Making an engagement ring ?
Q.I have been doing some research into the possibility of making my own engagement ring, I'm sure this has been looked into before but I am having trouble finding any information on other people trying this. I don't have jewelry or smithing experience (I have only taken an introduction to jewelry class), so I understand that I can't possibly do the whole process. I am trying to figure if there is anything I can do. I am not doing this to save money and I am not doing this in a hurry, I have plenty of time :)
A.First thing that comes to mind is to start sketching. Come up with several designs that you think are along the lines of what you want. Then take the designs to a good jewelry designer and pay them for a consultation on your design. They can tell you from an "engineering" perspective whether your design will work, should wear well (durability), should be comfortable, and will securely support the stone of your choice. Working together with the designer's input, you should come up with final detailed sketches/schematics of the ring you want to create. Now the designer can tell you whether it is best to have it cast or fabricated, the pros and cons of various materials (in other words, what metal, what karat, what alloy for each component of the ring), and can facilitate the rest of the process of getting the ring made, with participation from you at whatever points you are interested in and have the skills to do it. The next alternative would be to look into a place like Metalwerx, which is in Woburn, MA. There, you can take very targeted classes in jewelrysmithing, have access to a well-equipped lab, and also have access to some wonderful, sharing and highly experienced people who can advise you each step of the way. This approach will put you VERY hands-on in the process. Either way, you'll need to be able to clearly articulate what you want and how you want it throughout the process. One of the best ways to do that is to create very detailed drawings or renderings (you can use a program like Rhino if you're into CAD to create renderings of rings which can be output to formats that can be used by companies to produce a product).
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