The intricate marquise diamond shape originated from King Luis XIV. As the story goes, he wanted a new diamond shape to be forged to match the mysterious smile of his woman. The diamond cutters went to work and the sultry, narrow oval shaped diamond that resulted was named after his mistress, Marquise de Pompadour. The oval shape that is commonly known as the marquise diamond is now a popular option for men who want to get their lovers a diamond ring but are bored with the traditional bright round shape.

There are several advantages to choosing a marquise diamond engagement ring. The first one is that it is unique. The different oval shape is an attractive alternative from the norm. The second one is that because of the unique shape of the marquise design, the light is refracted in such a way that it makes the stone look bigger than it actually is. The light reflects on the largest face, which is on top, giving the diamond an appearance larger than that of its actual size and worth. Also, many marquise designs include a line up of diamonds culminating in the largest one on top accentuating the size of the diamond.

If you are going to buy a marquise diamond engagement ring, you should know about the bow tie effect. In traditional diamond shapes, the stone is cut in such as way that reflects the light inwards. This causes the stone to sparkle and shine. In the marquise oval, some of the light escapes leaving a dark channel down the center of the stone in the shape of a bow tie. While some actually think it accentuates the beauty of the cut, others see it as a flaw. When you are purchasing marquise diamonds, look carefully at the proportions. Well cut stones minimize the bow tie effect, as it draws away from the brilliance of your diamond.

Styles for engagement rings are as numerous as there are preferences. However, two popular ones are solitaire and accented. Solitaire rings are gold or platinum rings with one lone diamond. These are often larger and brilliantly set to perfection. Accented rings are rings that have smaller oval or tear drop shaped diamonds winding up the side of the ring, leading to the big one up front. Accented designs come in a wide variety of shapes. Some include a heavy usage of diamonds, which can tend to be expensive, while others use only a few.