Tips for choosing the best princess cut diamond

“I’m shopping for a princess cut diamond engagement ring, and am wondering what tips you might have for choosing the best princess cut diamond? I noticed that all of the Brian Gavin Signature princess cut diamonds seem to be graded by the AGS instead of the GIA, is there a reason for that? I thought that GIA is the leading authority in diamond grading, so why doesn’t Brian Gavin use them? I’m working with a budget of $10k, but I wouldn’t mind spending less if that’s possible, something in the range of 1.10 – 1.20 carats.”

AGS Ideal-0 vs GIA Excellent princess cut diamonds:

With all respect due to the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory (GIA-GTL) we don’t use them to grade Brian Gavin Signature princess cut diamonds because they don’t provide measurements for the crown or pavilion sections of the diamond on their diamond grading report, thus it fails to provide a complete picture of the diamond. The Diamond Quality Document for the 1.148 carat, H-color, VS-2 clarity, Brian Gavin Signature princess cut diamond featured to the left, does provide the crown and pavilion measurements for the diamond, and it features the results of the Angular Spectrum Evaluation Technology (ASET) scan that determines how bright the diamond appears to be, how consistent light is reflecting throughout the diamond, and provides insight into the degree of optical precision.

While in our experience, both the AGS and GIA gemological laboratories are comparable in how they grade diamonds for carat weight, color, clarity, fluorescence, polish, and symmetry, the fact of the matter is that the GIA does not have the capability to provide ASET scans, nor do they provide a complete enough diamond grading report for fancy shape diamonds, so Brian Gavin has chosen to submit his Signature Diamonds to the American Gem Society Laboratory for grading, in an effort to provide you with the most complete detail possible.

How important is ASET for princess cut diamonds:

ASET and Ideal Scope images are critical when selecting diamonds of all shapes, but especially for princess cut diamonds, because it is practically impossible to be able to determine how a princess cut diamond will perform by the numbers, there is simply too many variables created by the ever-changing facet structure, and the different shapes of diamond rough being used to produce princess cut diamonds.

While every Brian Gavin Signature princess cut diamond is carefully planned and designed to deliver the highest volume of light return and incredible sparkle, the fact is that most princess cut diamonds are produced with maximum yield of carat weight in mind, and the cutters know that they’ll be able to get a GIA Excellent rating if they simply maintain a higher degree of polish, and ensure that the facet junctions of the diamond meet up well enough to warrant a GIA symmetry grade of excellent.

But Brian Gavin is also concerned about the optical precision of the diamond, which is something that is not graded by either the AGS or GIA gemological laboratories, and this is why Brian Gavin Signature princess cut diamonds look so exceptional when viewed through an ASET or Ideal Scope.