Wedding Ring Commissions
Jackie McMaster is always happy to create bespoke wedding rings in her Belfast workshop for her clients from across Northern Ireland. Wedding rings can be created in a range of styles and metals in collaboration with the customer.
The first wedding rings known were in Ancient Egypt, over 400 years ago. They were made of hemp, or leather as symbols of eternal love, represented by the circle, with no beginning or end. They were worn on the fourth finger of the left hand, in the belief that the 'vena amoris' runs directly from that finger to the heart. The Romans adopted the tradition initially using iron but later gold rings became more popular among the wealthy.
Rings began also to represent a legal contract of betrothal.
By 9th century in early Christian Europe, rings were incorporated into wedding ceremonies and were sometimes decorated with doves, hands or crosses. By the 19th century, a plain gold band became the standard symbolising love, fidelity and unity.
Wedding rings are not universal but they've been widely adopted across many faiths and cultures, sometimes as a sacred sign, sometimes just as a modern symbol of love and commitment.
Wedding rings have always been laden with meaning - your wedding ring can reflect your unique story. Each ring is designed to last a lifetime.
Choosing the metal for your wedding ring
When you chose to commission a bespoke ring, you become part of the design process - you pick the jeweller who's work speaks to you, you collaborate on the design, the choice of metal used and the final finishing.
The metal used in a wedding ring can deeply affect its look, feel, durability and cost.
Gold - 18ct yellow Gold has a classic warm colour and is seen as the 'traditional' wedding ring. its is soft and easy to resize but can scratch more that its 9ct equivalent. White gold is alloyed with palladium or silver and then plated with rhodium for a bright white finish. This is a popular alternative to yellow gold and Rose gold, alloyed with a higher proportion of copper is also very popular in recent years.
Platinum is naturally white, dense and very durable metal. It is hypoallergenic and extremely durable, but much heavier than gold and more expensive.
Palladium has come back into fashion recently, very similar in appearance, colour and purity to platinum and from the same family of metals. It is less dense and therefore lighter than platinum.
Silver can also be used for wedding rings as it is relatively inexpensive and has a beautiful white shine. Silver is a much softer metal, so it is prone to scratching and can tarnish over time. Some people chose to have a silver wedding ring rhodium plated to minimise this but replating is often needed every few years.
To find out more about the process of commissioning bespoke wedding rings from Jackie McMaster in Belfast, click below to take you to the Blog post.
About Jackie McMaster
Jackie is a Silversmith and Jewellery Designer who runs an online jewellery shop in Belfast. She has been working with precious metals for over 20 years. She uses traditional silversmithing skills combined with modern innovative approaches to produce unique jewellery and bespoke commissions. As a jewellery designer, she works with a range of precious metals and with natural and man-made ethical gemstones. Jackie makes bespoke wedding rings in a range of precious metals for clients in her workshop in Northern Ireland.
