| Picture #1: The necessary tools for the work on this simple project. There are 4 pairs of pliers: flush cutters, round nose or rosary, flat nose and chain nose. The steel ring mandrel is used for forming and sizing the ring. The mallet is nylon and rubber headed and is used in shaping and hardening the ring. There are two lengths of wire, 20 gauge round and 21 gauge half-round (this half-round wire is 21 gauge in width but flat on one side and round on the other). |
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| Picture #2: The round wire is wrapped around the mandrel twice and overlapped at the top, so that the bundle is three wires wide. |
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| Picture #3: Using the chain nose pliers to keep the wire flat and tight, a piece of half-round is wound around the three wires. At this point it is necessary to make certain that the wires stay aligned and do not overlap each other, this will make for a much neater looking ring shank. |
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| Picture #4: After several wraps around the round wire, the half-round is flattened against the shank with the flat-nose pliers. |
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| Picture #5: The half-round wire is trimmed on the top using the flush cutters |
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| Picture #6: The trimmed half-round is again pressed back onto the round wires of the shank in preparation for setting the stone. |
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| Picture #7: The round wires are shaped over the stone. |
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| Picture #8: The stone is initially locked in place by using the round wires, one on each side, overlapping to the other side of the stone and then wrapped around the shank wires once. |
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| Picture #9: A second set of wraps is made over the stone from one side to the other and again the round wires are wrapped around the shank. |
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| Picture #10: This shows the direction of the wraps. |
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| Picture #11: Round wire is wound around the shank 4 times on each side. |
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| Picture #12: This shows how the wraps on the shank look before beginning the rosettes. |
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| Picture #13: After the forth wrap, a small turn is made in the wire using the round nose pliers. A small rosette is formed on the side of the shank. This is done on both sides of the ring. |
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| Picture #14: This shows a formed rosette. |
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| Picture #15: This is a detail of one of the wires being wrapped around a locking wire. It is still loose and has not been tightened up yet. |
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| Picture #16: The wire that formed the rosette is now wrapped tightly once around a wire that locks the stone in place—this is done at both ends of the ring. Chain nose pliers are very helpful in getting this wrapped tightly. |
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| Picture #17: The wires are now being shaped to go around the sides of the stone as a decorative element to the design. |
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| Picture #18: This shows the wire from the opposite side, having circled the stone, now being secured around the wire that extends from the rosette and was secured around a locking wire in Picture #17. |
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| Picture #19: Both wires have now circled the stone and are secured. |
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| Picture #20: This shows the secured end being trimmed with the flush cutters |
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| Picture #21: Now that the stone and decorative elements are in place the shank is hammered on the mandrel so that shank wires are hardened and shaped to the same size. |
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| Picture #22: As can be seen in this picture the shank wires are snug together but the locking wires over the stone are not tight. |
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| Picture #23: Using the chain nose pliers, small bends are made in the locking wires across the top of the stone. This pulls the wires tight across the stone. |
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| Picture #24: The process is continued on both sides and at each end of the stone. |
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| Picture #25: The round nose pliers are used on the shorter locking wire and create a smaller twist in it. |
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| Picture #26: The locking wires have been tightened up on both sides and at each end of the stone. |
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| Picture #27: It is not necessary to wrap the ring shank but is does provide a nice finished look to a ring. Using the half-round wire, fold the wire in the middle and start wrapping at the bottom of the shank. |
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| Picture #28: Using the chain nose pliers to keep the wrap secure and uniform around the shank. |
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| Picture #29: Continue to wrap the shank. Please note that it is purely esthetics that determine if the shank should be wrapped either partially or completely or at all. |
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| Picture #30: The half-round wire is trimmed on the inside of the shank just as the wire can not be wrapped neatly around the outside of the shank. |
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| Picture #31: Using the chain nose pliers to tuck the trimmed wires into the inside of the shank. |
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| Picture #32: With the shank wrapped, the ring is returned to the mandrel to be hammered again. This insures that the shank is still uniform and flat. |
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| Picture #33: At this stage the ring still needs to be checked for any burrs on the wires. They will either be filed, or burnished out. After this it will polished using tripoli and then rouge to remove tool marks or other perceived blemishes. |
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| Picture #34: A ready to wear size 8 ring. Bay of Fundy Agate set in Sterling Silver. |
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