How Are Diamonds Hand-Cut? A Look Inside the Process

Cutting a diamond by hand is a skill that has almost vanished from the modern jewellery industry. Today, the vast majority of diamonds are shaped with laser precision and computer-guided calculations, engineered to maximise brilliance and consistency across every single stone. But there remains a small handful of cutters worldwide who still work the old way — guided entirely by eye, experience, and an understanding of what each individual stone wants to become.

Starting With the Rough

Every diamond begins as a rough, uncut stone — opaque, unassuming, and giving very little away about what lies beneath the surface. Before a single cut is made, a skilled cutter studies the rough carefully, assessing its natural shape, internal structure, and any inclusions, to decide how best to reveal its beauty rather than force it into a predetermined mould. This first stage is as much about patience and observation as it is about technical skill.

Reading the Stone

Unlike computer-modelled cutting, which calculates angles mathematically before a single cut is made, hand-cutting is a responsive process. Each cut informs the next. A cutter working freeform rose cuts doesn't impose a fixed template onto the stone — instead, the shape emerges gradually, guided by how the light moves through the diamond as it's worked. This is why no two hand-cut freeform diamonds are ever quite the same, even when cut by the very same hands.

The Tools of the Trade

Diamond cutting relies on one simple truth: only a diamond can cut a diamond. Traditional hand-cutting uses a rotating cast iron lap coated in diamond dust and oil, against which the rough stone is carefully held and worked, facet by facet. It's a slow, deliberate process — a single stone can take considerable time to complete, particularly for larger or more complex freeform shapes.

A Disappearing Craft

Diamond cutting was once a thriving trade across the UK, but today, hand-cutting has become exceptionally rare, with the vast majority of cutting now taking place overseas using automated, computer-guided methods. The skills involved in true hand-cutting are typically passed down directly from cutter to cutter, generation to generation, rather than taught through standardised training — which is part of why so few people carry the craft forward today.

Why It Matters

A hand-cut diamond carries something a computer-modelled stone simply can't: the judgement, intuition, and individual touch of the person who cut it. Every freeform rose cut diamond we create at Ilana Belsky is shaped this way — by hand, in the UK, using skills passed down through generations. It's a slower way of working, but it's also why every single piece is genuinely one of a kind.

If you're drawn to jewellery with real craftsmanship behind it, explore our collection of hand-cut rose cut diamond rings, necklaces and earrings.