This site is dedicated to the memory of Norman W. Steele who doggedly collected and cataloged most of the faceting diagrams in this collection. This site’s purpose is to make this collection freely available to the hobbyist or professional gem cutter and to enlarge the collection. The database is based on the Datavue program and database of Robert H. Long and Norman W. Steele with updates by John Franke of The Facet Shoppe. You can learn more about Long and Steele and Datavue’s history in Bob’s autobiography. This website and database software were created by Robert W. Strickland, creator of GemCad, www.gemcad.com at the urging of Will H. Smith.

The database contains three basic categories of diagrams. The first category is for preview only. Most of these diagrams were recreated by Norm Steele or Bob Long by proof-cutting the design on the computer working from the original diagram. They are not photographic copies but rather one person’s best attempt at “cutting” the design on the computer. For diagrams published before the computer era, often the diagram and angles do not agree, so these may not completely portray the designer’s intent.

The second category of designs are those designs contributed to the collection by their creators or copyright holders. You can view and print these diagrams directly from your browser. These diagrams include cutting angles and index settings and often include cutting instructions and other notes. If you have and use GemCad for Windows, these designs have a link to a file in GemCad’s ASC format you can download and open directly with GemCad.

The third category of designs are those with diagrams published elsewhere on the web. These are indicated in pink and have a clickable link.

Bob Long has graciously granted permission for facetdiagrams.org to include all of his and Norm Steele’s original designs and those published in their Seattle Facetor Design Notes newsletter. Many of these designs are also published in their excellent books: Introduction to Meetpoint Faceting and their Facet Design series, available for purchase from Graves. Several other designers have agreed to allow their designs to be used freely on this website. We are grateful to Walt Heitland of Vancouver Island, Canada; Alexandre Wolkonsky of Paris, France; Ernie Hawes of New Mexico, US; Jerry Capps of Wisconsin, US; Jim Finlayson of UK; and Robert Strickland of Texas, US. Thanks also to Benjamin Strout for permission to use designs by his mother, Edith Bauer Strout. Thanks also to the widow of Vernon "Larry" Larson for permission to publish her husband’s designs.

If you would like to submit a design for the database, contact us. If you are the designer or copyright holder of a design in the database and want to make the diagram freely available for viewing or download, contact us.

The designs indexed without diagrams are included for reference. If you own the copyright of a diagram referenced here and believe that it was used unfairly, please contact us with the details.