Four Claw Ring

This is the first project from Stage 6 of the Silver program at Jewellery Training Solutions. There are two versions of this ring - this is the first version. Stage 6 focuses on commercial jewelry construction.

What were the challenges?

The biggest challenge I faced with this project was getting the shoulders soldered on.

Where could I improve?

There are numerous small flaws I would like to work on improving. The seam in the ring shank is visible - I made sure it was a nice clean and tight seam, so not sure how to improve that. I realized after the final polish that the base of one of the shoulder’s is slight crooked, and there are some more tool marks which need to be removed. While I’m overall happy with how the stone is set, one of the prongs isn’t completely pushed down. There is a tool I need to make to help me accomplish that.

What did I learn?

I think the thing that really struck me while working on this project is that it’s nearly impossible to get something to be “perfect.” I would polish, see a mark, go back and sand, then repolish, only to rinse and repeat! This is the first time that I’ve set a stone and been happy with how the stone sits in the seat. I used a hart bur instead of a setting bur this time, and I liked that method much better. It gave me a much cleaner seat. I also learned a much easier way to add the shoulders.

This is a two part lesson, with two different versions of this ring. This is the first version, and I’m looking forward to trying the second.