Investing in engagement rings is one of those decisions that will stay with you for a lifetime, even if you don’t get married to the person you thought you’d spend the rest of your life with or if things fail years down the line. And as the basal item that represents your love for each other, the commitment to love and care for each other for as long as you live, through it all, you need to make sure that the diamond engagement ring you choose is the one that you love.
But with numerous options to choose from, how do you make sure that the diamond’s cut best represents who you are – your style, personality, and preference?
Today, we’ll help you look narrow down your choices by looking at the differences between the Tiffany Cut and the Princess Cut engagement rings.
So, what are the differences between the Tiffany and the Princess Cut Rings?
First, it’s important to note that the diamond shape can be defined as the geometric appearance of diamonds. These diamond shapes can be round-shaped or fancy-shaped. Often, round-shaped diamonds are the most traditional of the diamond shapes, and they are also referred to as the round, brilliant cuts diamonds.
On the other hand, you have the fancy shaped diamonds, which are the diamond shapes that aren’t round cut or brilliant; for example, the heart, marquise, emerald, princess, pear, cushion, and the Tiffany cut True diamonds.
What are Tiffany cuts?
Tiffany & Co offers the widest range of diamonds in a variety of shapes and cuts, ensuring that the design of the ring is extraordinary and also the best representation of your love for each other. Essentially, the diamond shape you settle on should be a representation of your unique personality and style. The diamond shapes and cuts are as follows:
The Round Brilliant cut diamonds – these round-cut diamonds are the most popular diamond shape. They boast an intense, beautiful sparkle as they are cut for the optimization of brilliance thanks to the 56 facets on the diamond with high reflectivity. These faces also cast numerous tiny rainbows, hence the most breathtaking shows of contrast and sparkle. As one of Tiffany’s most iconic diamond cut style dating back to 1886, Tiffany’s round cut diamond setting features an excellent triple, brilliant, round cut diamond. This diamond cut is now the standard by which all the engagement rings are measured.
The Princess-cut diamonds – this is the other beloved cut for diamonds, and it boasts a nice, contemporary sparkle and style. It is also the most popular and the fanciest diamond-cut shape. This cut features square-modified diamonds with brilliant cuts and pointed corners. It boasts over 50 chevron facets and cuts that are defined by the exceptional scintillation and fire. And depending on the diamond’s length-to-width ratio, most of the princess-cut diamonds will appear either rectangular or square.
Emerald-cut diamonds – this is the other highly sought after design of diamond cuts, and it’s popular for its eye-catchy depth and its understated glamour. It has an octagonal-step-cut with rectangular, parallel facets. These diamonds also feature a large and open-table design that beautifully highlights the pure color and that nice, icy level of clarity.
Cushion-cut diamonds – traditionally, these diamond cuts are also known as the pillow-cut diamonds that feature rounded edges designed to soften the rectangular or square-cut edges. Therefore, these diamond cuts offer a unique spin to that classic round and brilliant cut.
The other cuts include:
- The Oval diamond cut, a fusion of the marquise and the round, brilliant diamond cut with shimmering facets that create a magnificent light dance and also an illusion of significantly longer fingers.
- Tiffany True Diamond Cuts– This diamond cut is a mix of the modern diamond cut combining the step-cut crowns and the beautiful brilliant-cut pavilion. This cut is unique to Tiffany, with the diamond’s cut meeting the triple diamond’s excellent grade and the highest possible cut quality/ grade throughout the industry. Thanks to the innovative design of the diamond’s cut, the cuts offer a nice display of white light reflections that are well-balanced with the movement of light and subtle rainbows.
The other shapes include the symmetrical heart-shaped diamond cuts and the pear-shaped diamond cut.
Pros and cons of Tiffany cuts
Pros
- The cut amplifies the reflection of light and the brilliance of the diamond, thanks to the raised design of the diamond.
- It supports multiple diamond shapes carat sizes.
- Easy maintenance and cleaning
- Nice, stylish, and classic look
Cons
- The diamond could snag on your clothing or other materials, especially for the high-set diamonds.
- The diamond can become loose too easily.
- Need for constant inspection of the diamonds
- Not ideal for persons leading active lifestyles
What is Princess Cut Diamond?
