Some of you heard of them – but aren’t quite sure what they are or what role they play in your diamond ring. Others might be completely unaware of what is diamond accent.
Which group do you belong to – former or latter? Either way, here’s the short answer:
Diamond accents are essentially small diamonds commonly embedded alongside a single large gem.
But, to be fully precise in answering that question, we need to dissect the following, as well:
Which diamonds can be referred to as accents, and are there any rules that need to be followed when using them in jewelry? Are there any specific diamond cuts used primarily as accents, and can all diamonds be used as accents regardless of their size and shape?
As you can see, there’s a lot to cover when it comes to diamond accents.
Once you overcome the challenges and dilemmas that hide behind this topic, you’ll be armed with the necessary knowledge for choosing – and wearing – diamond accents.
Fortunately for you, the formula is given below. So, don’t waste another moment – hurry up and continue reading!
People Often Get Mislead By This Question!
All of our research leads us, continuously, towards the sad reality that most people don’t know what diamond accents are or what they “do.” Most people usually think that “diamond accents” are some strange form of unofficial lingo that diamond experts use among them.
Let’s clear the air:
In order to emphasize the quality and size of the main gemstones, smaller diamonds are used to enhance the properties of the bigger, central ones.
Today, we’ll primarily focus on singular large diamonds embedded in various pieces of jewelry.
So, what are diamond accents?
Whenever we see a piece of jewelry embedded with several diamonds – we’ll tend to look at the central stone, usually located right in the middle of the jewelry piece.
There’s a reason why the largest ones are usually first seen – and the subsequent smaller gems are to be blamed for that. Their job is to enhance the brilliance and beauty of a jewelry piece embedded with a larger gem that serves as the centerpiece – the star of the show if you will.
Here lies the answer:
Diamond accents are those diamonds that usually follow a larger stone. Their job is to magnify the importance and beauty of the largest embedded gemstone – hence the name, accents.
These days, it’s pretty rare to stumble upon pieces of jewelry that don’t feature diamond accents – they have become a must-have in jewelry. It’s possible – but it’s rare.
But what makes them so important? And, while we’re at it, can we identify all small diamonds as diamond accents?
Oddly enough, the answer to the second question might surprise you all. So, we’ll dive right into solving that mystery; the previous question will have to wait a bit!
Baguette Diamonds
To kick things off, let’s discuss baguette diamonds. In the diamond-making industry, baguette-cut diamonds are most frequently used as diamond accents. What makes them so desirable as diamond accents?
Their shape allows them to ideally fit several different accessories, most commonly bracelets.
Some jewelers have tried to fit baguette diamonds as diamond accents into rings and earrings. Unfortunately, that’s not as easy as it might seem to be:
As we all know, baguette diamonds have a signature rectangle shape. We can further dissect their rectangle shapes in two different types – the tapered baguette diamonds and the straight baguette diamonds.
Straight baguette diamonds have a pure rectangle shape with no deviations. On the other hand, tapered baguette diamonds have a rectangle shape that differs in one end, being slightly wider – or narrower – when compared to the main proportions of the rectangle shape.
To put it more simply, the rectangle shape becomes broader on one end of the stone.
Now, if we had to answer which of these two shapes serves better as diamond accents – well, we’d have a hard time answering that question.
Both shapes closely resemble one another and share quite a few similarities. But, according to some experts that specialize in diamonds – the difference can be quite noticeable:
Straight baguette accent diamonds are most commonly arranged in a row, similar to how trains with several wagons connected look. As such, they are ideal for enhancing the beauty of larger diamonds – primarily marquise, Asscher, round brilliant cut diamonds.
Like straight cuts, tapered baguette accent gems nearly identically follow the patterns of straight cuts, as they are embedded in a similar fashion. But, their wider rectangular ends allow them to enhance the natural curve of larger stones – primarily radiant, princess, and emerald-cut gems.
Baguette accent diamonds are mainly embedded in bracelets, as that type of accessory is made by bending narrow and straight gold or platinum plates. As such, baguette accent diamonds can fit the overall proportions of most solid bracelets.
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Small Round Diamonds
Although not as versatile as baguette diamonds, small round diamonds are, undoubtedly, more known across the globe. Due to their debut in most engagement rings, smaller, round gems are ideal companions to larger diamonds embedded in wedding rings.
What makes them so desirable and optimal for engagement rings?
Don’t interpret this seriously: Small round accent diamonds leave their markings in different types of rings, regardless of their primary “job.” Whether it’s to propose to someone or gift them to someone, all ring types can be embedded with diamond accents.
But, not all diamond types can play the role of diamond accents in rings!
Here, we will primarily discuss minor round diamond cuts that can be further classified as star cuts, full cuts, and melee cut diamonds.
Star-cut diamond accents are most commonly embedded in diamond rings, as they’re the most affordable choice of the three. To classify a small round diamond cut like a star cut, it needs to be 0.02 carats or less.
If it weighs a single unit above the limit, it can no longer fit in the category of star cuts – unless someone decides to trim some weight off of it, of course. That’s how strict these classifications are!
On the other hand, full-cut small round gems can range between 0.02 and 0.07 carats, making them significantly heavier than the star cut-ones.
