02.16.23 Forging Ahead

About those rings...

since we saw the kids in DC last weekend - our first trip back since the fall - I figured today would be a good time to post.

The wedding was absolutely the highlight - and in many ways the saving grace - of 2022.

Our son and daughter in law worked so hard to make sure everyone had a part - and by the end of the week we were all one big family - 

although most of us had never met before.

Not quite a year ago (March 2022), we went to DC to visit and start planning the big event; standing on the balcony of the wedding venue, they asked me to make their wedding rings.  

In hindsight I don't know why I hesitated - even for a moment - because it was so much fun; and now a piece of me (and my heart) is with them every day.

I reached out to my friend and teacher, De Pastel, and we set up a schedule to work together on the rings.  I also gave the kids some assignments...go try on some rings, see what they liked, and to get their ring sizes.

We were supposed to travel early in the summer, to meet our son's future in-laws and while we were there I was going to get an impression of the engagement ring to make sure that when I made my daughter in law's wedding band, it would be a perfect fit.  

The trip never happened, so I sent instructions and the thermoplastic to DC without me, and the US mail took care of getting it back and forth.

With the size information and their metal choices - 14 K gold, yellow for him, palladium white for her - De and I got to work.

The rings were made through a process called forging - basically beating the metal into submission. I started with ring stock - 2 mm half round for her ring, and 6 mm comfort fit for his - which, with De's guidance, I carefully measured and cut to the appropriate length.

We started with the smaller, easier ring - shaping it on a mandrel, heating it when it became work hardened, and hammering and heating again, until it began to form a circle.

The next step was to make the ends meet. The first one went pretty quickly, but I'll admit, that my arms were sore at the end of the day because it was a whole lot of work to bend a piece of solid gold 6 mm wire.

Despite being tired, I was very satisfied that after a few hours at De's bench. With her instruction and supervision, what I had in front of me was beginning to look a lot like a pair of wedding bands.

Clearly - they weren't finished - but there was no question left in my mind that I was going to have them done in plenty of time for the wedding.

Everything about making the rings brought me joy.  

Being back at a bench, with tools in my hands, time with De (including a couple of wonderful P. Terry's lunches during our sessions), and knowing that once they put them on, my kids would wear them out into the world as symbols of their love and commitment.

I went back to De's studio for a second day to finish the work.  At the end of the first day, the bands were round-ish...but "ish" was not what we were going for...the goal was perfection.  De's years of experience and eagle eye were invaluable as I continued to shape and size the rings before cleaning and polishing them.

I'm not sure I've ever been more proud of my work - there were no uneven edges, no seams or even tiny specks of solder visible - just continuous, shiny, gold rings.

I sent pictures, but the kids didn't actually see the rings until just a couple of days before the wedding.  Fortunately, they had been very good about getting their hands sized properly, and we were very careful in our measurement.

The result - perfect fits on both bands!

While the rings were for them, the process was a gift for me.  Time at the bench and with De reminded me how much joy there is in making things...

...especially when those things are special, one of a kind pieces of jewelry (inspired by the one of a kind people they were made for).

The only thing better than visits with my kids...is seeing the rings on their hands when I do.

Until next time.

03.07.16 Romancing the Stone

My husband are coming up on a quarter century together. They have been very happy and fulfilling years, in large part because we really do understand each other.  He is more pragmatic than romantic, so the transition from dating to engaged happened before there was a ring. 

Photo credit:
IGI-USA

He made very clear to me that while he had every intention of buying me a diamond, he wasn't going to be the one to choose - that would have to be me.  He said something along the lines of "I want to buy you a ring to wear forever, I don't want you to look at it every day hating it - and waiting five or ten years to tell me you want something else."

I had no problem accepting that - in fact - I was pleased that he understood me well enough to say so, and trusted me not to get upset when he did. I met with diamond brokers and jewelers, priced stones, bartered a little bit - and ended up with a carat-plus G color, VVS1, emerald cut stone in a four prong Tiffany setting.  I've worn it every day for more than 23 years, and I love it.

My engagement and wedding rings

Even after all this time together, he won't go out and buy jewelry for me on his own - he tells me to pick something out, or gets help from sales staff that know me (and makes sure it can be returned or exchanged).

My good friend Amanda's husband, John, is at the other end of the spectrum. Quite the romantic, John does purchase jewelry for her, and has from the beginning.  When he planned to propose, he bought a STUNNING diamond, and had it put in a simple setting, with the idea that they could go back anytime and set the stone in the ring of her choice.  She said yes, and off they went.

As we all know - life has a way of pushing non-critical tasks to the bottom of the priority list - and that's what happened to the engagement ring.  So, almost two decades (multiple job changes, three active boys, a cross country move, and an upgraded diamond and platinum wedding band) later - Amanda's diamond was still in its original setting, and languishing in her jewelry box.

On a visit to Austin (because that move was to the Pacific Northwest), Amanda asked me if I would go with her to look at new settings for her diamond.  You know I said yes!

We went to Russell Korman, where Amanda told Brooke (a member of their fabulous sales team) what she was looking for.  She'd given a lot of thought to what she wanted in a new setting - she wanted a bezel setting (no prongs), possibly a raised mount or cathedral shape (to put the engagement stone above her wedding band) and perhaps some additional side stones or a halo.

We discussed a lot of options - plain bands with a halo, channel set bands with a halo, matching the pattern of baguettes and channel stones in her band...and had a grand time pulling settings out of trays and looking at them up against her wedding band.

Amanda's "new" ring

She kept coming back to a Ritani setting - with a halo and a double row of channel set stones.  It looked really lovely with her wedding ring.

Although she didn't make a purchase that afternoon, Amanda did leave with a good sense of what she wanted - and planned to talk it over with John.

Well, John is a good listener, because for their 19th wedding anniversary (in February) he had the stone reset for her...and I'd say he picked a winner.

Until next time.