The Repair Before & After Spotlight Series
My Jewelry Repair aims to provide our customers with the highest caliber of jewelry and watch repair all from the comfort of their home. The Before & After Series spotlights some of the best work our Master Craftsmen have done!
An Invisible Setting Diamond Ring Repair
The Details of this Invisible Setting Restoration
Thank you for tuning into another before & after restoration spotlight! We were more than happy to have this beautiful ring as the next repair feature as we don’t think invisible setting jewelry is talked about enough.
The owner of this ring requested to have the two gemstones missing in the band to be replaced with the same size and quality. Additionally, they wanted to have the ring sized down but one full size. Unfortunately, there were a few challenges along this restoration journey that we to come across.
For this diamond ring repair, we had to:
- Perform our standard and free professional evaluation after noting the repair requests of the customer
- As you may have already known, although we are an online jewelry and watch repair company, we only provide evaluations when our skilled craftsmen can physically asses the items in person at our secure facility
- Our team assessed that this was an 18k ring with an invisible diamond channel setting and a marquise center diamond, having two missing gemstones along with a broken one
- Source out three new princess cut diamonds of the same size and quality
- Groove the new diamonds for the invisible settings
- Reset six other diamonds in the channel as they have been placed in with glue
- Set the three new stones along with the rest in the channel
- Finish with a thorough clean and polish of the entire ring
And voilà! This ring was restored back to its pristine condition, sparkling even brighter than it was when it was sent to us. So, what were the curveballs that we were talking about?
Well, firstly, if you didn’t catch it in our repair notes, there was another invisibly set diamond in the channel setting that was broken and needed to be replaced with a new one as well.
Secondly and unfortunately, we couldn’t resize the ring down a size as requested. Due to the design of the ring’s band, our team would not be able to properly work with where the sizing area would be.
All rings are not created equal when it comes to how many sizes they can be sized up or down, or even if they can be sized at all. An important factor to consider when there are stones in the ring’s band is how closely they are set to the ring sizing area at the back of the shank. Channel set stones are set down in the metal that is manipulated during the sizing process, therefore they can become loose, crack, chip, or fall out of the setting during the sizing process. This ultimately limits the amount that a ring can be sized and therefore why our Master Jewelers made the final decision not to size the ring to not affect the invisible channel settings.
If you would like to learn more about ring resizing and what other factors can affect the process, feel free to read our “Ultimate Ring Resizing Guide.”
The Elegance of Invisible Settings
What is an Invisible Setting and What Makes it Different?
A centuries-old, originally French technique, invisible set gemstone jewelry is one of the most beautiful settings types available. It involves the process of setting stones side-by-side, hiding the metalwork underneath, which can give the appearance of a larger stone.
This technique creates an uninterrupted flow in the gemstones, thus producing the coveted “Invisible Setting.”
This is a very difficult setting type to create and work on since it requires the skill of a highlight trained Master Jeweler. Also, this setting typically demands much more labor than what is necessary for other types of jewelry settings.
We are proud of the service we offer as we know other jewelers without the capabilities must resort to using a gluing method to keep the stones in place. Unfortunately, when stones are simply glued to each other, it creates a setting that is weaker and most likely will begin to loosen over time, which was exactly what happened with the ring that we’re featuring in this blog. This is why gluing is a practice that our jewelers do NOT subscribe to here at My Jewelry Repair.
If you would like to learn about invisible settings, feel free to read our “Invisible Setting Guide.”
Invisible Settings at My Jewelry Repair
The best way to secure invisibly set stones is to hand-cut grooves into the girdle of the gemstones. This method is time-consuming, and therefore it is more expensive. However, cutting the individual stones creates pressure between them, which keeps them secured within the metal framework so they are protected. Here are My Jewelry Repair, we have a team of Master Jewelers that so happen to be Invisible Setting specialists that work in our specialized Setting Lab!
We are proud members of the
Our team includes gemologists certified by
Our ensemble of Master Jewelers possesses the golden touch, adept at reviving the magical allure of this sophisticated setting to its fullest brilliance. Should you be interested in getting your invisible setting restored, feel free to visit our Invisible Settings Services page to learn more.
Impressed with the results of this repair or simply enjoyed the educational insights that came along with it? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
(Before)
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That’s All Folks!
Thank you for taking the time to visit the latest addition to our Before and After Series! Don’t worry, we will be showcasing many more of our major transformations very soon.
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Before & After #165