A gem’s species is based on its chemical composition and structure. For example, members of the gem species corundum, including ruby and sapphire, are made of a combination of aluminum and oxygen atoms. Those atoms arrange themselves in specific ways that give all corundum common qualities.

Variety is a subcategory of species that’s most often based on color. For example, if corundum, which has been used in tungsten rings, has chromium as a trace element, the stone is red and it’s a ruby. If it has iron and titanium, it’s a blue sapphire.

Corundum might also be pink, purple, green, yellow, orange, or colorless. These are usually called fancy-colored sapphires. Other gemstone species have color varieties as well: Aquamarine (greenish blue) and emerald (green) are varieties of beryl. Citrine (yellow) and amethyst (purple) are varieties of quartz.

Transparency sometimes determines variety, as it does with varieties of the gem species chalcedony. When chalcedony is brownish orange and some light can pass through it, its carnelian. Sometimes a tungsten ring will have chalcedony as a solitary beveled gem. When it’s the same color, but opaque, its jasper.

Phenomenon is the last factor used to determine variety. Phenomenal gems show unusual optical effects. For instance, red corundum is ruby, but when it also shows the phenomenon known as asterism (also known as the star effect), its variety name is star ruby. Other phenomena include the cat’s-eye effect and color change under different light sources.

Two thousand years ago, students of gemology classified gems by color alone. They would have considered ruby and red spinel the same thing, simply because they’re the same color. But there is a tremendous difference between the two gems.

What is a gem?

Some gems – like pearls, amber, coral, and ivory – are organic. This means they come from plants or animals. But most gems are minerals: natural, inorganic materials with specific chemical compositions. Most have a characteristic structure, too. You probably already know the names of some minerals commonly found in jewelry stores: topaz, sapphire, emerald, and ruby, for example. Synthetic gems have become increasingly popular like this titanium bracelet, which are exact replicas of the real gem with the strength of titanium.

Three traits of all gems

A substance isn’t automatically considered a gem just because it’s used in jewelry or just because it falls in the mineral category. Items like bones, seeds, and hair have all been used in jewelry, but that doesn’t place them in the same category as rubies, pearls, and amber. You will some time find gems in tungsten carbide rings as well.

To be a gem, a substance must share three important traits with all other gems: beauty, rarity, and durability. Each trait, however, represents a range, so all gems can possess different levels of all three traits.

Beauty

Throughout the centuries, humans have cherished the color of gleam of finished gems. Mineral crystals brought up from the dark depths of the earth, organic gems created by life processes – all gems worthy of the name share the virtue of beauty.

But because beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it isn’t always easy to categorize what’s beautiful and what isn’t. One accepted definition of beauty holds that it’s a combination of qualities that delight the senses or appeal to the mind. In other words, a thing of beauty might not cause everybody to react the same way, but it will cause everybody to react – it will have visual appeal.

In fashioned gemstones, visual appeal typically results from a combination of color, symmetry, and surface appearance. Of these factors, color is usually the most important for colored stones. From the deep green of a fine emerald to the shifting colors in an opal, color is the first thing you notice about a colored stone. For this reason, it’s usually the first consideration when you’re viewing colored stones.

Symmetry, the second factor, means balance and harmony of cut. A stone is most appealing when its shape and proportions are balanced, so certain cut details enhance a gem’s beauty.

A gem’s surface appearance, or luster, also influences its appeal. Most gems are polished to a high luster, Pearls, which are not fashioned in the same way most other gems are; owe part of their beauty to luster, too.

In addition to these three factors, transparency often plays a role in a gem’s beauty. Transparency describes how light passes through an object. The more transparent an object, the more light passes through it. Many gems are transparent, including emerald, garnet, and tanzanite. Light can pass through them with little or no distortion.

Opaque materials are on the other end of the transparency scale. An opaque jewelry, like a tungsten carbide ring or stainless steel ring lets no light through. Opaque colored stones include hematite and turquoise. Some gems, like opal, have varying degrees of transparency in a range from transparent to opaque.

Not all gemstones have the same combination of these elements: Jadeite can be opaque – and beautiful. On the other hand, a ruby owes a good deal of its beauty to the fact that it’s transparent.

