Brian Gavin Recuts an Old Engagement Ring Diamond and gives it an “Extreme Makeover”…
I have received countless requests asking me how I approach my decision making process when recutting diamonds. The art of recutting a diamond is very different from the art of cutting a diamond from the rough. When cutting stones from the rough, I aim for one particular combination of angles which has been my recipe for over 10 years for over 7,000 diamonds. This combination can be found in my Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds.
When I perform a recut, I take all aspects of the diamond material into account. The diamonds that I recut do not necessarily fit my traditional hearts and arrows recipe. My primary goal is to end up with the best performing diamond without sacrificing weight loss, with optical symmetry and light performance being the main priorities.
At the end of February, I was contacted by a customer to perform a recut on her poorly cut .98ct round brilliant diamond. It was the diamond from her original engagement ring which was purchased 29 years ago and it had great sentimental value. She decided that she wanted to do something special with it to celebrate her 30th wedding anniversary this year. When I received the diamond I evaluated the different possibilities, using my years of experience and all the modern technical equipment that helps me to make my decisions. The preliminary reports were e-mailed to the customer and she agreed that I should proceed with the recut. Her diamond ended up as a .791ct ideal cut diamond with an AGS0 Cut Grade on the Sarin Report – it had started out as an AGS7. The actual diameter of the diamond only changed from an average of 6.10mm to 5.95mm. The customer decided that she did not want to have us send the diamond to the AGS to be graded and certified, relying on my professional feedback and the reports I provided to confirm the outstanding cut of the diamond.
Her beautiful new diamond was set into a 14K white gold halo pendant which was set with approximately .42ctw H/I SI Brian Gavin signature ideal cut melee, with a fine 16"/18" cable chain.
