Should you care about diamond table and diamond depth?

To maximise shiny-ness diamonds need to be cut at certain proportions. Cut with the wrong proportions and depth, and the diamond will appear dull and lifeless. This is why cut is the most important factor in the 4C’s.

Should you care? If you’re picking your own diamond – it is important to spend a bit of time to understand to help filter poorly-cut diamonds. This is why at Four Words, we specifically focus on picking the best diamonds that the eye can see, for you.

What is diamond table?

Diamond table is the facet that is visible when the stone is being seen top-down with its flat side facing you. It is also the biggest facet.

Why is diamond table important?

The primary purpose of a diamond table is to refract light so it goes through the diamond to the many facets of the stone. A diamond's fire, brilliance, and scintillation are all predominantly defined by its table. It is calculated by dividing the length of the table by the widest part of the diamond; typically along the girdle.

It may be tempting to think that a larger table means a better diamond. But this isn’t the case.

A good table needs to optimise for letting lots of light into the stone while also reducing the amount of light refracting onto the crown.

Working with a jeweller here is super important. For some cuts, table percentages have less of a bearing on the overall shininess; but in others it does.

For example, excellent table percentage for a round cut diamond can be between 54 and 57%. However, for a princess cut diamond, the excellent table percentage can be between 69 and 75%.

Should you care about diamond table percentages?

It depends who your jeweller is. If you work with Four Words, then you don’t need to worry about diamond table percentages because all our diamonds are the best that the eye can see. If you work with other retailers, particularly box retailers, it is worth asking the salesperson about the diamond table percentages. It can have a large bearing on the shininess of your diamond, particularly if it is an engagement ring.

What is diamond depth?

Diamond depth refers to the percentage of the length of a diamond to its maximum width. The length of a diamond is the distance that separates the table from the bottom of the diamond, also known as the culet. And just like the diamond table ratio, there is a diamond depth ratio; which is graded; and the most excellent cut depends on the shape of the diamond.

Why is diamond depth important?

Diamond depth is important because it determines where the stone's weight is concentrated and how light is reflected and refracted through the diamond.

If a diamond is shallow, it has a larger surface area and its weight is concentrated at the crown. While this will make your diamond appear larger, it will lack the fire and brilliance because the light will go through the diamond.

When a diamond is cut too deep, its weight is concentrated towards the bottom of the diamond — below the girdle. This will make your diamond appear smaller and can influence your table percentage.

Just like with diamond table percentages, there are ideal diamond depth percentages. This maximises both shine and appearance of size.

Should you care about diamond depth?

Again, if you work for a respected jeweller like Four Words — not at all. If you are unsure, specifically ask about diamond depth. You want to be looking for excellence or ideal when it comes to cut. A too shallow cut diamond will let most of the light through and it will lack sparkle and fire. A too deeply cut diamond, and it will look thinner and smaller than an equivalent sized diamond of a more shallow percentage.

What you should really care about

Working with a respected jeweller is one of the most important things you should care about. They should be able to explain to you not just the 4C’s but also getting the best bang for your buck. There is no point in over-spending if you can’t tell the difference. And ultimately it is better to get the best diamond that you can see. In some instances, it doesn’t make sense to get a triple excellent cut because of the diamond’s shape and it having no noticeable difference.

Buy the best diamond that the eye can see

At Four Words, we pride ourselves on getting you the best diamond that the eye can see. All our diamonds are selected with maximum sparkle in mind in accordance to cut.

We don’t compromise on diamond quality like the other guys. So if you are unsure on where to go next, contact us for a no obligation and discreet conversation.