Some people might like one gemstone more than any other, but remember that ultimately, your choice is the most important. You will recognize that each colored stone has at least one strong element of beauty, and you will learn to appreciate it.

Rarity

Rarity, too, is a sliding scale, meaning some gems are rarer than others. A few are so rare that they’re considered collectors’ items. Gem – quality benitoite and red beryl – each found in only one place on earth – are occasionally used in jewelry. Because they’re not nearly as available as gems like sapphire and amethyst, they’re unknown to the majority of consumers. Most gemstones are somewhere in the middle of the rarity scale.

Rarity doesn’t always make a gem valuable. Pink spinel, for example, is lovely, durable, and rare. Despite its virtues, pink spinel is generally absent form consumer shopping lists. Few people know about it, so there’s very little demand for it.

Demand is unpredictable. Amber, highly treasured in centuries past, is less prized today, although rare specimens can still command high prices. Similarly, jet – an opaque black organic gemstone – was extremely popular in Victorian England, but is virtually unheard of in jewelry today.

Often, shrewd marketing can sway consumer preference. If a major retailer backs a gem with an expensive advertising campaign, it’s more likely to penetrate the market quickly, as was the case with tanzanite, the striking violet-blue East African gem. But no matter how energetically it’s marketed, a gem must be beautiful and durable as well as rare to merit popular success. And it must be available in sufficient quantities to stay in public consciousness over the long haul.

Durability

Autumn leaves are lovely, with their rich, mottled wine reds and golden yellows and their graceful, symmetrical shapes. A child who put a scarlet leaf on a string to wear around her neck will soon find it brown and shriveled. Leaves, unlike gems, lack durability. Leaves fade, change shape, and decay. Gems endure.

Durability is a combination of three factors: hardness, toughness, and stability. Hardness measures how well a gemstone resists scratching and abrasion like the hardness of tungsten rings. Toughness is the ability to withstand breaking, chipping, and cracking.

Hardness and toughness are not the same thing. Topaz is a relatively hard stone, but is has poor toughness. Jadeite is not as hard as topaz, but it has exceptional toughness.

Stability measures how well a gemstone resists the effects of light, heat, and chemicals. The cleaning solutions that make sapphire sparkle can damage peridot. Likewise, everyday sunlight can fade kunzite over time.

Low durability is the reason that beautiful minerals like fluorite and calcite are not usually used in jewelry. They can be polished, and most people agree that both are beautiful. But they have very low hardness and poor toughness, so they’re rarely used in jewelry.

Two thousand years ago, students of gemology classified gems by color alone. They would have considered ruby and red spinel the same thing, simply because they’re the same color. But there is a tremendous difference between the two gems.

What is a gem?

Some gems – like pearls, amber, coral, and ivory – are organic. This means they come from plants or animals. But most gems are minerals: natural, inorganic materials with specific chemical compositions. Most have a characteristic structure, too. You probably already know the names of some minerals commonly found in jewelry stores: topaz, sapphire, emerald, and ruby, for example. Synthetic gems have become increasingly popular like this titanium bracelet, which are exact replicas of the real gem with the strength of titanium.

Titanium Bracelet

Three traits of all gems

A substance isn’t automatically considered a gem just because it’s used in jewelry or just because it falls in the mineral category. Items like bones, seeds, and hair have all been used in jewelry, but that doesn’t place them in the same category as rubies, pearls, and amber. You will some time find gems in tungsten carbide rings as well.

To be a gem, a substance must share three important traits with all other gems: beauty, rarity, and durability. Each trait, however, represents a range, so all gems can possess different levels of all three traits.

Most of the jewelry, including tungsten carbide rings, you own was probably cast. Lost-wax casting can be used for mass production as well as to make one-of-a-kind pieces.

For large-scale production, the first step of the casting process is to make an impression of a tungsten jewelry model in a rubber mold. Then, the rubber mold is repeatedly injected with molten wax, which hardens into exact copies of the tungsten ring item. Many wax copies are joined together and encased in a plaster-like substance called investment. The investment is heated until the wax melts and evaporates, leaving cavities shaped like the jewelry model.

Next, molten metal is injected into the cavities and allowed to cool. Finally, the investment is removed, revealing multiple tungsten carbide rings read for finishing.

