Calling all Antique Ring owners...

[surfgirl]

So I have a question for those with old antique rings. I've discovered that mine is a little wonky. Meaning, it's slightly tweaked/twisted when I hold it from the side. It's very slight, most people wouldn't see it, yet on the hand it sits evenly (which is really what matters, right?). Anyway, I'm not sure it was like this when I first got it and the jeweler who sized it accidentally tweaked it slightly when sizing and polishing it (though I cant imagine that would be easy to do with simply sizing and polishing), but in any case, my normal jeweler, who is excellent, just smiled and said "it's a hand made piece. Its not going to be exactly perfect. It's a work of art. Leave it alone." I thought he'd say "sure, I'll straighten it right out!" I suppose I'm afraid of anyone working on my ring since it is quite old and because the girdle of my stone is quite thin, I'm afraid someone will accidentally chip it. And also, all the stones appear to be very secure right now so I'm hesitant to have someone attempt this little fix as it could loosen the settings, right?

I'm wondering if those of you with antique rings find they're a little wonky and if so, have you had them fixed, straightened out, or have you just left them as is and embraced their imperfections? Thanks for any thoughts...!

 

[neatfreak]

My mom has a few antique rings and they''re certainly not up to modern standards of symmetry. But they are beautiful in their own right and I wouldn''t mess with it if it isn''t noticeable. If it''s noticeable...well that''s another story.

 

[chrono]

I have a few rings from the 1920''s and have left them alone unless it''s about to break or something like that. I rebuilt the shank of one ring because it was too dangerously thin.

 

[Cehrabehra]

I embrace imperfections Its nice when you get something brand new and it is perfect, but it never quite stays that way LOL And older things I find even more charming for their IMperfection. Funny how that works, huh? I have family pieces from way back that are definitely not what I would accept new, but I wouldn''t change a thing!

Plus, I would want to not risk making things worse....

 

[Eva17]

Also, like the jeweler said, it is hand made. I think it is really really hard to get perfection when something is handmade.

 

[widget]

I''m an "Embrace the Imperfections" kind of girl myself..

widget

 

[decodelighted]

If it''s something that you can''t detect while it''s actually on your hand -- I''d say don''t sweat it.

The deal is there''s something a teensy bit "off" about EVERYTHING. Ask yourself if it''s okay if this is the thing that''s "off" with your ring. If this seems like a fine thing to be "wrong" -- let it stay "wrong" ... if you fix it, something ELSE will go wrong. IMO at least. Who knows -- the slight twist might be making it more comfortable or something crazy like that. My 14K rings (back in the 80''s) used to bend when I wore them - over time kinda molding to hug the next door finger. Luckily that hasn''t happened with my (thicker) platinum rings *yet*.

I did, however, thicken the back band portion of an heirloom ring -- because it had flattened to a razor sharp edge! That work was successful & made what was otherwise unwearable enjoyable again. Doesn''t sound like your situation though -- yours is just increasing "perfection" -- not usability, wearability, appearance on. So ... back to my first sentence ...

 

[kcoursolle]

I think this is pretty common. When things are made by hand, they don''t quite have everything as perfectly symmetrical as when a machine makes it.

 

[Ellen]

Date: 5/18/2007 1:55:52 PM
Author:surfgirl
So I have a question for those with old antique rings. I''ve discovered that mine is a little wonky. Meaning, it''s slightly tweaked/twisted when I hold it from the side. It''s very slight, most people wouldn''t see it, yet on the hand it sits evenly (which is really what matters, right?). Anyway, I''m not sure it was like this when I first got it and the jeweler who sized it accidentally tweaked it slightly when sizing and polishing it (though I cant imagine that would be easy to do with simply sizing and polishing), but in any case, my normal jeweler, who is excellent, just smiled and said ''it''s a hand made piece. Its not going to be exactly perfect. It''s a work of art. Leave it alone.'' I thought he''d say ''sure, I''ll straighten it right out!'' I suppose I''m afraid of anyone working on my ring since it is quite old and because the girdle of my stone is quite thin, I''m afraid someone will accidentally chip it. And also, all the stones appear to be very secure right now so I''m hesitant to have someone attempt this little fix as it could loosen the settings, right?

I''m wondering if those of you with antique rings find they''re a little wonky and if so, have you had them fixed, straightened out, or have you just left them as is and embraced their imperfections? Thanks for any thoughts...!

I agree.

I didn''t even have my old ring long enough to really see what it was all about. What little time I did have, I was affraid to take it out of the box much because the center stone was definitely loose, and I thought, if some melee fell out, I''d never find them.

Because it was so old, and did need prongs tightened and the OMC checked out, I sent it off to someone who was recommended to me. I understand not wanting to take the chance.

However, if that''s all that is "wrong" with it, I too would say, let it go.

 

[FireGoddess]

How wonky is it? It doesn''t seem so bad if it looks proper on your finger. I''d be more worried about doing more damage to the ring and would likely leave it be. Do you have any pictures of what you''re talking about?

 

[surfgirl]

I can take some photos this weekend and see if it shows up but I''m inclined to embrace the wonkiness if only because I dont want to weaken any part of the setting by making it completely plumb, or loosen/chip any stones in doing so.

Thanks to all that replied, for your comments. Sometimes we just need a reality check to snap us out of our OCD over our collective "precious''s"...