Quick feedback! Thinness of hand-forged bezels??

[elliefire99]

TLDR; How thin is it possible to get with hand-forged bezels?

Hello! I just finished a custom setting e-ring journey with Sally at HoW. I looooovvve how the ring came out BUT it has some bezels that look a bit thicker than I want in the photos. The setting has clusters of 2.3mm side stones, and right now it looks a bit chunky. I asked Sally if it would be possible to make them a bit thinner, and she essentially said, "No" but they are happy to try if it is important to me.

The rationale:
1) Since the bezels are very shiny white gold, they look bigger in photos than irl because of how they reflect the light. She says that he bezels appear in the photos to be about 1mm, but in reality they are about 0.3mm
2) It is not possible to make razor-thin bezels with hand forging like it is with casting. What I have now is probably about the limit, but they are much much stonger than a thin cast bezel.

So is 0.3 about as thin as you can go? Should I push to try to get them smaller? I trust Sally, but I just don't want the ring to look too heavy. I feel like the current bezels could be polished/shaved down a bit, or is that craziness?

I need to get back to her ASAP on this, due to deadlines and shipping times, so any thoughts and personal experiences welcome! Thank you!

(I wanted to hold off photos until the big SMTB reveal, but if you must see pics for context, find them on my setting thread here: https://www.pricescope.com/communit...c-e-ring-thoughts-and-recommendations.244471/)

 

[ccuheartnurse]

Hi There,
You’re ring is beautiful & the bezels don’t look overpowering to me. Nothing says...oh no that looks off. It’s nice. I would consider milgrain around the bezels. It would soften the look of the shine. Whatever you decide, it’s a win-win either way. Lol

** edited to add.. I forgot to mention that the basket has milgrain on it & having milgrain on the bezels would balance the look of the ring.

Judy

 

[Starfacet]

Trust the designer.

 

[elliefire99]

Hi There,
You’re ring is beautiful & the bezels don’t look overpowering to me. Nothing says...oh no that looks off. It’s nice. I would consider milgrain around the bezels. It would soften the look of the shine. Whatever you decide, it’s a win-win either way. Lol

** edited to add.. I forgot to mention that the basket has milgrain on it & having milgrain on the bezels would balance the look of the ring.

Judy

Thanks Judy! Totally agree! There actually is milgrain on the bezels, but it's hard to tell from the photos, since it's so fine

But great point that that the milgrain will help minimize the appearance of the bezels too!

 

[elliefire99]

Trust the designer.

Always a good MO. That's my inclination, but self-doubt made me want a group opinion haha.

 

[Starfacet]

Always a good MO. That's my inclination, but self-doubt made me want a group opinion haha.

I wouldn't say that about all designers, but I would about Sally. Plus, think about how small 0.3mm is.
Super excited to see this ring on your hand!!!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I think ti looks great and I agree that .3mm sounds pretty tiny.
I've had many things made by her over the years and have never found the bezels bulky if that helps.

 

[LLJsmom]

I think they can be made much thinner. I am not sure she can but I've seen thinner in real life.

VC's bezels look thinner. I've seen antique setting bezels from the 1920s that are thinner. And I've seen Steven Kirsch bezels that look thinner. These are ones I've seen IRL.

https://www.victorcanera.com/rings/vintage-french-cut-halo-solitaire
Saw this IRL and the bezel is really thin.
Honestly I am not sure I would ask Sally to try to make it thinner. Maybe its just the pictures. Maybe it's fine IRL.

 

[ccuheartnurse]

The ring is going to look great. I’m laughing that there’s already milgrain I didn’t notice. I thought there was a bit of a ridge. Haha. The milgrain is very delicate.

 

[cottoncandy]

There’s a few optical illusions going on here that make the bezels around the sidestones look thicker than they actually are:

1. The white metal is brighter (more light reflecting) than the yellow metals
2. The relatively smooth finish of the bezels reflects more light compared to the prongs and basket
3. The contrast of the bezels with the dark color of the sidestones also highlights the brightness of the metal

This is probably way more obvious in photos, but still apparent in real life, if you look closely. I say keep as is, it’s an beautiful custom setting fit for royalty!

 

[Dee*Jay]

When I saw the glamour shots of my bezel set eternity ring I had a panic attack -- they looked like The Giant Metal Rims That Ate Pittsburgh. In reality, I hardly seem them at all. Pictures truly don't do some pieces justice.

 

[elliefire99]

Thanks everyone for the detailed (and rapid) feedback! Alleviating some of my anxiety about it ...

I think ti looks great and I agree that .3mm sounds pretty tiny.
I've had many things made by her over the years and have never found the bezels bulky if that helps.

I pulled out a ruler, and yuuup. 0.3mm is pretty darn small. But hard to tell for small scale things like jewelry. BUT I have never seen a HoW bezel that I didn't like. Which is why I didn't even think of mentioning the bezel size before. It's probably just fine.

I think they can be made much thinner. I am not sure she can but I've seen thinner in real life.

VC's bezels look thinner. I've seen antique setting bezels from the 1920s that are thinner. And I've seen Steven Kirsch bezels that look thinner. These are ones I've seen IRL.

https://www.victorcanera.com/rings/vintage-french-cut-halo-solitaire
Saw this IRL and the bezel is really thin.
Honestly I am not sure I would ask Sally to try to make it thinner. Maybe its just the pictures. Maybe it's fine IRL.

Thanks for the examples! I too have seen bezels that seem thinner on antique settings, but then again maybe with the patina of age, the optical illusion with light reflection isn't as much of a thing. Agree that the VC bezels on those french cuts are very dainty looking. Though I wonder what the size of the stones is...

There’s a few optical illusions going on here that make the bezels around the sidestones look thicker than they actually are:

1. The white metal is brighter (more light reflecting) than the yellow metals
2. The relatively smooth finish of the bezels reflects more light compared to the prongs and basket
3. The contrast of the bezels with the dark color of the sidestones also highlights the brightness of the metal

This is probably way more obvious in photos, but still apparent in real life, if you look closely. I say keep as is, it’s an beautiful custom setting fit for royalty!

Here I thought I had factored in every detail and eventuality... And then the properties of light and optics come into play! Argh. Though you are essentially summarizing Sally's response to me, and it makes sense. The kornerupine are also much lighter and brighter than the photograph, so the contrast should be less.
I don't think I will ask for the bezels to be re-made. The only thing I could see maybe doing is asking for more obvious milgrain to help diffuse the light more. But I also prefer my milgrain on the delicate side.

When I saw the glamour shots of my bezel set eternity ring I had a panic attack -- they looked like The Giant Metal Rims That Ate Pittsburgh. In reality, I hardly seem them at all. Pictures truly don't do some pieces justice.

This puts me much more at ease, thank you

 

[elliefire99]

Thanks everyone for easing my mind! I decided to stick with it as-is. I really do love the ring, and it's definitely not worth re-forging the whole thing.

If I decide that I want heavier milgrain to reduce the reflections, that's always something I can apply later