Step Cuts

Step cuts use rectangular facets arranged in parallel rows ("steps") receding toward the culet, rather than the triangular facets of a brilliant cut. The emerald cut is the archetype; the asscher cut applies the same faceting to a square outline.

What distinguishes this family

A step cut's large, flat facets act like a hall of mirrors — long flashes of light and dark rather than the brilliant's scattered sparkle. This makes step cuts far less forgiving of inclusions (they're easier to see through the open table) but, to many buyers, more elegant and architectural.

Cuts in this family

Buying considerations

• Clarity matters more here than in a brilliant cut of the same paper grade — inclusions are more visible through the open facets, so buy clarity higher than you would for an equivalent round brilliant.
• Corners on both emerald and asscher cuts are cropped/bevelled and more vulnerable to chipping than a brilliant's rounded girdle — check the setting protects them.
• Step cuts show colour more readily than brilliant cuts of the same grade — favour a slightly higher colour grade if a warm tint would bother you.

Jewellery uses

Both shapes suit clean, architectural Art Deco-influenced settings — trilogy rings, bezels, and pairing with baguette or trapezoid side stones.