Cut Decision Guide

Cut applies across all materials

A note before we start: every cut described in this guide is available across all three DovEggs material categories — moissanite, lab-grown diamond (Boutique line), and lab-grown colored gemstones (sapphire, ruby, emerald). Cut decisions are largely independent of material, with two practical exceptions noted below:

Astro and Nova are currently moissanite-only. As lab diamond costs continue to fall, we'll expand these into Boutique production.
Boutique lab diamond focuses on fancy cuts: Modified Ashoka, OEC, OMC, Rose, Crown Arrow™, Modified Sakura. Standard cuts (round H&A, etc.) for lab diamond are typically sourced through DovEggs Essential or our Lab Diamond Group — see the Color Decision Guide for product line details.

For colored gemstones (sapphire, ruby, emerald), every cut in our catalog is available — including specialty cuts most colored-gem vendors don't offer. This is unique to DovEggs.

The short answer

If you want maximum sparkle, the most resale-friendly look, and the safest choice you'll never regret, pick a Hearts & Arrows round brilliant. It's the most-cut, most-studied diamond shape in the world for a reason — it returns more light to the eye than any other faceting pattern.

If you want your stone to look bigger for the same carat weight, pick an elongated cut — oval, pear, marquise, or our Empress elongated cushion. They have larger face-up surface area than rounds at the same weight.

If you want quiet, architectural elegance instead of fireworks, pick a step cut — emerald or Asscher. They flash like a hall of mirrors instead of sparkling.

If you want something nobody else has, look at our proprietary cuts: Crown Arrow Cut™, Pixel Cut™, and Sakura Cut.

Everything below is the long answer.

Key takeaways

Cut shape ≠ cut quality. Shape is round vs. oval vs. emerald. Quality is how well a stone of that shape was actually cut. Both matter, but quality matters more.
Brilliant cuts sparkle, step cuts flash, mixed cuts do both. These are the three families every cut belongs to.
Carat weight is not face-up size. A 1.5ct oval looks visibly larger than a 1.5ct round because the weight is distributed differently.
Some cuts hide inclusions; some show them. Brilliant cuts are forgiving. Step cuts (especially emerald and Asscher) demand higher clarity.
Setting compatibility varies. Marquise and pear have sharp tips that need protection. Rounds and cushions fit almost any setting.
For moissanite, dispersion matters more than for diamond. Moissanite has 2.4× the fire of diamond — some cuts amplify this beautifully (round, oval, Crown Arrow), others temper it (Crushed Ice, step cuts).

Section 1: The three cut families

Every diamond and moissanite cut on the market belongs to one of three families. Once you know which family you prefer, you've narrowed your choice from 30+ shapes down to 5 or 6.

Brilliant cuts — the sparkle family

Brilliant cuts use triangular and kite-shaped facets arranged radially around the stone, designed to bounce light back to your eye in countless small flashes. The round brilliant — 57 or 58 facets — is the most famous, but the family includes oval, cushion, pear, marquise, heart, princess, and radiant cuts.

What you see in a brilliant cut is scintillation: the stone seems to twinkle and shift as you move. Light enters the table (top facet), bounces off the pavilion (bottom facets), and exits back through the crown. A well-cut brilliant returns 60%+ of incident light. A poorly-cut one leaks light through the bottom and looks dull.

Brilliant cuts hide inclusions well — the busy faceting pattern visually breaks up any small imperfections. This is why VS2 and SI1 stones in brilliant cuts often look indistinguishable from VVS stones to the naked eye.

Step cuts — the architecture family

Step cuts use long, parallel rectangular facets stacked like stairs descending into the stone. Emerald and Asscher are the famous examples, with baguette as the small accent variant.

Instead of sparkling, step cuts produce a "hall of mirrors" effect: long flashes of light alternating with darker corridors. The look is calmer, more sophisticated, more deliberate. It's the difference between champagne and a sparkler — both celebratory, very different energy.

