re super fun to design with as well. By nature of the freeform cut, the diamond clusters also need to have such a unique orientation.

• Also, here’s something to consider…. We can help you find an elongated trillion diamond which we set on its side, which takes on the look of the irregular clusters. See below.

• We don’t use a lot of round cut stones, by nature of being a unique bespoke jeweller, the majority of our customers are typically looking for a non-traditional approach. However, they can be used beautifully in a cluster design, even as an alternative to an oval. Similar to how we would often utilise the asscher instead of emerald cut.

• Kite cut & shield cuts make their way into our design styles very often and are always well received. They are hard to envision, so they are not commissioned as such, however once they are designed and listed, people really take a shine to them. They pair so well with crown clusters (see below for example) and are a great pear cut alternative. Also with the similar characteristics of the ‘spready’ pear cuts, in which a 1ct kite cut is massive. You really don’t need to go over 0.75ct to 1ct.

Alright, let’s leave it there.

I’d say my key takeaway from this question is; we’ll have fun during this stage. We can get creative, hacky-sack some ideas around…. This is where our experience will begin to take the reigns. So don’t stress!

Next post, will be tackling;

What design style are you interested in?