For The Love of Fancy

Fancy-shaped diamonds have an unconventional look and feel and add a novelty value to designs. In fact, a combination of different fancy-shaped diamonds can itself lend an element of design to the jewellery. The surge in popularity of fancy-shaped diamonds is due to these reasons and many more. Priyanka Desai goes in depth to know more of this trend and its future in the design realm.

Pear, Marquise, Princess, Emerald, Baguette, Cushion, Radiant, etc, etc, were just some words for jewellery lovers till a few years back but now they are the most common terms heard in jewellery stores where each jewellery buyer is aware of the various diamond cuts available in the market. Gone are the days that the round diamonds dominated the space of most classy and exorbitant, the fancy-cut diamonds are now making their presence felt more than ever. This trend came to light when A-list celebrities of Hollywood and music industry preferred the fancy cuts to round for their engagement rings and jewellery. Angelina Jolie, Kate Hudson, AvrilLavigne, Jennifer Anniston, Beyonce, Mariah Carey are just some of the biggest names that are flaunting huge fancy-cut diamonds on their fingers these days.

But, in India, which is known as the cradle of the diamond industry, it is a trend that has seen the light of the day much before our American friends. It is said that eight out of 10 diamonds of the world are cut and polished in India and this means that India also dictates the diamond trends of the world. With the oscillating gold prices and turbulent times for the jewellery industry, diamond jewellery has come to light as the knight in the shining armour. To keep the thirst of the evolved customer satiated, bolder cuts are making a foray in the retail industry. It is no surprise then that the urban India and most parts of rural India are lapping up the fancy-cut diamonds studded jewellery. We spoke to a few retailers to know the pulse of the Indian clientele in this regard and we also spoke to the designer of a leading jewellery exporter to know the creative side of it.

We asked Suraj Popley, Managing Director, Popley Eternal, the reason behind the popularity of fancy-cut diamonds, to which he answers, “Each and every diamond has its own personality. Shy or strong, introverted or extroverted— a diamond’s character unfolds from within its infinite depths and reflections. And, for those who know how to listen, each diamond has its own story to tell. Fancy cuts have their own unique beauty, and often carry eye-catching appeal to many. Fancy-shaped diamonds can give a sense of uniqueness to the jewellery making them a popular choice.”

Talking about the jewellery pieces best suited for fancy cuts, he shares, “Fancy shaped engagement rings have now gained a lot of popularity. People are no more satisfied with classic round shaped engagement rings; now they yearn for fancy shaped engagement ring. Cocktail rings can also be suited for the usage of fancy-shaped diamonds. Depending on the shape selected, many fancy cuts such as marquise, oval and pear shape are elongated shapes and appear larger than a round. Nearly one-third of all engagement rings today are created with a fancy-shaped diamond. Fancy-cut diamonds are in high demand in the world markets.”

When requested to name one of his favourite shapes, he is in a deep thought. After some deliberation, he replies, “There is nothing like a favourite fancy shape as all shapes have their own uniqueness and fit according to your choice. But pear and round shape would be on top for us because their hints of vintage appeal, which is still a huge trend. These shapes alsocomplement supremely feminine design.”

Chandresh Zaveri, Director, Zaveri& Co. concurred with SurajPopley’s point of fancy shapes being high in demand in the world market and further explained, “The reason for the increase in the demand for fancy-cut diamonds is that rounds are considered expensive. Therefore with fancy-cut diamonds’ relatively lower prices and fancy offers, buyers can go for bigger pieces for less money. Fancy shaped rough diamonds from the mines are assorted as per their shapes. The wastage in processing fancy shapes is less than that of the round cut.”

When quizzed if he thinks the future of fancy-shaped diamonds looked bright, he shares, “More and more diamond consumers in the world are drifting away from the rounds and going in for fancy shapes such as pears, heart, radiant, ovals, marquise, emerald, asscher and cushion. Fancy shapes are an alternative to a round brilliant if the buyer is looking for something that is contemporary. This trend will continue for a long time.” .”

Sharing his personal favouriteshape, he said, “My personal favourite shape is the pear as it looks very feminine and dainty. It suits all types of jewellery pieces and looks different each time.” .”

Saurabh Gadgil, Director, P.N. Gadgil says that the trend of using fancy-shaped diamonds started in India a long time back but in past three years the popularity has increased by manifolds. Speaking more about the popularity, he says, “The fancy-shaped diamonds blend well with modern and innovative designs and also are more affordable than rounds cut diamonds. Due to the uniqueness in shape it has been a popular trend amongst the modern consumers.” .”

When asked to describe the kind of jewellery best suited for fancy cuts, he replies, “Both statement pieces as well as light weight jewellery can have fancy shaped diamonds. They look stunning in cocktail rings, ear loops, necklaces as well as pendants. It's more for fashioncentric consumers who like to experiment with their jewellery and don’t mind eccentric designs.” .”

While throwing light on the investment aspect of fancy cuts, he explains, “Fancy-shaped diamonds are a good investment bet. They are real, natural stones and thus their prices also appreciate. Bigger the size better is the investment.” .”

He too has a favourite shape and shares it with us. “My personal favorite is baguette shape diamonds as it adds the right oomph and panache to the piece. It also goes well with emerald and rubies.” .”

IshuDatwani, Director, AnmolJewellers too believes that fancy-shaped diamonds are ahuge trend and is here to say. Talking about the future trend to look out for, he says, “The future trend to look out for is classy pieces with big-sized fancy shaped diamonds and solitaires. Right now the trend is contemporary plain diamond jewellerythat is best suited for the usage of fancy-shaped diamonds.” .”

Speaking about his favourite cut, he tells, “My personal favourite is emerald-cut as it is very classy and elegant and gives a very regal look to the jewellery.” When asked about the percentage of fancy-shaped diamonds and round diamonds used in his designs, he answers, “In our designs, we have 70 per cent round diamonds and 30 per cent fancy-shaped diamonds.” .”

To have the final word about this trend we asked GunjanSuri, Design Manager, Shrenuj& Company, to tell us more about the present trend and the future trend of fancy cuts. She shares, “Fancy-cut diamonds have been used since a very long time, it’s just that the demand and popularity have been on the rise from last five years or so, due to the quest of consumers wanting to experiment with different cuts, thus adding variety to their jewellery wardrobe.The future trends would be heading in a direction that incorporates usage of a mix of many cuts in one design, adding a touch of fancy-coloured diamonds thus adding an element of surprise, also a contrast and play with sizes will be seen thus making procurement an easy task.” .”

Talking about the extra care needed for the fancy-shaped diamonds, she explains, “The sharp ends of the pear, marquise need to be covered with ‘V’-shaped prongs to avoid chipping, same goes for emerald cut where bar shaped prongs do the needful. Otherwise the maintenance is the same as other diamonds.” .”