The trade-off: step cuts are unforgiving. Their large open facets mean any inclusion is visible. We recommend VS1 or better clarity for emerald and Asscher cuts, and we'll always tell you when a stone's inclusion would show.

Mixed cuts — the best-of-both family

Mixed cuts combine brilliant-cut crowns with step-cut pavilions, or vice versa. The most familiar examples are the antique cuts — Old Mine cushion and Old European round — which were the dominant cuts before modern faceting science (1900s) optimized for brilliance over character.

Mixed and antique cuts have a softer, warmer light pattern than modern brilliants. They were cut by candlelight and gas lamp, and they still look most beautiful in those conditions. They sparkle less, but they have presence — the chunky facets read as substantial in a way modern cuts don't.

The Crushed Ice cut also lives here: it's a modified brilliant with extra small facets that produce a glittery, crystalline texture instead of distinct light returns.

Section 2: DovEggs cuts in detail

These are the cuts we stock and the cuts we cut. Some are industry-standard (we've simply selected the best examples). Others are proprietary to DovEggs and you won't find them anywhere else.

Brilliant family

Hearts & Arrows (H&A) Round

The gold standard. A perfectly cut round brilliant produces a symmetrical eight-arrow pattern visible from above and an eight-heart pattern visible from below — under a special viewer. The H&A pattern is a proxy for cut precision: if the arrows and hearts are perfectly symmetric, the optical performance is near-optimal.

We cut every round on our site to H&A standards. This is the safest, most universally flattering choice — and the easiest to set, the easiest to resize a setting around, and the easiest to insure or appraise.

Best for: classic taste, anyone unsure, anyone who wants maximum optical performance, anyone who plans to wear the ring daily for decades.

Astro Cut

Our modern brilliant variant, optimized for a slightly more crushed ice texture than a traditional H&A. Astro stones produce more small flashes and fewer large light returns — the result is a glittery, almost effervescent appearance that photographs beautifully and reads as contemporary rather than classic.

Best for: modern aesthetics, social media-forward buyers, anyone who finds H&A "too perfect" or "too obvious."

Crown Arrow Cut™ (DovEggs proprietary)

Our signature proprietary round cut. Crown Arrow features a distinct arrow pattern visible face-up, with a slightly elongated arrow shape that produces sharper, more defined light returns than a standard H&A. The fire (rainbow flashes) is amplified — particularly visible in moissanite, where Crown Arrow's faceting takes full advantage of the stone's natural dispersion.

You won't find Crown Arrow anywhere else. It's been our most-requested proprietary cut for the past four years.

Best for: moissanite buyers who want maximum fire, anyone who loves rounds but wants something distinctive, returning DovEggs customers.

Nova

A modified brilliant with additional starburst-pattern facets on the crown. Nova stones produce a denser, more intricate sparkle than standard rounds — almost like a kaleidoscope. They're livelier in low light than H&A rounds, which is why we recommend them for buyers who'll wear the ring most often in restaurants, theaters, and evening settings.

Best for: evening-wear lovers, anyone who finds standard rounds "flat" indoors.

Empress (elongated cushion brilliant)

An elongated cushion cut — roughly 1.2:1 to 1.4:1 length-to-width ratio — with a brilliant faceting pattern. The Empress reads as larger than a round of the same carat weight (~10–15% more face-up area), with the soft pillow corners of a traditional cushion and the sparkle of a brilliant.

This is our most popular non-round cut for engagement rings.

Best for: anyone who wants "round-like" sparkle but more finger coverage, vintage-modern aesthetic, longer fingers.

Sakura Cut

An eight-petal floral faceting pattern. The crown is cut to produce a visible flower-shape light return when viewed face-up — eight distinct petals radiating from a central point. The effect is unmistakable and unmistakably ours.

Sakura is most often chosen by buyers who want the ring itself to feel meaningful, narrative, tied to a moment. We've cut Sakura stones for cherry-blossom-season proposals, Japan-themed weddings, and gardeners.

Best for: narrative buyers, anniversaries, anyone who wants a cut that means something.

