They say actions speak louder than words, so why not speak the loudest of words by making your own ring for, and with, your loved one? Designing your own ring is symbolic; the ring is a powerful symbol of commitment to one another, signifying ideas very personal to you and your loved one. The time and effort your take when selecting elements for this special ring will be appreciated fully as your special person knows that no one else will ever possess this rare, one-of-a-kind item. So, how does one go about designing this unique piece of treasure for their loved one?
Melting and Milling
Guided by a certified master silversmith, the process will be fully explained to you and you will be supervised through the entire process. The first step is to select the type of metal you want your rings to be made from. This tends to cause a little squabble sometimes, the lady asking for gold and the guy, well, probably some other metal! Gold is the preferred choice by many of course, but there are those who like to be different and go for other more bespoke choices, or even choose to combine a few for their own unique touch. The chosen metal is put into a furnace and heated at extremely high temperatures of 500 degrees Celcius, until it is completely molten. With guided assistance, you then will pour the liquid into an oblong shaped mold called an ingot, and allowed to cool. After cooling, the ingot is then removed from the mold and milled into a wire shaped form. Milling is the process by which the ingot is carved and shaped in to a long square piece of wire. It sounds complex, but each step of the process brings couples closer together.
Bending and Sawing
In this part, the metal that was previously milled, is now bent into a circular shape. This one of the less complicated steps but still demands oversight from the specialist ring maker, who will take over every now and then when he needs to, explaining the process as he goes along. This bending is done with a special set of pliers. In the meantime, the groom can occasionally ask his bride to insert her finger momentarily to ensure that the circle is a good fit for the size of her finger. The bride can always reciprocate this playful activity. When the bending is complete, it is then cut by a special machine to remove the excess metal, when the two ends can be brought together perfectly.
Joining and Final Touches
Next step, you need to hold the two ends of the metal permanently together. In order to make this process as hands on as possible, one of you can hold the metal with pliers, while the other applies the heat to partially melt, join and shape the ends, making into a whole ring. After this done, a file is used to remove the excess solder, and then shape the rings. Now for the final touches, which is buffing; that is used to remove the final flaws including tiny scratches and marks made by the file. Finally, a kind of jeweler’s polish is applied for that extra sparkle and then held up to a polishing machine. You will be more than excited to take part in this final process, knowing there was a lot of work put into it, and finally, you have a beautiful shining piece of precious memorabilia!
At the end of the day, whether or not the ring that you make will look exactly as it does in the brochure, it doesn’t really matter. It is not actually the rings, but the process of making them that matters the most.
Chez Monique Jewelry
Jalan Sri Wedari no 57, Taman Kaja, Ubud, Kab. Gianyar,
Bali 80571, Indonesia
+62 813 3845 4677
www.chezmoniquejewelry.com
