Special Diamonds

Two of the diamond rings I made this past summer were special for the same reason. For both of them, I designed the rings to showcase unique diamonds which were supplied by my clients.

This one is a wedding ring for a woman whose partner is from Eastern Europe. He gave her a gorgeous diamond which had been in his family for many years. It is a round 1+ carat stone cut in a old fashioned style called, I was told, a miner’s cut. It had been previously set in a fairly light claw style setting made of white gold. She was rightly concerned that the setting was not sturdy enough to ensure that the stone not be accidentally lost.

It is a stunning and unique stone, deserving of a setting which let the diamond be the undisputed star of the ring. She has two small children and a busy life, so it also had to be sturdy and not catch on things. We decided on 20k gold with a bezel setting, surrounded by twisted wire to emphasizes the spectacular diamond. The shank is hand forged. This photo shows the setting I made before I set the diamond.

The second special diamond ring from this past summer is part of a set for a couple who are both part of the Canadian mining industry. For the woman’s ring, the man provided me with a beautiful square cut diamond, one of the first produced from a mine in which he was involved. The diamond is really lovely, virtually flawless. Here is a close up to try and show you the complex faceting on the stone (diamonds are tricky to photograph!)

This woman also has a full life, with a very busy career and a young child. So again, the challenge was to design a ring which showcased the special diamond in a ring which was study enough for everyday wear by an active woman.

I set the diamond in a square bezel, elevated above the shank in a series of square frames. This commission included a sluice box style ring for the man in the couple. We decided that the shank of the woman’s ring should also be a sluice box style to coordinate with his ring. Sluicebox rings are are a Yukon tradition; basically a channel made of gold, paved with small nuggets. The bezel which holds the diamond is 24k gold, while the two square frames, the sluicebox style shank, and the nuggets are all 20k Yukon placer gold, mined at their family’s mine. The photo below show the pair of rings together.

 

I was happy to hear from both of the women that they were pleased with their new rings.

I am always interested to discuss your ideas for a project. I can source any type of stone for you, if you don’t happen to have something special on hand, as these two women did!

best regards