Planning for the wedding ring
30th August 2019
A remade Ruby proposal ring and one that may or may not be remade.
Above is a remake of a ruby engagement ring that I made two years ago and below it a diamond engagement ring that was just delivered to a New South Wales customer. I am going to explain why remaking most of the proposal rings I make is expected and planned for.
Rings are meant to be round.
The proposal ring two years ago
This ring was made to an estimate of the finger size that I was provided with. As per usual that estimate was wrong. With this design the required transformation to a much smaller finger size was possible but left the ring slightly oval in shape.
Article: Rings that cannot be resized
Article: Why you should avoid resizing a new ring
Article: The surprise proposal: the wrong finger size....no surprise!
On top of the issues that resizing a brand new ring introduces, an oval engagement ring when placed next to a round wedding ring creates a mismatch.
Straight wedding rings need to be planned for especially ones with gems set into them.
Article: Don`t forget gem depth
The solution: Design, draft and then deliver
I cannot think of a better example of the need to ensure that a ring be made to the correct finger size than this extremely large, delicate and valuable 8.16 carat natural cabochon Emerald ring above.
The normal process for me is to first create a design with my customer or discuss one they have in mind. Once we have the blueprint for the design finalised I then make a draft to confirm the design and finger size.
We can resize that draft to determine the perfect fit and avoid any need to resize a new ring. The actual ring is then made.
The proposal ring - a twist on design, draft and deliver
With the proposal ring the design is created and a draft made. It is that draft that is used for the proposal. The proposal ring is later remade to the perfect size and if needed redesigned to the tastes of the recipient and/or to match their desired wedding ring.
The ring remade with some very slight changes to the correct finger size.
This customer was undecided on what she wanted for her wedding ring and asked for some time to consider her options. She was happy to wear the ring slightly oval in shape while we worked on her wedding ring design.
Two years later with the wedding ring design selected the ring was remade to the correct finger size. Some very slight changes to the engagement ring design were needed to accomodate the wedding ring properly.
Who knows what design
On the very odd occasion the proposal ring is the correct finger size. That was the case with the above ring I made a week or so ago. The recipient is now taking her time deciding on what she would like for her wedding ring.
With this New South Wales customer we will do all the design planning and drafts for the wedding ring remotely using a system that I have developed over the years. It allows me to service my many customers that do not live in Cairns. I will be interested to see where the couple goes with the design of her wedding ring.