John wanted to surprise his wife by swapping the diamond in her grandmother‘s engagement ring with a 4 carat lab grown emerald for her birthday. It was a bold move, but the results speak for themselves.

Amy’s ring barely survived a house fire. The gold was burned, the diamonds were blackened, and the entire surface was scarred. I restored what I could, and while some of the damage still remains, so does the remarkable story. 

Josh inherited this freeform openwork honeycomb ring from his grandfather but it didn’t fit. After removing the sizing beads I stretched it open and added a new section. To blend it in I marked new holes with a sharpie and carved them away to match. Now the resized ring tells a seamless story across multiple generations.

Violet was on vacation in Venice when she spotted this vintage style Asscher cut diamond ring with a sapphire baguette halo. Not long after bringing it home one of the prong snapped off. She’s lucky the diamond didn’t fall out. Instead of rebuilding the one prong, I decided to cut off all of the prongs and replace them with double claws. These are stronger as they double the surface contact of the metal holding the diamond, but they’re still delicate enough to complement the clean geometric lines of the design. I also added a milgrain detail along the inner edge of the halo. Violet’s ring now has the look and strength it deserves.

Mary’s Claddagh ring had been with her for 35 years— Through kids, careers, and multiple marriages. It was a gift from her mother, worn every day since high school. But recently it began snagging on her clothes and had become too fragile to wear so I reshanked the bottom and made new thumbs to hold the heart shaped green center stone. With fresh rhodium plating and a secure new structure, it’s ready for its next chapter. #repair #goldsmith #reshank #retip #claddaghring #jewelryrepair #restoration #soldering #craftsman #craftsmanship #satisfying

Maddie picked up this antique engagement ring at the Tucson gem show because it reminded her of a silver ring her mom gave her when she was 16. But years ago, a bad resizing job had nearly destroyed the detailed engraving along the side. With her wedding coming up she asked me to resize and restore it. Much of the original pattern was gone, so I had to hand carve a new design and blend it in seamlessly into what remained. The before and after is crazy on this one!

Claudia brought me a gold ring she hadn’t worn since childhood. It features a jade frog that rattled when you touched it during originally belonged to her grandmother, who picked it up during a trip to China in the 1960s with her growing collection of gold rings with green gemstones, Claudia decided it was time to bring this little guy back into rotation. I tightened the setting, resized to the band, and gave the frog a spa day and ice water. While I soldered now he’s snug, polished, and ready to hop back into daily rotation.

Ava brought me a bold vintage cocktail ring that needed a simple resize… But things didn’t go as planned. As I soldered the shank, the gold suddenly started to bubble and melt— classic porosity. It’s rare, but when it happens, it happens fast. Watch how I salvaged the damage, rebuilt the ring, and brought the smoky topaz statement piece back to life.

#porosity #jewelryrepair #meltedring #laserwelding #jeweler #ringsizing #cocktailring #smokeyquartz #rosegold #restoration #craftsmanship

I’ve always wanted to try the infamous diamond vs hammer experiment… so I did! DISCLAIMER: This experiment was performed by a professionally trained jeweler. Real diamonds WERE harmed in the process. Attempt at your own risk.