The process is simpler for one-of-a-kind pieces. The first step is the creation of the wax carving. Then the piece is cast, assembled, and finished.

Lost-wax Casting Features and Benefits

Manufacturers usually cast large production runs, which makes the technique economical and relatively affordable.

Casting is a versatile process that can produce both simple and complex designs. Detail shows up well in cast jewelry.

Tungsten jewelry arouses our senses. When we inspect it closely, we might find that a tungsten carbide ring is exquisitely designed and substantial. But it first attracts our gaze and invites our touch largely because of the crucial final step in crafting it. That final act is called finishing.

To finish tungsten jewelry, workers often apply a distinctive texture or polish. The technique is more than just clean-up work or a few quick passes under a buffing wheel. A unique finish enhances the entire design. Tungsten rings can be created by dozens of variety finishes, from velvety to dimpled, from traditional to contemporary. Sometimes they even create two or more contrasting finishes on one tungsten ring.

Here are some common finishes you might recognize:

• Bark – Wavy, almost parallel lines resembling tree bark
• Diamond cut – Angled “facets” cut into metal with a rotating, diamond-tipped tool
• Florentine – Cross-hatched engraved lines
• Hammered – Bright, irregular surface texture
• High polish – Bright, smooth, mirror-like finish
• Matte – Velvety, frosted, grainy finish
• Satin – Muted, soft, lustrous finish

Tungsten jewelry manufacturers recognize the powerful eye appeal of a good finish. They often use special equipment or hand labor to apply “finishing touches” that are striking and appealing. Certain looks, such as hammered finishes, might be carefully done by hand. Other finishes, such as the matte finish on an electroformed piece, might result from the manufacturing process itself, or from sandblasting.

No matter how it’s accomplished, finish is strongly linked to eye appeal. After all, the sleek gleam of beautiful polished of a tungsten ring is the first thing most people notice about it. But finish is more than just a glittering first impression. In a well-finished item, all areas, including those not visible at first glance, are finished in some way.

tungsten carbide rings

Pick up a tungsten carbide ring and turn it over and look all around. Whatever is style or manufacturing method, it should be clean and unblemished. A good finishing job can be felt as well as seen. Slip the tungsten carbide ring on. It should feel smooth and comfortable against your skin. Run it along a piece of fabric and it should slide smoothly along the fabric without snagging.

A well made setting enhances many tungsten carbide rings overall beauty. Whether simple and elegant, or bold and elaborate, an attractive setting adds eye appeal to a tungsten ring.

But setting style is more than just a matter of eye appeal. A setting’s primary purpose is to hold gems securely. The main types of settings are:

• Prong setting
• Channel setting
• Bezel setting
• Bead setting
• Flush setting
• Invisible setting

Tungsten Ring

Example of a flush setting

Each setting style has its own associations for the owner. The prong setting, for example, is generally thought of as traditional and classic. When couples think of a traditional engagement ring, they might picture a prong set diamond solitaire. Or they might associate an innovative invisible setting in a diamond and ruby brooch with elegance and sophistication.

Some owners like the rich look of a pave setting. With its field of small gems set tightly together, it can give a ring, pendant, or brooch a look of sophistication and dazzle at the same time.

There are certain signs of quality that apply to almost all tungsten carbide rings, no matter what type it is or which method was used to make it. Specifically there are two signs that apply to almost all tungsten rings: invisible solder joints and porosity-free metal.

Invisible Solder Joints

Tungsten carbide rings that are not made from one method alone is usually assembled from some combination of cast, had-fabricated, die-struck, or electroformed components. In assembled tungsten jewelry, the bench jeweler usually solders the parts together. A precious metal alloy melts under heat and flows into the seam between two separate metal components, uniting them when it cools. Done well, soldering forms an invisible bond. The bench jeweler’s expertise makes the juncture both durable and invisible.

Soldering should not alter the look or durability of a tungsten carbide ring. However, improperly soldered joints, such as the area where a ring head joins to a shank, can display thin lines, cracks, or “blobs” of excess solder. Eventually, poorly soldered joints might discolor or separate.

Porosity-free Metal

Porosity shows up as defects in the precious metal of a finished jewelry item. In cast jewelry, the defects look like small pits. If it’s severe, porosity can detract from jewelry’s eye appeal. If it’s really severe, and this is rare, it can even threaten durability. A porous item might contain weak spots if pits, gaps, and other structural irregularities are large, numerous, or concentrated in one area.

