Jewellery Repair

Repairing jewellery is an extremely tricky job. Work often pretends to be something else, metal is not what it is labelled, or sold as and the customer's memory fades with time, so that jewellery is often given to the repair person as something different than it's real condition or materials.

What follows is a list of questions. If you can answer all of them about a piece before you begin work it is likely that all will be well. Answer as many of them as you can, at least mentally and repair work should be made a great deal easier.

1. What is the metal? (metals)
2. What stone type is it? (Basic rule: protect all stones from heat)*
3. What existing damage is present? (Protect yourself)
4. What previous repairs were done to the piece and how done?
5. Describe mentally or on paper: what is there now?
6. What will be there? What are you going to do to the jewellery?
7. How best to approach it in view of the above?
8. What potential damage and problems may occur during repair?

Now you may repair the piece. Always leave room for making a mistake. Repairs tend to surprise you when you least expect it.

Note that some stones, diamond, garnet, synthetics may take a certain amount of heat without damage, however it is best to wait for experience to tell you when you may so work. In all cases slow air cooling is essential.

Table for converting American ring sizes to German (metric =circumference in mm.)

NOTE: if making a blank up from sheet add the thickness of the metal to the length of the blank when you cut it out; more to the small sizes, less to the larger.