How Our Rings Are Handmade?

You are about to see how our "Pyramid Treasure Ring" was created. May Vat, the originator of the "Pyramid Treasure" Ring is going to take you along her creative journey.

From head to paper


I have a clear vision of designs in my head but I can't translate that into my drawings. The first challenge that I face is how to get what I see in my head onto paper. My drawing stills are maxed out at stick figures at best".

Cindy L. is one of my best friends and from time to time she is inspired to ask me for a ring design. I love seeing her enthusiasm and this in turn fuels my imagingation! I nicknamed this design the "Pinky Ring" because it started out as a request from Cindy to design a ring for her pinky.


Portion matters

It's all about proportion as beauty is about being just right. This step involves the art of measuring the proportion of the hand VS the stones and design of the ring. This requires several drawings in actual size. The next step is to draw a ring in 20-30 times its proportion so that the details can view before making the wax. This is the least favorite part as it involves more science than art.



Wax making


Similar to the painting that starts off as a sketch, my rings start off with a wax model before production. The wax is guided by my drawings and is hand carved with precision. This process requires the highest level of artistry because it transform a drawing to a living design. In the left picture I modeled the Amethyst stone on top of the pinky ring. The right picture, the wax was carved to fit the stone setting.


Casting Call

Once I am happy with the wax and the design is as close to my vision, I am ready for casting. The wax goes into a casting process and the result is a precious metal ring. In this version the ring is made from 925 sterling silver. My preference is to work with sterling silver and 18K gold and higher. The purity of metal blends with the beauty of natural gemstones.



Setting the stones
The next process is one of my favorites as it is similar to putting on a makeup. It starts with selecting quality stones that will radiate brilliancy and dimension. This process requires a steady hand and patience. If the stones are hammered into the setting with too much pressure, it cracks the stone. This is where we normally incur loss. The second picture shows how the ring is attached to red wax so that it can be attached to the workbench.


2 P's

Bringing out the shine means the ring has to be "Polished". This is a very tricky part of the process because if you polish the ring too little then the edges are rough and the texture is too grainy. If you polish it too much, you start to degrade the structure and cause it to have permanent groves. My designs are complex and multi-dimensional and thus making this process that much harder.

You can distinguish a high quality ring from a poor one by its "Plating". My ring goes through an extra step which adds more cost and labor but the result is quality that you can feel over time. The rhodium plating keeps the silver from easily tarnishing.



The birth of my Pyramid Treasure ring


Voila!! Finally I got my first Pyramid Treasure live!!!! This took me 3 months of hardworking, excitement, motivation, dedication, exhaustion, frustration, and everything else before this little princess came into live!! If you look at this piece closely, you will see that there are certain flaws. But you know what? This is my first piece and I love it very dearly!! This ring is a size 2 and I often wear it on my pinky finger eversince.



Perfect Duo

The perfect duo is displayed here in purple amethyst and blue topaz. My pyramid treasures come alive in these two distinct gemstone selection. My designs are highly versatile because you can wear it with jeans and a t-shirt and look hip or with an evening dress and look elegant and sophisticated. These designs do not dictate the look but rather compliment your style. My treasure is now being offered in my Etsy store at www.360jewels.etsy.com and displayed in my gallery at www.360jewels.com.


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