The princess cut diamond refers to the traditional square diamond cut boasting an excellent brilliance and fire. It is a fancy diamond shape that’s made from the inverted pyramid shape of the rough stones. These brilliant-cut diamonds are among some of the most brilliant diamond shapes and quite popular for engagement rings.
In an article on Diamond cuts in Wikipedia, the modern Princess Cut diamond was introduced first by A.Nagy of London in 1960. The princess cut diamonds are regarded as runners up to the elegant Round Brilliant diamond cut, also popular in today’s market. Studies further show that the princess cut diamonds boast popularity of 23% after the round cut diamonds with a popularity of 64%.
Besides its popularity among customers, the princess-cut diamond is also popular among the manufacturers and diamond cutters thanks to the high yield obtained from the diamond’s rough. Basically, imagine cutting two rough diamonds down at the middle, and you have two princess cut diamonds. Once cut into two, the pieces will have some structure added to them at the top of the diamond stone and the brilliant stone’s faceting.
The yield for the round-cut diamond is usually around 40%, while and the princess cut diamonds boast a high yield that lies in the 80s to 90% range. As a result, the princess cut diamonds are cheaper than the round brilliant-cut diamonds. There’s also the fact that the Princess-cut diamonds are made from high-quality and well-formed rough-cut diamond crystals, hence cleaner rough cuts.
The other thing to keep in mind when it comes to the clarity grades of the diamonds with the princess cut. The princess-cut diamonds boast a rather skewed clarity level, which is why you’d never find Princess-cut diamonds in the SI2 and the I1 diamond clarity grades. Then you have the larger tables that increase the clarity level of the diamonds.
Regarding the eye-cleanliness of the princess-cut diamonds, you should know that the princess cut diamonds are eye clean, but they may have some inclusions seen under the magnifying glass.
To buy one of the best princess-cut diamonds, here are some of the important considerations that you need to keep in mind:
- Color of the diamonds– when buying the princess cut diamonds; you need to be a lot more careful about the color of the diamond because its brilliant-cut would mean that the color is chopped up and the true color a lot more to perceive. For the best princess cut diamonds, choose a ring in the H-I color range. You could also go higher, as long as you ensure that the color of the center stone matches with the colors of the accent diamond stones.
- Clarity– the princess cut diamonds are better at hiding the inclusions, but they don’t offer the best level of durability. The 4 corners of the diamonds tend to be prone to chipping, and the presence of inclusions at the corners would increase the chances of chipping. The VS2 and the SI1 are the most recommended options for people looking for princes cut diamonds.
- Cut– these diamonds are designed to fit onto the shape of the diamond’s rough, and there aren’t any parameters for that perfect princess cut. The total depth is also important, and the best range for the depth is between 65 and 75% for a perfect balance of brilliance and size.
Settings
Some of the best settings for the princess cut diamonds include:
- Solitaire for entry of maximum light
- Channel set for the princess cut setting for ¼ carat channel engagement rings.
- Halo setting with smaller diamonds surrounding the center stage, creating an illusion of a bigger center stage.
- Vintage setting with more ornate and unique features for a uniquely designed, elegant princess cut diamond.
The pros and cons of Princess cut
Pros
- Considerably less expensive
- It hides inclusions and blemishes easily.
- Nice flash, brilliance, and fire
- Beautiful modern cuts
- The ring boasts solitaire setting perfection.
- Works well with baguettes and halo settings
Cons
- The corners chip rather easily
- You need to watch the corners.
- Limited availability, which raises the price of the diamonds
Tiffany cut vs. Princess cut (which one is better)
Generally, the Tiffany Cut offers a wider range of cuts and settings than the Princess cut diamonds, albeit at a higher price tag. Most people prefer the Princess cut diamonds, though.
Note that if you are looking for more design options, then the Tiffany Cut diamonds might be the best option for you.
Conclusion
If you weren’t sure about the differences between the Tiffany and the Princess cut, the article above shares all the important insights into the diamonds for you.
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Stephanie is a jewelry lover when she was a teenager. Her major was fashion design when she was in college. She is a jewelry designer at SOQ Jewelry and other design companies. Now she is also a writer for our website. She writes a lot of designs&brands posts with very actionable tips.