Round diamonds are, by far, the most popular diamond shape in the world of diamond jewellery. But are all diamonds round? No, there are a variety of diamond shapes such as the cushion-cut, oval, pear, the princess-cut and more. Diamonds that are not round are called fancy-shaped diamonds. A lot of people do choose these over round solitaires. However, time and again, it is round solitaires that have always been a part of many a jewellery box.

Be it a diamond engagement ring, anniversary ring or a piece of diamond jewellery that one can wear to work; the round diamond is the first choice. Let’s find out why it always makes the cut.

What are round solitaires called?

The round diamond is also known as the round brilliant. This is because of its round shape and its brilliant cut. A brilliant cut is rendered to stones that can have multiple facets. That way the cut maximizes the brilliance of the stone. Round diamonds have 57 such facets and if you include the culet then it becomes 58. Each facet is symmetrically aligned to allow proper refraction and reflection of light. The light performance of a diamond, which comprises fire, brilliance and scintillation are the best in a round solitaire.

While choosing a piece of diamond or solitaire jewellery, consumers are, first and foremost, concerned about the sparkle of the diamond. Given its light performance as well as the brilliant cut, it is the round solitaire that they choose. This, however, does not mean that people completely avoid fancy-shaped diamonds all the time.

Why are they more expensive than fancy shapes?

The 4Cs of a diamond, as we know them, refer to the cut, clarity, colour and carat. With the round shape diamonds, it is possible to find a variety of beautiful combinations. As long as the cut grade is excellent or above, there is flexibility of choice between all other parameters.

This means that if your round diamond has an excellent cut, the fire and brilliance of such a stone can conceal a hint of colour or a negligible inclusion. Therefore, if you plan to stick to a budget while purchasing a diamond, you can always make slight adjustments to the colour and clarity. Which makes us think, are round diamonds more expensive than the other shapes? And the answer is yes.

The cutting of a round solitaire generally leads to a lot of waste from the rough diamond. To some extent, a highly-skilled diamond cutter may reduce some of the wastage. But this is what makes round cut diamonds more expensive than other fancy-shaped diamonds.

An important indicator of a perfect round solitaire is the Hearts & Arrows pattern. With the help of a Hearts & Arrows viewer, one can see a pattern of 8 hearts and 8 arrows inside perfectly cut round solitaires. While the Hearts & Arrows are a mark of the most perfect and precise cut, many ideal cut diamonds may not have this pattern.