The inspiration:
Wild roses - cell division - flowering rush - sweetness - evolving love

The materials:
Organic geometry and gleaming silver prongs frame an unusual trapiche ruby, rose-red pink and flashing with a bright, silvery iridescence that displays its hexagonal formation. It sits atop geometric petals studded with sterling silver beads like the perianth of a fantastical flower. This sculptural setting sits atop a smooth sterling wire shank that can be adjusted for a custom fit in a range of sizes.

The history:
The most valuable member of the corundum family, rubies have reigned for thousands of years. While pure corundum is a colourless mineral, its transformation to either sapphire or ruby relies on the trace minerals present in its formation. Chromium creates rubies, from orangey to rose-wine to “pigeon’s blood” red, while iron and titanium create blue sapphires.

Much like sapphires, rubies have a deep, devoted history as a gemstone. Their hardness is second only to diamonds (they measure a 9 on the Mohs scale) and their strength and colour made rubies a long-held symbol of love and life force. To warriors and royalty, rubies represented power and vitality and wearing them was thought to bestow health, wisdom and wealth. They are now the beloved birthstone of July babies, and represent long-lasting love as a traditional gift for 15th and 40th anniversaries.

Trapiche rubies are cut from ruby crystals, and show a refractive hexagonal, wheel or six-rayed star shape formation within their translucent depth, often flashing with iridescence, chatoyancy or silvery reflection over their juicy, rose-wine colour.

The process:
I have recycled most of the silver used to make this ring; melting sterling scrap down to form silver ingots, flattening and drawing the silver down to plate (and sometimes wire) using hammers and my rolling mill, and then using this newly reclaimed silver to create my work. The trapiche ruby is securely set amidst 6 gleaming, sculpted claws against a solid backplate so that the stone's rich colour is open to the light. This ruby flashes with a shimmering silvery pink across its polished face, highlighting its hexagonal mineral formation. Two levels of geometric, sterling silver petals fan out below the ruby, each petal tip studded with a tiny sterling silver bead. A subtle patina enhances the stone and the details, and contrasts the bright polish throughout. The 2mm diameter sterling wire shank spirals around the finger like a delicate, smooth stem, free on one end so that the ring can be gently shaped to fit a wide variety of sizes. For reference, the ring shank is the same size in the photos, and you can see it on both my ring finger (US size 6.25) and my middle finger (US size 8.25). It is very easy to adjust the shank size yourself, or if you prefer, I can shape this ring to the desired size free of charge - just let me know in the note at check-out or send me a convo. The shank is incredibly comfortable to wear and the adjustability makes it easy to customize a secure fit.

The details:

• Ring height (from finger to top of stone): approximately 5 mm

• Top of ring size: approximately 16 mm x 16 mm

• Stone cut & size: natural trapiche ruby, 8 mm x 8 mm

• Ring size: currently approximately US 8.25, with a 2 mm, free-size (adjustable) shank

• Recycled components: top of ring construction

• Stone source: Atlas Trove, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

My promise:
All of my jewelry is made by me, by hand, in my little home studio and will be shipped to you as shown, beautifully packaged and ready for gift-giving to someone special (like yourself!) I am a life-long artist and designer, and I take great care and pride in creating one of a kind jewels that evolve from my own design, emotion and inspiration, rather than trend, imitation or artifice. It means the world to me that you've witnessed my work - thank you for being here, and for shopping and supporting handmade!