Jewellery Finishes Guide | Understanding Different Types of Finishes

Polished

3 polished wedding bands

A polished finish is the most popular choice for engagement rings and is often considered to be the ‘classic’ look.

At Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery we polish our jewellery by hand – we mention this because others do what’s called ‘tumble’ polishing. This is where the jewellery is put into a machine and agitated for a period of time in order to polish it. In contrast, dedicating time hand-polishing an item of jewellery creates a far superior result.

To polish an engagement ring, our goldsmiths spend a large amount of time standing at the polishing wheel – this could be more than a couple of hours. They hold the ring up against the fast revolving pads (a skilled and often quite dangerous procedure!) slowly revolving it in their fingers, until all the metal is properly polished.

During this time jeweller’s rouge is applied. Aptly named after the French word, this is a ferrous oxide polishing compound that is red in colour.

To create a properly polished engagement ring, various different rouges and pads are used, ranging from coarse to fine. The goldsmith will go down through the grades to create the finished product.

A polished finish is a lovely choice for your engagement ring, but combining it with other finishes can produce an interesting textured surface.

It’s important to note that precious metals are soft so over time they will wear to a dull shine. This is perfectly normal and although some people worry about every scratch to start with, your engagement ring will wear to a burnished soft patina.

Satinised

A ring with a satin finish has a soft appearance, which contrasts with the highly polished effect. We find that the satin finish can be combined with a modern design to create an effective contrast.

Over time, this finish will wear to the lovely dull shine of the natural metal. The rate at which this can happen varies between people. Some find that it wears in only a matter of months while others find that it can take a few years. The wearing happens as a result of the engagement ring making contact with other harder objects during everyday life, such as steering wheels, dog leads etc. It is hard to predict the level of wear a finish will suffer – see care for your jewellery for more information.

So whilst it is a great choice for your engagement ring, you may need to be prepared to reapply the finish from time to time. The good news is that it is very easy to re-create the original look which we can do for you.

However, we think that part of the beauty of an engagement ring is the way in which it wears with your everyday life. So don’t be too worried by this wear. In our opinion, it’s almost like a fingerprint to your story, your engagement ring changing with you.

Rhodium Plated

Rhodium plating is a very thin plating that is applied to engagement rings to give a platinum-like steely whiteness. The process is generally applied to white gold to give it a super-white glossy finish. So, obviously, when a rhodium plated finish is applied to 9 carat, 18 carat or even silver, the engagement ring will look the same because what you are seeing is the rhodium.

Many high street jewellers rhodium plate their white gold engagement rings as standard. At Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery we offer the choice, because each engagement ring that we design and hand make has different requirements. Some designs benefit from the more mellow whiteness of natural white gold however some don’t. The choice is really yours!

Or, if you’re after a more interesting look, the appearance of rhodium plating can be really effective in a mixed metal engagement ring. The bright white against yellow or rose gold can enhance the tones thus elevating the whole look.

Applying rhodium plating is not an expensive process. If you’re considering rhodium plating for financial reasons, factor in a budget for this amount as a regular cost. Throughout the life of your engagement ring, the plating will wear and need reapplying.

We find that the rate at which this happens varies hugely from person to person. Some rings are showing the natural white gold through in a matter of months (especially on the back) but with others, it will last years. The only reason the rhodium plating can wear is contact with other objects, in particular harder objects. We also find that it’s almost impossible to predict whether a customer’s lifestyle will cause faster or slower wear. Simple everyday things like steering wheels or dog leads can really damage the finish of an engagement ring because they are harder than the softer precious metals.

The good news is that the plating is easy to reapply and we can do that for you. See care for your jewellery for more information.

Pin End

A pin end jewellery finish is similar in effect to a satin finish in that it is matte. In contrast, however, it’s a much deeper finish, with a little more of an abrased texture, making it less subtle.

The pin end finish is also referred to as a ‘moon dust’ finish, which is hand-applied by a goldsmith.

They will distress the surface with a series of fast moving pins attached to their bench drill and gradually work their way around the engagement ring. During this process it is important for them to work around the shank evenly to produce the desired finish.

As the abrasion to the engagement ring is deeper, it subsequently won’t wear quite as quickly as a satin finish. This is a reasonable option if you want the finish to last a greater amount of time or if your lifestyle is likely to produce an extensive amount of wear.

