This client contacted me because he’d seen a design he liked that I done for a different client that was never manufactured. I don’t ever like to make the same thing twice but since this one wasn’t ever manufactured, I said I would do it!

Here is the original render that he saw from the post about another client’s piece:

He wanted the same blue sapphire center but instead of green tourmaline sides he wanted green garnets (tsavorites) because garnet is his girlfriend’s birthstone.

We decided to use palladium for the metal and a created blue sapphire to save a little money.

The final piece turned out so well! The tsavorites really popped!

A few months ago I made this super sleek and modern pearl engagement ring for a customer.

She loved the ring and he loved working with me so much (or at least that is what I tell myself) that he contacted me a couple weeks ago to see if I could make wedding bands for both of them. No problem, except we only had 2 weeks to finalize design and get the rings to his mother’s house so she could take them to Hawaii for their wedding!

We set to work right away. They wanted rings with the same curve as her engagement ring but she wanted hers a little thicker than her engagement ring band and for him they wanted a suitable thickness for a man. I used the design from her engagement ring and took the curve directly from there so we knew they would match.

He wanted some ideas for her ring with a few simple stones as well as a simple band so I came up with these. (My program did not want to render the pearl in her engagement ring that day so please imagine a pearl.)

They liked the single stone version or the plain version best but also wanted to see the single stone as a sapphire.

For his, they wanted to see either a 5mm width or a 6mm width.

They decided to go plain for her ring and he ended up going to a local jewelry store to try on a 5mm band and a 6mm band before deciding on the 6mm.

The designs were simple, but the pieces turned out gorgeous in palladium!

I got both rings shipped out in plenty of time for his mother to get them and I hope to see pictures from their Hawaiian wedding!!

My last post was about what to take into consideration when choosing a gemstone, but how do you pick what metal you want?

The metals I work with are Platinum, Palladium, Gold in 10K, 14K, 18K, White gold in 10K, 14K, 18K and Sterling Silver. There are obviously more metals out there like titanium, steel, and tungsten but these metals are very difficult to work with and I don’t currently have a way to cast them.

When choosing metal, I always start with the color you want. If you want a yellow metal, your choice is gold. The only other decision to make is what karat of gold you want. The plus to 10K is that it is the least expensive since it has the lowest actual gold content. The downside is that you don’t know what alloys are being used to dilute it so if you have very sensitive skin you could have a reaction (not likely but possible) and also the alloys tend to dilute the color so the metal might not be as yellow as higher karats of gold. 10K gold will however be harder than any other karat. 14K is the most common karat you see in the US and has a higher content of actual gold which makes it slightly softer than 10K and also maybe more yellow depending on the mix. 14K is a great middle of the road option for gold and it’s easy to find! 18K is the most expensive option when looking at gold because it has the highest gold content over 10K and 14K. It is the softest (though you probably would notice much difference unless you are a jeweler) and will most likely have the deepest yellow color. I would recommend using the highest karat that your budget allows when using gold. The higher karats are going to hold their value better and also be easier for a jeweler to work with. If you go to another country, you can get other karats of gold like 12K or 22K. Those would follow the same trends with softness and color as the ones that are common in the US.

If you want a white metal, the decision gets more complicated. White gold is the obvious choice and the same rules apply for white gold as do for yellow gold. The most important thing to understand about white gold is that GOLD is never white. It is the alloys mixed with the gold that make it whiter. Almost all white gold in the US is plated with rhodium which is a platinum family metal that makes the piece look absolutely white. This plating wears off over time and whatever gold is underneath will show through. Re-plating is easy though if you have the time to go to the jeweler every 6-12 months. The options for white gold start, like yellow gold, with 10K. 10K white gold is the least expensive gold option and will be the hardest and also the whitest because it has a lower gold content and a higher content of white metal alloys (white gold also has more chances for allergic reactions because the white alloys are metals more people are sensitive to such as nickel). 14K will be a little softer than 10K, a little more expensive and a little more yellow. 18K will be even softer, even more $ and even more yellow. Some people really like the slight yellow of white gold and choose not to have it plated. This is an awesome option, you just have to know what you are starting with as far as the color of your piece.

Platinum is the other obvious choice for white metal. Platinum is the most expensive metal that I work with but it is a great one. Platinum is an absolutely white metal so it never has to be plated. It is much harder than gold yet it isn’t brittle so setting stones in it isn’t a problem. The downside to platinum, is that as it wears, the surface gets dented and starts to take on a matte finish. Gold scratches which is a little different and it stays shiny longer. With any metal, you can always have a jeweler polish it back to its original shine. The other major comparison with gold is that platinum is much denser and therefore heavier. If you want a big chunky ring, platinum might end up being too heavy for comfort so keep in mind how much metal you are working with for both price and weight.

Palladium is a great choice for white metal, in some cases. Palladium is the least expensive of all of the metals I have discussed so far (silver is the only one cheaper). It is great for large pieces or for smaller pieces just to keep the price lower. Palladium is also a platinum family metal which means it is absolutely white and never has to be plated. Palladium is also very hard like platinum but it is more brittle. I like to use palladium for bands (especially for men) because then there are no stones to set but with large pieces, the price stays reasonable. I have used palladium for some ladies rings with stones but never for anything very elaborate and I would never gypsy set a stone in palladium and even try to avoid lots of prongs setting like pave (click here for setting type explanations).

The least expensive choice for white metal is silver. I love silver, but it definitely has its limits. Silver is even softer than gold so it scratches and dents very easily. Also, if you have stones set in silver, it is easier to knock them loose. Silver is a white metal so it doesn’t have to be plated, but it does tarnish over time. Silver is great for staying on a budget but if you can afford it, I will always recommend upgrading.

Metals these days are insanely expensive so budget will no doubt play a large part in your choice but I hope this helps with any other questions!

So remember the totally awesome blue diamond engagement ring I made for a couple of friends? Well after she said yes to the proposal, it was time to make a ring for him!

I knew going in that this was going to be a tall order. This guy was so particular about the ring he was giving to his future bride, I couldn’t imagine how particular he was going to be able his own ring.

It ended up being pretty easy though because he had something very particular in mind. He wanted a ring with a sine wave going around the outside of the ring. I gave him these few choices to look at with his idea.

He decided the on the design where the wave indented into the band on both the inside and outside of the ring. We decided to use palladium because he wanted white metal to match his future bride’s ring but didn’t want to spend a ton to get white gold or platinum.

Once we got his ring size established and I went ahead and manufactured the ring. It turned out really well and he loved it!

When I posted pictures of a different pearl ring a couple weeks ago, a friend of mine contacted me wanted something similar for a pearl that she already had. I don’t like to do the same design for different clients so I had to come up with a variation that she would love. She already had a ring with a 7.5mm pearl and 2 small diamonds. She wanted to re-set the stones into something in white metal since she doesn’t wear yellow gold anymore. This was a gift from herself to herself so she wanted something fun.

I thought about it for a few days and came up with this design:

I used a true square for the shape of the shank and I extended the top curve around the pearl to make it different. I used the diamonds on the sides of the shank for embellishment.

She loved the design. We decided to use palladium because it is more durable than silver but less expensive than white gold.

I don’t think I have ever been so excited to get a casting back. I couldn’t wait to see the lines of this piece in reality.

Even without the stones, the casting was gorgeous.

When I picked it up at the jeweler, my contact told me everyone loved the ring. I just had to take it to my friend to see what she thought!

She loved the piece and put it right on her finger! I love being able to help friends make cool stuff with what they already have!