Anueva Jewelry Custom Ring Process
We are grateful to have the opportunity every day to design custom rings with our fellow mermaids and mountaineers. We know many of you have dream ring visions in mind, and we love making those dreams reality. We are here for you throughout the entire process. Learn all about our Anueva Jewelry Custom Ring Process below.
The Planning Phase
Discuss Vision
Most of our clients find us by referral or online! The first step to creating your custom ring either in-person or through e-mail communication with us is by submitting an entry to our Custom Designs form at anuevajewelry.com. The majority of our custom rings are made for clients outside of Washington state, so we are accustomed to sending videos and photos of stones and custom computer renderings of your ring for visual aid.
For local clients, we’ll schedule an appointment in our Seattle studio for stone and ring setting viewings.
At this time, we ask that you send us any photo examples of ring projects, stone type, shape, size and color that you like for inspiration. There is a gallery of our most popular setting styles in the “Build Your Own” menu at anuevajewelry.com where you can browse design ideas. These rings are designed and modified specifically to fit the center stone of your choosing. We also often combine details in rings to create a new, customized piece for our clients.
Stone Sourcing
We are always adding new loose stones to our online inventory of diamonds and sapphires. To browse our online selection, visit the “Build Your Own” menu at anuevajewelry.com. We can gather comparison photos and videos for you or let you know through our consultation if a specific stone is a better option for your color, size or style preferences.
If none of the stones on our website speak to you, that’s ok! We work with several trustworthy diamond and gemstone suppliers on a regular basis to bring in inventory specifically for client requests. For custom project stone sourcing, we require that our customers purchase a Design Reservation when they have all of their ring funds allocated and are ready for us to begin gathering options from our vendors. This is a small $150 non-refundable deposit that is either applied to the price of a third party appraisal or to the total balance of their ring.
There are typically dozens of stones in our studio that have not yet been uploaded, and we can sort through those stones as well when you have a specific request.
Invoicing and Financing
Once we’re in agreement on the setting style and details for your ring, and the center stone of your choosing, we’ll draft up an invoice for you to pay in full online. You can pay by credit or debit card, by PayPal or by one of our financing partners, PayPal Credit or Affirm at checkout.
After full payment has been collected, our production team gets to work! We partner with a local team that knows exactly how we like our pieces made, from the size and feel of the shank to the type of prongs we use to set your stones.
If you do not know your ring size, now is a great time to ask us for a ring sizer. We’ll send it in the mail! If this ring is a surprise for a proposal, you can also form the ring sizer into the shape of a loop and hold it next to a ring that fits the intended recipient for a “close” size match. The finished ring can be resized later for a better fit.
The Production Phase
Create CAD or Hand-Carved Wax
The production of our pieces starts in computer aided design (CAD), where our CAD designer uses the measurements of your specific stone to generate a ring model in the style of your choosing that will fit that stone. The computer model is a 3D visual diagram of the layout and placement of the stones, the thickness and shape of the band and the actual size of the ring band.
These computer models can look a little funny because the prongs for the center and accent stones are pointed straight up. Not to worry! These prongs will be trimmed, lowered over the stones and styled nicely later in the stone setting process.
If you’re familiar with the style of our rings, you know that we offer both classic, rounded ring bands and textured, hand carved Evergreen bands. In the case of our carved Evergreen textured rings, Jennifer carves the texture into the ring shank by hand before it is cast into metal.
Casting and Stone Setting, Polishing
After you have approved your CAD model, your piece is sent to the casting department to be cast into recycled gold or platinum. The wax copy of the ring is grouped in a flask with other rings of the same metal and burnt out in a kiln, where a copy of the ring is left in negative space in the investment in the flask. Molten gold or platinum is then poured into the flask, filling the negative space to leave in its place a metal copy of your ring!
The rings look pretty rough in this stage (literally, ouch!). They’re cut from the group and given a nice pre-polish so the stone setters have a clean surface to cut seats for your stones and finish prongs in the stone setting process. The ring is then given a final polish or a satin finish, depending on the finish style you’ve selected. These processes are all done by skilled hands, by our team in the great Pacific Northwest.
Inspection
The production team inspects your ring for quality and accuracy, comparing the finished product to your order details before we receive the piece. Once it’s in our hands, we inspect it again! If any changes need to be made to the ring or any errors were made, we hope to catch those at this point so we can have everything correct before delivering the finished product.
Final Items
Appraisal, if purchased
The craftsmanship of our rings is covered under a 1-year warranty. This would include porosity in the casting or issues with the prongs or bezel settings making the stones loose. Metal scratching or bending and diamonds chipping or breaking are not included in this warranty, so please treat your jewelry like it’s precious- because it is! These are natural, earth-mined materials and are still susceptible to damage due to wear and tear. Please refer to our Jewelry Care Guide here.
Some of our customers order an appraisal on their piece for their records and also for their insurance company to verify a replacement value. We recommend a company like Jeweler’s Mutual for insurance on the ring and its stones, or adding the piece to your home owner’s or renter’s policy.
The appraisal is done by a third party GIA Gemologist Appraiser and will include photos and metal, gemstone or diamond details and an estimated replacement value.
Shipping
We verify your shipping address when your piece is done and ready to ship. We insure shipments and use FedEx or UPS Express and can ship to many countries worldwide. The box is a standard FedEx or UPS box and does not have Anueva on its label. Custom rings are packaged carefully in a sustainable wooden ring box. If you want to know if our insurance covers shipment to your country, please send us an email.