The finish is hard to apply to small or delicate areas so if you’re thinking about this finish, it’s important to discuss this with your designer.

With the redeeming quality of being a harder wearing finish for your engagement ring, how will your design make the most of its striking nature?

Tunstall / Crushed Diamond

The ‘Tunstall’ finish was invented by our previous chief goldsmith as an alternative to the pin end finish. Although the pin end finish is a fairly durable finish, he felt that it would be possible to create a finish that was even more durable.

Now adopted by other companies, this finish is also known as a ‘crushed diamond’ or ‘diamond dust’ finish and is applied to the surface of a ring in much the same way as a pin end finish – i.e. by distressing the surface of the ring by hand.

This finish is very marked and works best on large flat areas of metal. The finish wouldn’t be appropriate, for example, for a delicate engagement ring.

Hammered

A hammered finish is a very striking finish for your engagement or wedding ring. It’s not suitable for every engagement ring design though. So if you’re thinking about this finish, it’s important to know the effect works best on flat areas of metal. Your designer will be able to come up with an engagement ring design during your design consultation that suits this effect.

To produce this finish, the engagement ring is hammered by hand and the goldsmith will work their way around to produce a random pattern of hammer blows. There is of course no set pattern so each hammer finished engagement ring will have a unique finish. With this in mind, it is possible for the goldsmith to provide a different level of hammered finish depending on what suits the design. Again, your designer will be able to discuss this in more detail with you during your design consultation.

This choice of finish is a durable finish because the hammer blows produce quite a marked effect on the surface of the engagement ring and this level of indentation is not going to wear off in a short time.

It is possible to combine a hammered finish with a satinised finish which produces quite a masculine look. A polished finish also pairs well with a hammered finish.

Whilst a hammered finish may not be considered the usual choice for a ring, it is sure to produce a dramatic look. If alternative is your desired aesthetic, choose different sized hammer blows for that eye-catching effect.

Roman

The ‘Roman’ finish is best described as a very heavily textured finish.

Brought about when we were commissioned by someone who worked on archaeological digs, it was the way we transformed an aspect of their life into the design of their ring.

The surface of the engagement ring is distressed by the goldsmith totally by hand, using hammers or files. The degree to which the ring is distressed, and the randomness of the finish, are all part of the skill of applying this finish. The process is not dissimilar to ancient making methods. If you are considering this finish you can discuss it in detail with your designer so that the overall effect of the finish will be unique to you.

This type of finish is not perfect for every ring design by any means and thought will need to be given to the design of the ring to accommodate it. In fact, it would probably be best to start your design with this finish in mind and design the ring to suit the finish.

Wood Grain / Bark Effect

The goldsmith works the surface by hand using a series of files across the shank of the ring to produce a lateral series of lines and raised areas. As this process is entirely done by hand, it’s possible for the goldsmith to vary the effect – i.e. the lines can be closer together or further apart.

Choices as to the exact look of the wood grain finish can be made during your design appointment when your designer will discuss the possibilities with you. Thought needs to be given to the design of your engagement ring if you want to include a wood grain finish because the finish works best when applied to large flat areas of a ring. It wouldn’t work, for example, to apply this finish to a very delicate engagement ring shank as the effect wouldn’t really be striking enough to produce the desired wood grain look.

This finish is hard wearing as the indentations in the metal are relatively deep, hence they are not likely to wear down very quickly.

Ripple

A ripple finish is a beautiful and organic effect invented by Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery. We call it a ripple finish because it resembles the rippling effect on water.

The surface of the ring is hand worked with files to gently and subtly remove the straight surface of the metal. Due to the nature of this hand-working process, each ring is unique where you can even discuss the degree of undulation during your design appointment.

The ripple finish can then be satinised or polished depending upon the design requirements.

We recommend considering this finish as a starting point to your design as it works best with large flat areas of metal. In other words, this finish is not suitable for delicate engagement rings.

As the finish is really a reworking of the flat surface of the ring into a gently undulating one, this finish is hard wearing.

An interesting choice for your engagement ring, though one that will need careful consideration in your design consultation.

Beaded

A beaded finish is a series of small ‘bead’ indentations and raised sections that can be applied to a flat area of metal. It is not a finish that can be applied to the whole of a ring in the same way a polished or satinised finish can, but it can be used to provide an interesting detail to your ring or jewellery.

As with other more unusual finishes, this finish needs to be carefully considered as an integral part of the design of your jewellery.