Pixel Cut™ (DovEggs proprietary)

Our proprietary square brilliant. Pixel features a tightly geometric faceting pattern — sharp corners, distinct light squares within the stone, almost a digital aesthetic. Where a princess cut is sharp and traditional, Pixel is sharp and contemporary.

Pixel is one of the few cuts where moissanite genuinely outperforms diamond visually. The high refractive index of moissanite combined with Pixel's geometric facets produces a hyper-defined sparkle pattern that diamond can't quite match.

Best for: modern minimalists, architects, anyone with a preference for clean geometric lines, men's rings.

Portuguese Cut

A brilliant variant with extra rows of facets — typically 161 facets vs. the standard 57. The result is intense, almost overwhelming sparkle: the stone never seems to rest. Portuguese cuts read as antique-influenced and are most often paired with vintage settings.

Best for: maximalist sparkle, vintage settings, antique enthusiasts.

Step family

Emerald

The classic step cut. Rectangular outline with cropped corners (8-sided), long step facets on the crown and pavilion. The emerald cut produces the longest, most dramatic flashes of any cut — a "hall of mirrors" that reads as elegant, sophisticated, and quietly luxurious.

Emerald cuts demand clarity. We typically recommend VS1 or better for emerald-cut diamonds, and our team will tell you upfront if a stone's inclusions would be visible. For lab diamonds, we generally suggest IF–VS1; for moissanite (which has different inclusion characteristics), we apply our own visual standard.

Best for: old Hollywood aesthetic, longer fingers, anyone who finds modern brilliants "too busy."

Asscher

The square sibling of the emerald cut. Same step-cut faceting, but a square outline with deeply cropped corners that creates an octagonal silhouette. When you look down through an Asscher, you see concentric square frames receding into the stone — a hypnotic effect we sometimes call "the windmill."

Asscher cuts are particularly photogenic. The geometric symmetry photographs as iconic, especially in Art Deco-style settings.

Best for: Art Deco enthusiasts, geometric preferences, square-cut lovers who find princess "too sharp."

Mixed and antique family

Modified Ashoka (DovEggs Boutique lab diamond signature cut)

A historic cut reimagined. The classical Ashoka cut is an elongated cushion shape with rounded corners and 62 brilliant facets — originally cut from a famous Indian diamond and named for the emperor. Our Modified Ashoka preserves the elongated cushion silhouette but optimizes the faceting for modern brilliance, producing more sparkle than a traditional Ashoka while keeping the classical pillow outline.

Modified Ashoka is one of the signature cuts in our Boutique lab diamond line. It's also available in colored gemstones (sapphire, ruby, emerald) and in moissanite by special request. The shape reads as both regal and contemporary — particularly stunning in our Zambia green emerald and pigeon blood ruby.

Best for: buyers who want a cut with historical pedigree but modern optical performance; vintage-modern aesthetic; pigeon blood ruby and sapphire engagement rings; collectors who appreciate the Ashoka story.

Old Mine Cushion

A 19th-century cushion cut, hand-faceted to produce a chunkier, warmer light pattern than modern brilliants. Old Mine stones have larger central facets, smaller crown facets, and a higher crown than modern cushions. The light returns read as honey-warm rather than icy.

Old Mine is the cut of antique engagement rings — most genuine antique rings from 1830–1890 have Old Mine cushions. We cut new Old Mine stones to recreate this aesthetic with the precision and clarity that modern faceting allows.

Best for: antique aesthetics, warm/yellow gold settings, anyone who finds modern stones "too cold."

Old European Round

The 19th-century predecessor to the modern round brilliant. Old European cuts have a smaller table, a higher crown, and larger facets than today's H&A rounds — they were optimized for candlelight, not LED.

In low and warm light, an Old European outshines a modern round. The light returns are larger, slower, and warmer. In bright daylight, modern brilliants pull ahead.

Best for: candlelit-evening lovers, antique rings, anyone restoring or honoring a family ring.

