Rose cut stones were popular in Europe in the 1500's and are enjoying renewed popularity today. The most notable feature of this cut is the stone's flat, or near flat bottom. Picture a low gumdrop with facets cut into the top. The facets start from the center of the stone and spread outward, usually in multiples of 6 appearing like a rose opening up. Although this is an old style cut and antique rose cut diamonds can be found, the majority of what is available today is not antique.Personally, I love Rose cut diamonds. Their shimmery large surfaces and thin profiles offer lots of great design possibilities but there are a some limitations too. Here's a quick overview...
Shapes- Rose Cuts can be found in round, oval, pear, triangular and irregular shapes. Most are flat on the bottom and faceted on top. Some are very thin and faceted on top and bottom.
Color- Full spectrum of D Colorless on down and also in Fancy Colors. For more on this see the 4C's post.
Optics- Because rose cut stones are shallow, colorless Diamonds larger than about 2mm become transparent in open back prong settings. Light travels right through them and this is why larger stones are usually placed in closed back bezels. For added brilliance a shiny piece of foil is often placed inside the bezel and under the stone (a little jewelers' trick). Colored rose cuts work beautifully in prong settings with open backs because they are less transparent.
Size Perception- This is where it gets interesting...... Rose cut diamonds give the appearance of being much larger than they are because of their large surface area.
Rose Cut diamonds offer a big of bang for the buck. Just give some thought to type of setting you use taking into account the shade, clarity and size of the stone.
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