Princess Cut Lab Grown Diamond Solitaire Ring on a Plain Band in Silver, 10K, 14K and 18K Gold

A princess cut laboratory grown diamond in four claws on a thin plain band. A princess is a square with brilliant faceting, so it has the sparkle of a round inside a sharp geometric outline, and on a plain band that contrast is the whole design.

At a glance

• Centre stone: Princess cut laboratory grown diamond
• Carat options: 2, 3, 4 and 5 carat
• Colour and clarity: E colour, VVS2 clarity
• Certificate: IGI, included free
• Setting: Four claw solitaire with the claws over the corners
• Band: Thin plain round band, no accent stones
• Metals: 925 silver, 10K, 14K and 18K gold in yellow, rose and white
• Made: To order in Surat, India

Square outline, round brilliance

The princess cut was designed to keep as much weight as possible from the rough crystal while still producing brilliant faceting. That is why it is square and deep rather than flat and wide, and it is also why a princess of a given carat weight looks a little smaller from above than a round of the same weight while costing less to cut. What you get in return is a crisp modern outline and a great deal of fire.

The corners are the whole problem

A princess has four genuinely sharp corners, and they are the thinnest and most exposed part of any diamond shape. An unprotected corner will chip. Every claw on this ring is placed over a corner and wraps it on both faces, so the corners are the only part of the stone the metal actually touches and there is no bare point anywhere.

A band kept thin

The shank is a plain round wire with nothing on it. A square stone already has strong lines and a decorated band fights them. Thin metal also lets the square overhang slightly at the sides, which makes it read larger, and it sits flat against a wedding band.

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 mined stone. Ours are grown by chemical vapour deposition and high pressure high temperature methods, then cut and polished by hand. This is not moissanite, not cubic zirconia and not a simulant. 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. This ring was photographed in white metal, and every metal is made to order and priced above. White gold is rhodium plated and will want replating every one to two years.

Every centre stone arrives IGI certified

The centre diamond is graded by IGI, the International Gemological Institute, and the certificate comes with the ring at no extra charge. It states the carat weight, the E colour grade, the VVS2 clarity grade, the measurements and the girdle inscription, and confirms in writing that the stone is laboratory grown.

Made to order in our own workshop

Mapple Gems is a family run workshop in Surat, India, where most of the world's diamonds are cut and polished. Each claw is cut and shaped to the corner it sits on, and the head is squared to the shank before setting, because a princess that sits even a degree out of true looks crooked on the hand in a way a round never does. Allow two to three weeks for making, plus shipping.

Looking after it

Warm water, mild washing up liquid and a soft toothbrush, brushing up into the basket from underneath. Check the corner claws once or twice a year, since those four claws are doing all the protective work. Take the ring off for the gym, gardening and swimming.

Questions we are asked

What colour and clarity is the diamond? E colour and VVS2 clarity, on every metal and every carat weight.

Is a princess cut fragile? Only at the corners, and only if they are left exposed. Set with claws over all four corners, as this ring is, it wears as well as any other shape.

Does it look smaller than a round? Slightly, from directly above, because a princess carries more of its weight in depth. Face up it is roughly comparable, and the square outline reads as bolder than a round of the same size.

Is the certificate really free? Yes. The IGI report for the centre stone is included in the price on every variant.

Will a wedding band sit flush? Yes. The band is thin and plain and the basket is narrow, so a straight band sits against it without a gap.

Can it be resized? Yes. The shank is plain all the way around, so one or two sizes either way is straightforward.

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