Teepee Ring

This is the second project from Stage 8 of the Apprentice program at Jewellery Training Solutions, a stage dedicated to learning advanced cutting skills and advanced setting construction. With every step of the way I feel my confidence growing, and it feels wonderful. The projects are definitely challenging, but they no longer feel like I’m attempting the impossible.

What were the challenges?

There were many soldering steps in this project, but I was very happy that I managed them all without melting anything! I had one mishap… The setting is made so that all of the bottom of the claws are soldered together, then they are soldered to the bezel ring. When I removed the solder joint at the bottom, one of the claws fell off. That would happen when one forgets to solder it to the bezel. But, I managed to solder it back on without any further catastrophes.

Where could I improve?

I am really quite pleased with the way this ring turned out. I think the setting is a little bit high and I should have made the shoulders a touch taller. I also made a mistake when filing the bottom of the setting and it’s not quite flat.

What did I learn?

I learned how to assemble this “teepee” setting, and really enjoyed the process. Overall, this project was just plain fun!