Curious about cutting a fantasy gemstone? This beginner's guide will walk you through the steps and show you the tools and techniques you'll need.
12 Minute Read
You can learn more about fantasy cuts here.
The first part of the fantasy cutting process is to cut a finished stone. The second part is to carve it. Typically, freeforms are used. Although the stone is a freeform, the techniques are the same as faceting any other stone.
Start with the pavilion.
Determine where the table will be placed and grind a flat for dopping as shown below.
Dop the stone as shown here. I used a gel-type super glue with accelerator.
Establish the shape of the finished stone by cutting a series of girdle facets at 90º to give you the outline. Be sure to write down the indexes used: 96 21 27 72.
It’s nice to note that most fantasy gemstones are freeforms. This allows you to use all your rough and maximize yield. In this case, I used a 96-index gear. For demonstration purposes, I used both standard flat facets and a curved facet. The curve was cut by freewheeling the index gear and grinding it to a pleasantly shaped curve.
For your first attempt, stick to all flats. (Curves are…
When you join the IGS community, you get trusted diamond & gemstone information when you need it.
You can learn more about fantasy cuts here.
The first part of the fantasy cutting process is to cut a finished stone. The second part is to carve it. Typically, freeforms are used. Although the stone is a freeform, the techniques are the same as faceting any other stone.
Start with the pavilion.
Determine where the table will be placed and grind a flat for dopping as shown below.
the stone as shown here. I used a gel-type with accelerator.
Establish the shape of the finished stone by cutting a series of girdle facets at 90º to give you the outline. Be sure to write down the indexes used: 96 21 27 72.
It’s nice to note that most fantasy gemstones are freeforms. This allows you to use all your rough and maximize yield. In this case, I used a 96-index gear. For demonstration purposes, I used both standard flat facets and a curved facet. The curve was cut by freewheeling the index gear and grinding it to a pleasantly shaped curve.
For your first attempt, stick to all flats. (Curves are…
Curious about cutting a fantasy gemstone? This beginner's guide will walk you through the steps and show you the tools and techniques you'll need.
Please become a member to read this entire article and gain access to hundreds more like it. As a member, you'll also get...
