Fiore d'Inverno ring in silver with amethyst, crossover shank

How it is made

The words of the trade, one by one, explained to those who do not know them.

01

Corolla from a single sheet

The corolla is not an assembly of petals: it is a single sheet, hollowed until it becomes a shallow cup and left irregular at the rim, with the folds running out from the center. The wavy rim cannot be corrected twice — stretched silver does not go back — so the first fold is the one that stays. In the middle of the cup is the one point that has to stay flat: it is the seat of the stone, and if the cup has moved there the setting does not sit.

02

Hammering

The shank is hammered until the surface takes on an irregular texture. No blow is like the one before it, so no ring is like another.

03

Sandblasting

A jet of very fine sand takes the shine off the metal and makes it velvety to the touch. Here it is used inside, in contrast with the edge left polished.

04

Briolette cut

The stone is faceted over its whole surface, underneath as well: it is made to be passed through by the light rather than laid on a back.

05

Amethyst

Amethyst is purple quartz, and the purple does not come from a pigment: it comes from a few iron atoms that ended up in the lattice in place of silicon and were then struck by the natural radiation of the rock. That is why the color is almost never laid on evenly — it arranges itself in zones and bands, heavier on one side and paler on the other — and orienting the stone properly under the wheel is exactly what spreads it. It is as hard as citrine, the seventh degree, and can be worn every day without worrying about scratches; but that purple is the most delicate thing it has. Strong continuous light fades it, and heat erases it altogether: an amethyst heated enough turns yellow, and that is how much of the citrine on the market is born. Purple once lost does not come back.