The beauty of a diamond is mainly characterized by its brilliance and fire that occurs when light enters the gemstone. However, this light entering the diamond may get trapped inside it at times because of its poor cut or the way the facets are arranged. This blocked light may create some dark regions within the diamond as well; this phenomenon is known as the bow tie effect. These dark patches usually resemble the bow tie of a man, and hence, it got the name.
Bow tie effect is one of the most prominent issues that you can see in diamonds, especially in the fancy shapes such as that featuring in marquise diamond engagement rings. Sadly, this imperfection will not be documented in the gemological certificate of the stone either. Hence, it is better to take a close look at your marquise diamond engagement rings before making the purchase.
The Reason for Bow Tie Effect
The main reason for the occurrence of the bow tie effect in a diamond is its poor facet arrangement. Usually, the facets in a diamond will be arranged in a way that every facet reflects light. In poorly cut diamonds, the facets will not reflect light properly, no matter how much you tilt the gemstone. This may either result in light leakage and light obstruction.
The former will result in dull and lifeless diamonds and the latter will lead to the bow tie phenomenon. Nevertheless, some buyers love to choose diamond rings with a light bow tie effect. In fact, some diamond cutters claim that fancy diamond shapes that do not exhibit a small bow tie are more likely to have issues with its brilliance.
Why Most Cutters Ignore the Bow Tie Effect
It is possible for experienced craftsmen and skilled cutters to lessen the bow tie intensity up to an extent. Still, the entire process will be really hectic since they cannot simply cut or polish the diamonds as they wish in order to achieve the objective. They have to consider financial constraints as well. That is, a cutter cannot polish a gemstone to eliminate bow tie effect at the expense of losing too much carat weight from the raw diamond. Besides, achieving the desired diamond shape is also important.
Alternately, some diamond ring designers often suggest choosing diamond band engagement rings in order to lessen the intensity of bow tie. Here, the sparkling band can easily distract the attention of viewers from the main gemstone. However, this will not work if your diamond exhibits a severe bow tie effect.