Emerald Cut Lab Grown Diamond Cluster Ring with Pear and Round Accents in Silver, 10K, 14K and 18K Gold

An emerald cut laboratory grown diamond set in a cluster built from two different accent shapes, pear and round. The pears sit at the corners and reach outward, the rounds fill between them, and the result is a head with a defined structure rather than an even ring of identical stones.

At a glance

• Centre stone: Emerald cut laboratory grown diamond
• Carat options: 2, 3, 4 and 5 carat
• Colour and clarity: E colour, VVS2 clarity
• Certificate: IGI, included free
• Setting: Mixed cluster, pear and round accents
• Accent stones: Pear and round brilliant laboratory grown diamonds, E colour, VVS2
• Metals: 925 silver, 10K, 14K and 18K gold in yellow, rose and white
• Made: To order in Surat, India

Two accent shapes, one head

Mixing cut shapes in a single cluster is harder than it sounds. Pears and rounds have different heights, different pavilion angles and different ways of returning light, so left to themselves they will sit at slightly different levels and the head will look uneven. Getting them to read as one surface means cutting every seat to a different depth by hand.

The payoff is a head that has direction. The pears point outward from the corners of the emerald cut, which extends the rectangle into something closer to a star, while the rounds keep the spaces between filled with even light. Against the long quiet facets of a step cut centre, that busy outer ring makes the middle stone look calmer and larger than it would in a plain halo.

The emerald cut in the middle

An emerald cut is a step cut, not a brilliant. Long parallel facets run in steps down from a wide open table, producing broad flashes of light and dark rather than fine glitter. The trade is that the open table shows you straight into the stone, which is why the grade cannot be fudged. Every centre stone here is E colour and VVS2 clarity, which on a step cut means a stone that reads white and clean even under the scrutiny that shape invites.

The corners of an emerald cut are cropped rather than sharp, which makes it a more robust shape than a pear or a marquise. In this setting the accent stones sit around those corners and add another layer of protection to the part of the stone most likely to meet a door frame.

What laboratory grown means here

A laboratory grown diamond is a diamond. It is crystallised carbon with the same cubic structure, the same 10 on the Mohs scale, the same refractive index of 2.42 and the same dispersion as a stone pulled out of the ground. The only difference is where it grew. Ours are produced by chemical vapour deposition and high pressure high temperature growth, then cut and polished by hand. This is not moissanite, not cubic zirconia and not a simulant of any kind. A gemmologist testing it will read diamond, because it is diamond.

Metals

Choose 925 sterling silver, or 10K, 14K or 18K gold in yellow, rose or white. On a mixed cluster the metal is what separates one accent shape from the next, so the colour decides how obvious the structure is. White metal blurs the pears and rounds into one continuous field. Yellow and rose gold draw a line around every stone, so the pattern of pears at the corners becomes the first thing you notice. 10K is the hardest of the gold alloys, 14K is the balance most people choose for daily wear, and 18K is the richest colour but the softest metal. White gold is rhodium plated and will want replating every one to two years.

Every centre stone arrives IGI certified

The centre diamond in this ring is graded by IGI, the International Gemological Institute, and the certificate travels with the ring at no extra charge. The report states the carat weight, the E colour grade, the VVS2 clarity grade, the measurements and the laser inscription on the girdle, and it confirms in writing that the stone is laboratory grown. You are not asked to take our word for any of it. Every certificate is included free with every metal and every carat weight, and it is the same document an independent appraiser or an insurer will ask to see.

Made to order in our own workshop

Mapple Gems is a family run workshop in Surat, India, the city where the majority of the world's diamonds are cut and polished. Nothing here is pulled off a shelf. When your order arrives we cut the seat for your centre stone, then position every pear and every round around it individually, adjusting each seat depth so the whole head finishes level. A mixed cluster is the slowest kind of head we make and it cannot be prepared in advance, because the accent layout changes completely between a 2 carat and a 5 carat centre. Allow two to three weeks for making, plus shipping.

Looking after it

Warm water, a drop of mild washing up liquid and a soft toothbrush will keep it bright. A mixed cluster has more corners and narrow gaps than a plain halo, so give it a proper brush once a fortnight and pay attention where the pear points meet the surrounding metal. Do the underside as well. Rinse well and dry with a soft cloth. Take it off for the gym, for gardening and before swimming, and keep it away from bleach and chlorine, which attack the alloys in gold rather than the diamond itself.

Questions we are asked

What colour and clarity is the diamond? Every centre stone is E colour and VVS2 clarity, on every metal and every carat weight. The pear and round accents are matched to the same grade. The IGI report in the box states both grades for the centre.

Why two accent shapes instead of one? Because a single shape gives you an even ring of light and nothing else. The pears give the head corners and direction, which is what stops it looking like a standard halo.

Does an emerald cut sparkle less? It sparkles differently. A step cut gives broad flashes rather than fine glitter, which is why the brilliant cut accents around it are doing useful work.

Will a wedding band sit flush? A straight band will leave a gap, because the cluster is wider than the shank. A curved band is the usual solution, and plenty of people wear this one alone.

Can the accents fall out? It is uncommon when the seats are cut properly, which is a hand operation and the reason we do it in house rather than buying in cast heads.

Can it be resized? Yes. The lower half of the shank is plain specifically so it can be resized without heat reaching the cluster.

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