The princess cut engagement ring has been going strong for the last decade. This beautiful brilliant cut diamond gives all the flash and fire that a traditional round would, but with a modern attitude. The princess cut’s clean, sharp corners and hearts & arrows pattern are the stuff that millennial dreams are made of. They hide their inclusions well, like any brilliant cut, while showing off spectacular color even from grades above F. The princess cut engagement ring does need some special attention though – those perfectly pointed corners are actually pretty delicate and very susceptible to fractures, chipping and other damage. Princess cuts aren’t ideal for the woman who wears roughly on her engagement ring (maybe that’s why it’s named princess? Can’t get your hands dirty? Yukk Yukk Yukk, I’ll escort myself out now.) Another fun fact about princess cuts: they tend to be bottom heavy. When one of my best gal pals falls madly in love with the princess cut and texts/emails/snail mails AND snapchats me to let me know I should mark her preference in my “file” (you know, in case her boyfriend comes in to RLJ in the next 30 seconds,) I always let her know. Princesses do tend to carry a lot of their carat weight underneath their impeccable tables, so you’re paying for carat weight that doesn’t translate into surface area. And let me tell you, surface area should be the 6th C. We can call it Curface Area. Because, like I’ve said before, the differences in carat weight are hard enough to detect with the untrained eye. Once you throw a diamond with good “spread” into the mix, you can walk way with a 1.68 carat that looks just as big as a 2 carat. That’s unlikely to happen with a princess. Should it dissuade the woman who’s got her heart set on a princess cut? Absolutely not. But she should at least consider a square shaped radiant cut. But if it’s corners she wants, it’s corners she’ll have because what my baby wants my baby gets. And here are some princess cuts she would lurve to get.
Three of a kind! This three stone princess cut engagement ring shows off three gorgeous H color, VS1 clarity diamonds. Center stone is 1.51 carats with the side stones coming in at 1.01ct and 1.02ct, respectively. All nestled cozily together in a hand crafted platinum setting.
Another large, fabulous princess cut, this one is a 2.20 carat G colored, Internally Flawless stunner set on a band of round brilliants. The accent stones weigh an additional 1.50ctw and are G/H, VS. All set in bright white 18kt gold.
I love this ring. it’s so unique, it has vintage flair but without the associated frilliness of a Victorian era antique. The center stone is a 1.24ct princess H in color with a fabulous VVS2 clarity grade. The tapered baguettes are only part of the accent stones, the finishing touch is that pair of round brilliants that break up the platinum before it hugs around your finger.
Our next ring featured my favorite accent diamond shape: trillions! Their sharp angles look perfect when paired with the crisp lines of a princess cut, and by keeping them all the same height, the look is even more streamlined. Check it: center stone is an E(!) color with an SI1 clarity, and even though its inclusion is smack in the middle of the 1.52 carat stone, Those gorgeous facets camouflage it. The trillions are about .90ctw and all three are set in a platinum cathedral mounting.
Wrapping things up, we’ve got a look for less with two beautiful, similar three stone rings. Both feature a larger princess cut center stone with symmetrical, nicely matched smaller princess cuts on either side. One is mounted in platinum, the other in 14kt white gold. One is GIA certified, the other EGL certified. They have wildly different specs, and therefore a sizable price difference. But allow me to demonstrate how cray the worlds of diamonds is because…
This beauty is the GIA diamond. It’s certifed as G color and internally flawless, commanding a high price. At 2.90ctw it’ll cost you $44,595.
Meet her cousin, Wilma (just go with me.) Wilma weighs 6.59 carats total. Like she’s over 2x the size. She’s got a lovely H color and a respectable SI3 clarity (truly, it’s not offensive). And the price for darling Wilma? $38,995. Boom, look for less and twice the size.
