Ever seen a ring like this one?...

[StinaUIUC]

I''m just wondering if anyone''s ever seen a ring similar to this one. It was given to me by my grandmother''s friend (I''m pretty sure it''s a real diamond...lol) when I was little and don''t even remember it. I love this ring so much and am incredibly attached to...I''m not even sure why except that I find it exceptionally beautiful. Honestly I''ve wished for a long time for an engagement ring just like it but with a bigger diamond (although of course that would require a boyfriend before anything else...lol)...although now I''m thinking I''d like the double rings around the diamond to be replaced with saphires and the "loops" in the scroll things set with smaller diamonds...I''m a little ahead of schedule here...lol Anyway...I don''t really know anything about the ring, except who I got it from and that its been worn an aweful lot (both by me and the previous owner) because the band is very worn. It''s also a little misshapen from wear and tear. Anyway, I''d just like to know if anyone''s seen a ring like it or anything they may be able to tell me about it...I don''t know much of anything about diamonds except that they''re gorgeous, or about jewelery; all I know is that I love this ring but I''d like to know more about it!

Thanks in advance for any replies!!
Christina

 

[StinaUIUC]

here's another pic that you can sort of get an idea of the stone itself....its dang hard to take pics of small diamond rings...lol This stone has amazing sparkle. I happened to wear it into Tiffany's in NYC...and OMG it was AMAZING!! The thing isn't even clean...but man the lighting in that place is just incredible!! It's amazing what kind of difference a little light can make! If the sun hits it right sometimes too it just sparkles with so much color!

 

[glitterata]

That's a beautiful and well loved ring you've got there.

My guess is that it's from the 1920s--that filigree style was popular then (and it's popular again now; but your ring is obviously old, not a recent reproduction). Judging from the wear, it's probably made of white gold, not platinum. But it's hard to say for sure just from the picture. The diamond looks like it could be an Old European Cut, from the teens or twenties, but again, it's hard to tell for sure from the picture. That could have been somebody's engagement ring. A jeweler could very easily make it round again, if you wanted.

Do you keep it clean? Rings get gunked up pretty quickly with hand lotion, soap, dead skin, etc. When I received my grandmother's engagment ring, the underside was coated with an opaque layer of gunk. If you don't already do this, you might want to soak it overnight in a mixture of half ammonia, half water, with a drop or two of dishwashing liquid. The next morning, brush off the ring with a soft toothbrush, especially the underside, and rinse it (being careful to stop up the drain first!!). Dry it off with a paper towel or a piece of tissue paper. You'll be amazed at how sparkly it gets. (Don't do this with more fragile stones like opals, pearls, coral, and emeralds.)

Your grandmother had a generous friend--and it's so nice that you've given the ring a loving home.

 

[StinaUIUC]

Thanks for the info! I definitely don't keep it clean...lol Every once in a blue moon I'll just sort of rub it with soap and water...and looks good after that...I can't even imagine what a good cleaning would do for it!! I'd give it the cleaning you suggested...except that I dont' have any ammonia. I actually did lose it once!!! It sort of disappeared one time and I was too afraid to tell my parents that it was missing...lol Then we moved and my mom happened to find it somewhere...I think she had found it at some point and stuck it somewhere and then forgotten about it...she does that A LOT!!! lol Anyway...I'd be heartbroken if I lost it for real! I think my grandmother's friend was a bit out of it when she gave the ring to me...she was quite old and definitely getting senile...lol As far as what it's made out of, I'm really not sure...it seems a bit hard for gold...but its not extremely hard, I can "bend" it myself by pushing it into a table really hard (I don't know how I did it...but it was a bit "ovally" before and I caused the dented look to the band by trying to straighten it out on my desk. It should get better after wearing it for awhile. It is actually broken...this pic shows how it's broken pretty well:

I'd get it fixed...but that would cost money which I just don't have...lol One thing that's funny is that the only finger it fits on is my left hand ring finger....lol Which kinda sucks cause when I do get married I won't be able to wear it anymore!!

 

[StinaUIUC]

Oh btw...would I be able to clean a sapphire that way, if not, how else could I clean it? My dad gave me a gorgeous sapphire/diamond chip ring that gets dang dirty because it has sort of a similar setting to the way this ring is with metal all around the sides of it(basically gunk gets trapped under it like nothing else...lol). One thing I'm really mad about with that ring is that the sapphire has a scratch on it and the seam on the band came loose...

My parents said that they'd pay to repair the band (its been broken for quite some time now though...lol)...I don't know what can be done about the scratch though...I don't think its deep...could a jeweller just buff it out?...I think my parents would pay for that too.

 

[glitterata]

Yes, you could clean the sapphire ring the same way. As for the scratch, take it to a jeweler and see what they say. It should be possible.

I can't quite see where the diamond ring is broken, but you should probably take it to a jeweler and have them take a look at it, just to make sure the stone isn't about to fall out. And it should take them about 30 seconds to make the band round. Most jewelers would do that for free.

As for ammonia, a bottle costs a dollar or so in the cleaning supplies aisle in the grocery store, and it will last you through months worth of weekly ring cleanings. Clear ammonia or sudsy ammonia--both work fine. You can keep your ammonia-water-dishwashing-liquid mixture in an empty jam jar and reuse it. (Use fresh after the first time you clean the ring, though--you'll be AMAZED at the amount of yucky stuff that comes off.)

 

[StinaUIUC]

Thanks for replying!...the diamond definitely isn't about to fall out...lol That sucker is in there good...hehe Anyway, in that last pic if you look at the right side of the ring, part of the scroll thing is missing and the "band" above that is dented. I have no idea how that happened...but I would really like to get it fixed if I had the money

 

[glitterata]

Oh, I see. Well, someday you'll have the money. In the meantime, it's still a beautiful ring, and the wear just adds to its charm, in my opinion.

 

[StinaUIUC]

thanks! I agree...but I'd still like to get that one thing fixed...I don't really about the band being crooked...if I got it fixed it would just be crooked again after wearing it some...lol

 

[StinaUIUC]

btw...here's my sapphire ring if you happen to be curious...

I adore this ring...my dad actually did really good on getting me something...lol He knew I like side designs and sapphires

I like the diamonds on it too b/c since they're so small they don't outdo the sapphire. I actually did try to clean the 2 rings last night...I just soaked them is water with a little dishwashing detergent and gave them a little scrubbing this morning. It made a HUGE difference! lol All the diamonds are sparkling like crazy and the sapphire looks great!...besides the scratch anyway.

 

[StinaUIUC]

You can sort of see the scratch in this pic...

dang thing drives me INSANE!!!...even though its not all that obvious...lol Oh...another thing that sorta bugs me is that the stone is set slightly crooked...which you can see in this pic too.

 

[glitterata]

Very, very pretty!

 

[StinaUIUC]

Thanks!

 

[indigo]

Cool ring! Try gsplatinum for similar styles.