But even the full-cuts can’t come close to the melee-cut small round diamonds, which can range from 0.08 to 0.18 carats, making them the heaviest small round diamond accents on the market.
As we all know: Where the scales show big numbers – a hefty price tag must follow. So, if you decide to dive into melee-cut small round diamond accents, be prepared to pay up!
As we’ve previously mentioned, small round diamond accents are primarily used to enhance the overall appearance of wedding rings – but we can find them in just about all other ring types, as well.
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Trillion Diamonds
We firstly discussed rectangular diamond cuts, and then we talked about round diamond cuts.
So, which one is left?
Well, the triangular shape, of course!
Trillion-cut diamonds are the most mainstream, and well-known triangular-shaped diamond cuts out there. We’d also like to add that trillion-cut diamonds are one of the oldest shapes known to humanity.
Because of that, you can find trillion-cut diamond accents in just about all types of accessories – from earrings to necklaces – they can be embedded everywhere.
That’s made possible due to their equally long three-sided triangle and a flat table.
Out of these three primary types of diamond accents, trillion-cut diamond accents are the most difficult to craft and obtain, as they are pretty rare. Even when someone manages to find a raw diamond that’s suitable to be cut into a triangle – there’s still one big issue:
To identify a diamond as a trillion cut, it needs to have 31 or 50 facets.
Most diamond cutters avoid cutting diamonds like that, as making a single mistake can lead to a disaster!
With that out of the way, we’d like to address several crucial things that all people need to know about diamond accents. So, keep scrolling!
Are All Small Diamonds Classified As Diamond Accents?
There’s a pretty common misconception engraved deeply in most people’s minds when it comes to this question. As soon as they see a tiny diamond, they immediately rush to the conclusion – it must be a diamond accent.
Although they’re not technically wrong, there’s a mandatory rule that needs to be followed when talking about diamond accents:
For diamonds to be considered “accents,” they need to be mainly used to enhance the overall properties and appearance of a single larger stone embedded closely to the smaller diamonds.
Until that happens, we can’t declare a small diamond an accent.
As soon as they’re set in jewelry with the sole purpose of enhancing the larger stone, they can be classified as diamond accents, though!
Why Are Diamond Accents Important?
The time has come to answer this fundamental question.
In the jewelry-making industry, there isn’t a better way of intensifying or accentuating the beauty of a large stone than by placing several smaller gems around it.
We can try to polish the large stone and its surroundings every day. But that doesn’t even come close to the simple act of placing diamond accents around it.
We continuously repeat the word “enhance” here, but what does that even mean?
Smaller diamonds can enhance the size of the larger stone. You see, by placing several smaller diamonds around a center gemstone, we create an optical illusion that makes the single, larger diamond appear even more prominent than it is.
That is made possible by arranging the diamond accents in perfect order.
We previously made an analogy with trains and wagons. But that’s not the only possible solution you can go for here.
You can also arrange them to form a box or a triangle around the central gem.
Depending on the overall appearance of the central stone, diamond accents are rearranged to either form a contrast or to follow the shape of the primary gemstone, making it larger or more visible.
Most people lean towards the former, as most can’t afford to buy huge diamonds; they can be pretty expensive, as you probably know.
To accommodate that, people buy several small diamond accents and one larger rock that will appear more massive when paired with accents.
It’s a simple trick – but it works wonders!
The size and contrast isn’t the only goal that can be achieved with diamond accents. You can use diamond accents to magnify the overall ability of the large stone to shine and sparkle:
Single diamonds can still shine and sparkle on their own, but depending on the intensity of the primary light source and their cut, they’re bound to a set “upper limit.”
But, if we pair them with diamond accents – that changes things drastically.
When paired together, large diamonds and diamond accents can reflect light from one diamond to another. By doing so, they greatly enhance the shining and sparkling levels, putting them to a whole new grade.
And finally, the thing that all people restlessly aim for when embedding their jewelry pieces with diamond accents is to magnify the overall price tag of their accessories.
If we leave a single diamond embedded on a piece of jewelry – on its own, it won’t be extremely valuable and pricey, especially if it’s small and old.
Diamonds appreciate greatly, by the way – learn more about that by clicking on the link here!
But, if we coddle the central gem with several diamond accents and arrange them accordingly – we can hope to get a better price tag when (and if) we decide to sell the jewel!
Conclusion
With all of this out of the way, we can now safely assume that the question of what is diamond accent is now officially answered. But, in the off chance of someone missing a key point or two – let’s revise the most important things about diamond accents:
- To refer to something as a diamond accent, it needs to be embedded closely to a single large diamond in the center of an accessory.
- The diamond accents must be, comparatively, smaller than the central stone, and the accents must be arranged in a pattern that enhances the overall appearance and beauty of the diamond in the middle.
- All diamond accents must be similar or identical to one another. Otherwise, they can’t meet the targeted goals of enhancing the central diamond.
If these criteria are met, we can assume that we’re dealing with diamond accents – and not just regular small diamonds. Just remember:
Diamond accents can be pretty tricky to embed and arrange on your own; leave that job for your go-to jeweler!
