Pam's Sea Glass Sun Ring

What a challenge this ring was for me! But I am so glad I completed it, after a few years of working through the design, on paper, in my head, and even in my sleep. 

Pam is a dear artist friend who had this original 14k white gold ring carved and cast by another jeweler years ago. The red sea glass was a bottle top from a rare red glass. The jeweler set the arc of the glass above a setting sun over the water. One day the sea glass broke in half and Pam asked me if I could fix it somehow. 

First the glass had to be carefully removed from the ring, with epoxy remover since it was glued into place. I soaked it overnight and they came loose. 

Then the shards needed to be treated ever so carefully. The edges of the broken glass had to be ground down so no sharp edges would cause additional breakage once I set it back into the ring. I did not want to use glue this time, so they were going to be bezel set which is much more secure.

After much thought and discussion, the decision was made to create a wax cast gold bridge as a support system for the old arc. Now that there was a gap to be filled, Pam gave me an old heirloom diamond to set between the shards. 

Custom formed wavy bezels were carved into the new bridge and once the piece was cast, I soldered it into place and set the diamond and sea glass back in place. She was very happy with the result.