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Introduction

I designed an engagement ring. I learned a lot about jewelry making, so I thought I would share this fascinating process with you.

Creating the wax carving

This is the wax carving. It will be used to create a mold, then the molten metal will be poured into the mold, melting the wax.

At least, that’s how it was explained to me.

Here’s another view from the side:

This doesn’t represent the final shape of ring. Extra material exists that will be removed as the polishing is done and the stones are set into place.

I’m in awe that someone can just create this out of wax.

Seeing the rough casts

These are the castings of both the engagement ring and the band, made by pouring the molten platinum into the mold, melting the wax in the process. In fact, this is called the lost wax method of casting.

After the metal has cooled, the mold is broken and the casting is done. The bottoms of both rings have the remnants of the sprue, which is the air hole that the molten platinum is poured into.

Since this is before polishing, the platinum is still dull. Polishing will remove some material and make it shiny.

Again, this isn’t quite the final size of the ring or the band, since there is polishing yet to be done.

Checkin’ out the polished pieces

Finally, the ring is polished and is ready to have the stones set into it.

Time to put the stones in place

The stones are hammer set into the piece.

Here is the finished product:

The center stone is 0.58 carat and each side stone is about 0.1 carat.

Who is the artist?

I felt a little leery and uneasy at the idea of creating a custom ring. I’m no jeweler, I don’t know anything about jewelry, and it seems that would make it hard for me to design a ring.

However, much credit goes to Deborah Spencer for the creation of this ring. She took my haphazard ideas and distilled the best of them into the work you see here.

She is totally awesome. She taught me a lot about the process of how things worked, explained the intricacies of everything, and accommodated all my requests.

If you’re looking to create a unique piece, you should definitely get in touch with Deborah Spencer at:
http://deborahspencer.com/

If you have any other questions about the process, please get in touch with me and I’ll be happy to explain.