Coppari Jewelry guarantees that only the highest quality of tungsten carbide rings are sold. You will never find a poor solder joint or porosity in Coppari Jewelry.

What specific design features do you look for in a tungsten ring? And how do these features translate to benefits?

When you look at the design of tungsten rings in a store or online, consider their function, too. How does the design of the ring fit its intended use? Can the piece be worn in more than one way, or on a variety of occasions? Is it a wedding ring or simply for fashion. Your answer to these questions will help you understand the benefits of a variety of designs.

As you familiarize yourself with the design features of a tungsten ring remember the following checklist, but keep in mind that not all the checklist items will apply to every tungsten ring.

• The item’s design fits it function
• The design fit my lifestyle
• It’s sturdy and durable enough for its intended function
• It finds properly
• Surfaces are smooth and won’t catch on clothing.

Design doesn’t have to be trendy or complicated to be good. Consider the simple elegance of the basic tungsten wedding band such as this traditional round tungsten carbide ring. Well designed jewelry blends form with function.

http://www.copparijewelry.com/images/products/preview/juventus.jpg

Tungsten rings are both ornamental and functional. Its design should reflect these two virtues. Its shape, size, and overall appearance should complement the way it’s meant to be worn. In other words, a tungsten ring form should match its function. A tungsten ring, for example, should stay comfortably in place on the finger.

In the variety of tungsten jewelry styles available today, one aspect of a good design tends to remain constant, and that’s balance. Balance doesn’t necessarily mean that all design elements are identical. An abstract pendant can be asymmetrical, which a design that incorporates elements that don’t exactly match each other. The pearls in a pair of earrings can be different colors. An elegant cluster pendant might have diamonds in different sizes and shapes. But there is usually some balancing element in the design that pulls it all together.

Tungsten jewelry designers experiment with many elements common to other visual arts, including color, pattern, and line. Combined with the all-important ingredient of imagination, these elements comprise breathtaking “wearable art” that is both beautiful and practical.

Good design doesn’t need to be complex or avant-garde. On the contrary, it can be deceptively simple. Consider a fairly basic tungsten ring design – simple round wedding band. If this tungsten wedding band flatters the finger, then their design, however simple, fits the manufacturer’s intended purpose and adds value to the item for the customer.

tungsten ring

Good design can also include versatility. Examples of design versatility are necklaces with removable brooches, pearl strands that convert to choker-and-bracelet sets and earring jackets that transform the look of simple stud earrings. Versatile design is an advantage to someone on a limited budget as well as to someone who simply wants to expand a jewelry wardrobe without buying a lot of different pieces.

What’s a brand-new tungsten wedding band worth? That all depends. To a refiner, the ring is worth the market value of its metal content by weight. To a manufacturer, its selling price equals some mixture of cost of materials, labor, and overhead, plus markup. To tungsten jewelry admirer the tungsten ring represents the chance to make the proper choice. And to the engaged couple who buys it, the tungsten wedding ring is a valued possession that represents their complex emotions about themselves, their wedding, and their shared future.

People appreciate tungsten rings for many reasons. Often their appreciation hinges on how well a given jewelry item’s features and benefits meet their particular needs. In the next few posts we will discuss tungsten jewelry and precious metals features and benefits.

Tungsten Ring

Features are:

• Design – the overall look of a tungsten jewelry item
• Manufacturing method – The method or combination of methods used to make a jewelry item.
• Setting – The way a jewelry item’s gems are held in place
• Finish – The final texture applied to the metal surface of a jewelry item.

You don’t need the expertise of a seasoned bench jeweler to know tungsten jewelry features.

But features alone usually don’t sell jewelry. In fact, some features that of value to one customer may be of no value to another. One person might be attracted to the intriguing qualities of a ring with an invisible setting. Another might prefer the more traditional solitaire.

Basic benefits are:

• Eye appeal – The instant visual appeal of tungsten jewelry
• Wearability – The comfort, and perhaps versatility, of a jewelry item
• Evidence of good workmanship -  The level of fine craftsmanship and attention to detail in jewelry
• Durability – The sturdiness and permanence of a jewelry item