Crushed Ice

A modified brilliant with additional small facets that fragment light into countless tiny flashes — the visual effect resembles its name. Crushed ice cuts are popular in radiant, oval, and cushion outlines.

Crushed ice tempers moissanite's fire (some buyers find unmodified moissanite "too rainbow-y"). It also hides inclusions exceptionally well.

Best for: anyone who wants sparkle without "obvious" sparkle pattern, moissanite buyers who want a softer rainbow, lower-clarity stones (the busy pattern hides inclusions).

Rose Cut

A flat-bottomed, dome-topped cut with triangular facets radiating from the apex. Rose cuts have no pavilion — the bottom is completely flat — which makes them read as more carat for the dollar in face-up size, but with significantly less brilliance.

Rose cuts produce a soft, watercolor-like glow rather than sparkle. They're a deliberate aesthetic choice.

Best for: vintage / Renaissance / boho aesthetic, anyone prioritizing face-up size over sparkle, alternative-style weddings.

Section 3: Who's it for — choosing by personality

If you're not sure which family fits, start with personality, not facets.

The classicist. You like things that have been beautiful for a long time and will stay beautiful for a long time. → H&A Round. It's been the dominant engagement cut for 80 years. You won't tire of it.

The understated minimalist. You don't want a ring that announces itself. You want quiet sophistication. → Emerald or Asscher. Step cuts read as deliberate and refined, never flashy.

The maximalist. You want fire, sparkle, drama, and you want it visible from across the room. → Crown Arrow Cut™, Portuguese, or Nova. All three amplify brilliance beyond standard rounds.

The romantic / narrative buyer. The story matters as much as the stone. You're proposing in a cherry blossom park, on an anniversary, at a meaningful place. → Sakura Cut or Heart. Both carry meaning intrinsically.

The contemporary minimalist. Clean lines, no nostalgia, modern materials. → Pixel Cut™ or Astro. Geometric, contemporary, distinct.

The vintage soul. You love what your grandmother wore. You'd rather look like 1920 than 2026. → Old Mine Cushion, Old European, or Rose. All three predate modern cutting.

The face-up maximizer. You want the stone to look as big as possible. → Empress, Oval, Pear, or Marquise. Elongated cuts have larger face-up area per carat than rounds.

The hidden gem-seeker. You want something nobody at the wedding will recognize. → Crown Arrow Cut™, Pixel Cut™, Sakura Cut. All three are DovEggs proprietary — there's no equivalent elsewhere.

Section 4: Visual comparison

Sparkle character varies dramatically across families. Here's how each family looks in motion:

Brilliant cuts produce needle-like sparkle — many small, bright, crisp flashes that move quickly as the hand moves. Round H&A, Astro, and Crown Arrow are the most needle-like. Cushion brilliants, oval, and pear produce slightly larger flashes. The visual effect is busy and alive.

Step cuts produce broad flashes — long, slow, clean returns of light alternating with calm dark areas. Emerald and Asscher are the purest examples. The effect is architectural and deliberate. You see the stone first, then the sparkle, rather than the other way around.

Mixed and antique cuts produce soft, watery sparkle — gentler than modern brilliants, warmer in color temperature, less directional. Old Mine and Old European are the warmest. Crushed Ice is the most fragmented (almost like sugar in motion). Rose cut is the calmest — more glow than sparkle.

Face-up size at 1.5 carats (rough comparison): - Round: ~7.4mm diameter - Princess: ~7.0mm × 7.0mm - Cushion: ~7.0mm × 7.0mm (slightly larger if elongated) - Empress (elongated cushion): ~8.5mm × 6.5mm - Oval: ~9.0mm × 6.5mm - Pear: ~9.5mm × 6.0mm - Marquise: ~11.0mm × 5.5mm - Emerald: ~7.5mm × 5.5mm

Same weight, different visual size. A marquise looks nearly twice as long as a round at the same carat. This matters for engagement rings, where face-up presence is what people actually see day-to-day.

Section 5: Trade-offs

Every cut decision involves trade-offs. Here are the ones that matter most.

Brilliance vs. clarity demand. Brilliant cuts forgive inclusions because the busy faceting pattern visually breaks up small imperfections. Step cuts (especially emerald and Asscher) reveal inclusions because their large open facets give nothing to hide behind. If you're on a budget and want maximum stone size for the dollar, brilliants stretch the dollar further by allowing slightly lower clarity grades.

Cost per face-up size. Round brilliants are the most expensive cut per carat — partly because of high demand, partly because cutting a round wastes more rough material than cutting a fancy shape. Ovals, pears, marquises, and cushions are typically 15–25% less per carat than rounds of equivalent quality. If face-up size is your priority and budget is real, fancy shapes deliver more visible stone for less money.

Setting compatibility. Round, oval, and cushion cuts fit almost any setting — solitaires, halos, three-stone, vintage, modern. Pear, marquise, and heart shapes have vulnerable points (sharp tips) that need protection from prongs, which limits setting choices. Step cuts (emerald, Asscher) work beautifully in geometric and Art Deco settings but can look static in halos. Old Mine and Old European cuts demand vintage-style settings to look right — a modern setting on an antique cut creates visual tension.

Maintenance and durability. Sharp-tipped cuts (marquise, pear, heart) are more prone to chipping at the tip if hit against a hard surface. Round and oval are the most durable shapes. Step cuts have larger open facets that show smudges and skin oil more visibly — they need cleaning more often to look their best.

Resale and timelessness. Round H&A is the most resaleable cut and the most likely to remain fashionable indefinitely. Cushion and emerald are also evergreen. Marquise and heart are subject to fashion cycles — they were extremely popular in the 1980s and again in 2020–2024, but historically they've gone in and out. If you anticipate ever upgrading or selling, factor this in.

Moissanite vs. lab diamond considerations. Moissanite has 2.4× the dispersion (rainbow fire) of diamond. Some cuts amplify this — round, oval, Crown Arrow, Portuguese — and produce a stone that looks more colorful and lively than diamond at the same size. Other cuts temper moissanite's fire — Crushed Ice, step cuts, Rose cut — and produce a more diamond-like appearance. If you want moissanite to look like a diamond, choose a tempering cut. If you want moissanite to look like its best self, choose an amplifying cut.

Section 6: From our community

The following reflects patterns and themes we've heard repeatedly across our 50,000+ member community and post-purchase reviews. We've paraphrased to protect customer privacy and to avoid singling out individuals; these are representative composites, not direct quotes.

On Crown Arrow Cut™: Customers consistently describe Crown Arrow as "more alive" than standard rounds. The most common comparison we hear is between Crown Arrow and a tennis-bracelet diamond — both have that "constantly moving" quality, but Crown Arrow concentrates the effect into a single stone.

On Sakura Cut: Customers who choose Sakura almost always have a story. We've cut Sakura stones for cherry-blossom-season proposals, for a couple who met in Kyoto, for an anniversary timed to the bride's grandmother's birthday, and for a bride whose late mother loved gardening. The cut is rarely chosen on aesthetics alone.

On Empress: Empress is the most common "I wanted a round but my finger is long" choice. Customers report that the elongated proportions feel more flattering on longer fingers than a round, while the brilliant faceting gives them the sparkle they wanted.

On Old Mine and Old European: Buyers of antique cuts skew older or have a strong vintage aesthetic that runs through their wardrobe and home. The cut is rarely a one-off choice — it's part of a consistent personal style.

On Crushed Ice: Common choice for buyers who tried to love standard moissanite and found the rainbow fire "too much" in everyday wear. Crushed Ice is the bridge cut for moissanite-curious buyers who want a more diamond-adjacent appearance.

On Pixel Cut™: Pixel buyers often work in design, architecture, or tech. The cut reads as "intentional" rather than "traditional," and it photographs exceptionally well in flat lay shots — which matters for buyers who'll share the ring on social.

Pattern across all cuts: The buyers who are happiest a year later are the ones who chose based on how the cut looks in motion on a real hand, not based on photos. We strongly recommend booking a showroom appointment if you're within driving distance of Seattle, or requesting our 360° rotating videos if you're remote.

A community rule of thumb: Many of our long-term customers have settled on a simple decision rule for round-shape buyers — modern settings get H&A or Crown Arrow™; vintage and antique settings get Old European or Old Mine. The cut and setting belong to the same aesthetic family. When in doubt about a round cut, the setting style usually answers the question for you.

Section 7: Decision matrix

If you want a one-page summary, here it is.

If your top priority is…	Choose…
Maximum sparkle, classic look	H&A Round
Maximum sparkle, distinctive look	Crown Arrow Cut™
Quiet elegance	Emerald or Asscher
Largest face-up size per carat	Marquise, Pear, Oval, Empress
Vintage aesthetic	Old Mine, Old European, Rose
Modern / geometric aesthetic	Pixel Cut™, Astro, Princess
Narrative meaning	Sakura Cut, Heart
Hide inclusions / budget-conscious	Any brilliant family cut
Maximum fire from moissanite	Crown Arrow, Round, Oval, Portuguese
Diamond-like look from moissanite	Crushed Ice, Emerald, Asscher

Decision tree:

Do you prefer sparkle (constant motion) or flash (large slow returns)? - Sparkle → Brilliant family. Continue to question 2. - Flash → Step family. Continue to question 3. - Soft glow → Mixed/antique family. Continue to question 4.
(Brilliant) Do you want a classic or distinctive brilliant? - Classic → H&A Round (any shape: round, oval, cushion, princess) - Distinctive → Crown Arrow™, Pixel Cut™, Sakura Cut, Astro, Nova
(Step) Square or rectangular? - Square → Asscher - Rectangular → Emerald
(Mixed/antique) Round or cushion or flat? - Round → Old European, or Crushed Ice round - Cushion → Old Mine - Flat → Rose Cut

Section 8: Common mistakes to avoid

After 11 years and tens of thousands of customer conversations, here are the cut-related mistakes we see most often — and how to avoid them.

Mistake 1: Choosing based on photos, not motion. A cut's still photograph and its in-motion behavior are different things. Crushed Ice photographs as flat and grey in some lighting; in person it sparkles continuously. Step cuts photograph as static; in person they produce dramatic flashes when the hand moves. Always evaluate cuts in motion — either in person, on a 360° video, or on a real hand on social media — before committing.

Mistake 2: Prioritizing carat weight over cut quality. A 2-carat poorly-cut stone looks visibly worse than a 1.5-carat well-cut stone. Light leakage from a poor cut makes the stone look duller and, paradoxically, smaller than its weight suggests. We'd rather sell you a smaller stone cut to high standards than a larger stone cut to chase a number.

Mistake 3: Choosing a cut that doesn't match your lifestyle. If you do hands-on work — gardening, surgery, climbing, lifting weights — sharp-tipped cuts (marquise, pear, heart) are higher-maintenance because the tips are vulnerable. Step cuts show smudges quickly and need frequent cleaning. Round H&A and oval are the most lifestyle-tolerant.

Mistake 4: Mismatching cut and setting. An emerald cut in a delicate vintage halo can look fussy. An antique Old Mine in a modern minimalist setting reads as visually disjointed. The cut and setting should belong to the same aesthetic family. If you're not sure, send your inspiration photos to our team and we'll flag mismatches before you commit.

Mistake 5: Over-indexing on resale. Most engagement rings are never resold — they're worn for decades, then passed down. Choosing a "resaleable" cut over the cut you actually love trades present joy for a hypothetical future event that usually doesn't happen. If you love a marquise, buy the marquise.

Mistake 6: Assuming all "rounds" are the same. A standard round brilliant, an H&A round, a Crown Arrow round, an Astro round, and an Old European round are all "rounds" with dramatically different sparkle character. Within the round category alone, you have at least five distinct visual options. The same is true within "cushion" and "oval."

Mistake 7: Not asking for the inclusion location. For step cuts especially, where an inclusion sits matters more than its grade. An inclusion under a prong is invisible. The same inclusion at the table is obvious. Always ask our team for inclusion mapping on emerald and Asscher cuts before you buy.

Section 9: Glossary

Quick reference for terms used throughout this guide.

Brilliance — the white light returned to your eye when light enters and exits the stone cleanly. High brilliance = the stone looks bright and lively in any lighting.

Fire (dispersion) — the rainbow flashes produced when white light is split into spectral colors by the stone's facets. Moissanite has 2.4× the fire of diamond.

Scintillation — the moving sparkle effect created by alternating bright and dark facet returns as the stone moves. Brilliant cuts have high scintillation; step cuts have low scintillation.

Hearts and Arrows (H&A) — a precision-cut round brilliant where the symmetry of the facets produces a visible eight-arrow pattern face-up and an eight-heart pattern face-down (visible under a special viewer). H&A is a quality benchmark, not a cut shape.

Crown — the upper portion of the stone, above the widest point (the girdle).

Pavilion — the lower portion of the stone, below the girdle. The pavilion's angles control how much light is reflected back to the eye versus leaked out the bottom.

Table — the flat top facet of the stone. The size of the table affects whether the stone reads as "fiery" (smaller table) or "brilliant" (larger table).

Girdle — the band around the widest part of the stone, where the crown meets the pavilion. Setting prongs grip the girdle.

Faceting — the geometric surfaces cut into the stone. A round brilliant has 57 or 58 facets; a Portuguese cut can have 161+.

Step cut — faceting style with long, parallel rectangular facets. Used in emerald and Asscher cuts.

Brilliant cut — faceting style with triangular and kite-shaped facets arranged radially. Used in round, oval, cushion, pear, marquise, heart, princess, and radiant cuts.

Mixed cut — faceting style combining brilliant-cut and step-cut elements, often with brilliant crown over step pavilion or vice versa.

Antique cut — pre-1900 cuts that predate modern faceting science. Old Mine, Old European, and Rose are the most common antique cuts. DovEggs cuts modern recreations of all three.

Crushed Ice — a modified brilliant with additional small facets producing fragmented, glittery light returns instead of distinct flashes.

Face-up size — how large the stone appears when viewed from above. Different from carat weight: an oval and a round of the same weight have different face-up sizes.

Length-to-width ratio — for fancy shapes, the ratio of the stone's length to its width. A 1.4:1 oval is more elongated than a 1.2:1 oval. Personal preference; we help match ratio to finger shape.

Section 10: Frequently asked questions

Is round always the best choice?

Round H&A has the strongest optical performance of any cut — it returns the most light. But "best" depends on your priorities. If you want the largest visible stone for the carat weight, an elongated cut beats round. If you want quiet elegance, a step cut beats round. Round is the safest choice; it isn't always the best choice for you specifically.

What's the difference between cut shape and cut quality?

Cut shape is the silhouette — round, oval, emerald, etc. Cut quality is how well the stone of that shape was actually faceted: are the angles correct, is the symmetry tight, does light enter and exit cleanly. A poorly cut round can look duller than a well cut oval. Both matter, but quality matters more — we cut every stone on our site to high quality standards, regardless of shape.

Does cut matter more for moissanite or diamond?

It matters for both. Moissanite has higher dispersion (rainbow fire), so cut decisions affect the character of the sparkle more visibly. A poorly cut moissanite shows its fire in chaotic, sometimes unpleasant ways. A well-cut moissanite produces controlled, beautiful fire. For diamond, cut quality affects brilliance (white light return) more than dispersion.

Are emerald cuts harder to maintain?

Yes, slightly. Step cuts have larger open facets that show skin oil and dust more visibly. We recommend cleaning emerald and Asscher cuts every 1–2 weeks for them to look their best. Brilliant cuts are more forgiving — daily wear builds up less visibly because the busy faceting hides smudges.

Can I see DovEggs proprietary cuts (Crown Arrow™, Pixel Cut™, Sakura) before I buy?

Yes. We have all three available in our Seattle showroom, and we send 360° rotating videos to remote customers on request. Email inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com and our team will set you up.

Which cut hides inclusions best?

Brilliant family cuts — particularly Crushed Ice, Round, and modified brilliants — hide inclusions exceptionally well. Step cuts (emerald, Asscher) hide inclusions least well. If your budget pushes you toward lower-clarity stones, choose a brilliant cut.

What cut looks largest for a 1-carat stone?

Marquise looks largest (longest face-up dimension). Pear and oval are close behind. Round looks smallest at the same weight. If face-up presence is your priority, elongated cuts deliver more visible stone for the same dollar.

What shapes is the Crown Arrow Cut™ available in?

Crown Arrow™ is available in round, marquise, pear, cushion, and elongated cushion. Round is our most-stocked shape; the fancy shapes may have limited inventory at any given time. Email inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com to confirm current availability or to start a custom order in the shape you want.

Does cut affect resale value?

Yes, significantly. Round H&A retains value best — it has the deepest secondary market and the most consistent demand. Cushion and emerald are also stable. Cuts subject to fashion cycles (marquise, heart) can lose secondary-market value if fashion shifts. Proprietary cuts (Crown Arrow™, Pixel Cut™, Sakura) have niche secondary markets through DovEggs but aren't broadly resaleable elsewhere.

Should I match the cut to my wedding band?

Generally yes. Step-cut center stones (emerald, Asscher) pair best with step-cut or plain bands. Brilliant rounds pair with almost anything. Antique cuts (Old Mine, Old European, Rose) look most cohesive with vintage-style or milgrain bands. Our team helps with cut + band coordination at no extra charge — just ask.

What's the difference between Crushed Ice and a regular brilliant cushion?

Crushed Ice has additional small facets that fragment light into smaller, more numerous flashes. A regular brilliant cushion has fewer, larger facets that produce more distinct light returns. Crushed Ice looks "softer" and "glittery"; regular brilliant cushion looks "crisper" and "sparkly." Both are valid — it's a personal preference for sparkle character.

Can DovEggs cut a custom shape not on this list?

For some shapes, yes. Our custom team handles modified brilliants, hybrid cuts, and certain antique recreations. We don't cut entirely novel shapes (designing a new cut takes years and significant investment), but we can adapt within established cut families. Email inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com with your idea and our supervisor will respond within one business day.

Section 11: Next steps

If you have a sense of which cut you want, browse our collections by shape on the DovEggs homepage and filter by carat, color, and stone type (lab diamond or moissanite).

If you're still deciding between cuts, our Help Center has guides on color, size, and shape decisions — each addressing a different axis of the choice.

If you want to see stones in person, our Seattle-area showroom carries all major cuts in multiple sizes. Book an appointment by emailing inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com.

If you're remote and want video before you buy, we send 360° rotating videos of any stone in our inventory at no charge. Just ask.

If you want a custom design — a unique cut, a unique setting, or a unique stone color from our specialty inventory (Twilight Blue, Stardust Grey, Champagne moissanite) — our supervisor UC handles every custom request personally. Email inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com with "Custom" in the subject and you'll hear back within one business day.

Related guides

Lab Grown Diamonds: The Complete Guide — how lab diamonds are made, graded, and why they cost less than mined diamonds.
Our Promise — DovEggs warranty, lifetime maintenance, and customer service commitments.
Main FAQs — 109 questions on materials, ordering, custom work, returns, and more.
Color Decision Guide — coming soon.
Size Decision Guide — coming soon.
Shape Decision Guide — coming soon.

DovEggs-Seattle has focused on moissanite for 11 years — and we've sold lab diamonds the entire time. Only in the past two years has lab diamond pricing aligned with our core value: luxury jewelry for all, not just the wealthy few. Our 5-person team in the Seattle area handles every order personally — no call centers, no chatbots making decisions about your purchase. Reach us anytime at inquiry@doveggs-seattle.com.