Articles and News

GCAL by Sarine Launches Two New 8X Fancy Shapes: 8X Marquise and 8X Pear December 05, 2024 (0 comments)

New York, NY--For the first time, fancy shapes represent more than 50% of diamond submissions to the GCAL by Sarine laboratory. A few years ago, more than 85% sold were round, GCAL relates. Recognizing this change, GCAL by Sarine launched two new shapes for its proprietary 8X cut grades to marquise- and pear-shaped diamonds. 

GCAL’s 8X standard focuses on eight critical factors, uniquely analyzing the marquise and the pear shapes. While the first seven critical factors of analysis are the same for all shapes (polish, external symmetry, proportions, optical brilliance, fire, scintillation and optical symmetry), instead of hearts & arrows for rounds, the eighth critical factor - shape aesthetics - ensures fancy shapes exhibit and maximize the unique qualities most desirable to that shape, GCAL said in a statement. 

“Creating parameters for cutting 8X marquise and pear shapes was more challenging than we anticipated,” explained Angelo Palmieri, GCAL by Sarine president. “There were critical factors that played into how the stone performs, but our focus remained the same – maximizing light return, while minimizing the bow tie.” 

“We were able to build custom analytical tools to help us comb through that vast wealth of stone data to determine which specific proportion combinations most correlated with top-tier light performance, and conversely, which combinations were indicators of common light performance shortcomings for each shape, including bowtie,” added Erick Castille, head of the 8X development team.

8X Marquise 

A symmetrical, and well-proportioned marquise diamond has a unique elegance, and to some, can create the desirable effect of a slimmer finger when set in a ring. GCAL said it has found that one of the most common performance pitfalls for marquise shapes has to do with blockage that can appear under the table, reducing the stone’s perceived light return. This happens as a result of the viewer’s head creating a dark reflection from the stone’s longer, shallower pavilion main facets. This phenomenon becomes more common the greater a stone’s length-to-width ratio, and our parameters have been designed to combat this issue, even for longer stones.

As is always the case with 8X, GCAL created very tight parameters, making certain the resulting cut stone maximized light performance.  For example, if a marquise stone has a crown angle of 35 degrees, the pavilion half facets in the central region of the stone must average between 41.7 degrees and 42.2 degrees to control the dark “bowtie” effect commonly seen in marquise cuts.  When cut symmetrically to GCAL’s proportions, the resulting light performance of the 8X Marquise is extraordinary. 

8X Pear

A well-cut pear-shape diamond combines the elegance of a marquise with the brilliance of a round but introduces some unique challenges to cutters, GCAL explained. One of these challenges is a tendency for large regions of escaped light, or light that is not returned to the observer’s eye, at the rounded head of the stone.  This is due to steep pavilion facets in the region. GCAL’s 8X parameters are designed to combat this issue, resulting in a pear-shape stone that is more visually pleasing in a real-world setting. Following GCAL’s guidelines, diamond cutters can ensure the stone exhibits optimal light return, with balanced physical and optical symmetry.

As with the 8X Marquise, GCAL’s 8X Pear proportions are designed to minimize the dark “bowtie” effect that can be observed in some fancy shape stones. This is similarly addressed by controlling the correlation between the stone’s 4 central pavilion half angles, and the stone’s crown angle.

“As a result, diamond certificates have been created that honor the exceptional craftsmanship in fancy shape diamond cutting,” Palmieri said. “And not merely with words, but with scientific and visual analysis that backs up those claims. This is the proof retailers need to demonstrate a diamond’s brilliance, fire, scintillation and beauty, so consumers can make a more informed decision of which diamond to purchase.”

For more information about GCAL by Sarine, 8X, or any of the unique and exclusive GCAL products and services, please contact sales@gcalusa.com or call 212-869-8985.