By Jewelry and Style Expert, Michael O’Connor
It used to be that when a woman thrust her hand out in front of friends to show off her engagement ring, you could pretty much count on one thing. The center diamond would be round. But like many wedding elements today, tastes are changing. Now when an engagement ring gets thrust up under your nose it’s likely that you might be quite surprised about the shape of things.
Photo via Getty Image
Hollywood has long been seen as a great indicator, and leader in style direction. So if you follow the highly chronicled engagements of your favorite celebrities, you’ll see that the popularity of square diamonds, and the derivatives of square cuts, is growing. That’s not to say that the allure of a scintillating round brilliant cut diamond is losing its sparkle. Celebrities like Natalie Portman and Carrie Underwood show that the round shape is still quite popular. In fact approximately 75% of diamonds sold worldwide still are cut in this shape. However, if you look a little further you’ll see that the shape of the future is decidedly square.
Photos via US Magazine
The princess cut:
From Carrie Ann Inaba to Sherri Shepherd to Hillary Duff, the princess cut has been turning heads for a while. Developed in 1960 the princess cut takes its outside edges from a square shape of the rough diamond crystal but combines that with cross cut faceting on the (crown) top and chevron shaped faceting on the pavilion (underside). The result is an elegant angular shape with a high degree of light return and scintillation, similar to what people love about a round brilliant cut. Since it’s inception, princess cut diamond desirability has been growing and now claims the number 2 spot for popularity of center stone.
Photos via UKHairdressers.com
The cushion cut:
A cut that is enjoying huge popularity lately is the cushion cut. The cut actually originated about 200 years ago and was quite popular. In fact, some of the most famous diamonds in the world, like the Hope Diamond and the Tiffany Diamond are cushion cut. The shape is “square-ish” with rounded corners and the faceting has been modified over the years to improve light return. However, this cut is not meant to have the brilliance associated with round diamonds, but rather, gives a more sophisticated “old-world” appearance which may account for it’s renewed popularity.
Celebrities from Ivanka Trump to Giuliana Rancic share this elegant cut in their engagement rings.
Photo via Newsdumper
Other popular square shapes seen on our favorite celebrities include the unusual Ashoka cut, worn by Reese Witherspoon, a cut modified from an antique cushion cut with a rectangular outline and rounded corners.
Photos via Stylelist
The Asscher cut:
Celebrities Karina Smirnoff and Vanessa Minnillo prefer the “flashier” look of a square Asscher cut. Developed by Joseph Asscher in the mid 1800’s the cut is square with widely clipped corners (giving it an octagonal look) and step cut facets that return a bright-white sparkle.
Photo via BecomeGorgeous.com
And if the Kardashian girls are any indicator of the shape of things to come, both Khloe and Kim opted for square styles. Khloe still loves her radiant cut, a square shape with pavilion facets similar to a round. Kim’s classic (and huge) emerald-cut? Well, I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens!