Studio
5 min read
A week at the bench
Four people, one long bench and a kettle. What actually happens between an order and a parcel.
Monday is melt day. Grain goes into the crucible and comes out as ingots and wire for the week's orders.
Tuesday to Thursday
Forging, soldering, fitting heads and setting stones. Setting is quiet work: loupe down, radio off.
Friday
Polishing and packing. Every piece gets six passes on the wheel and a last look under the loupe before it goes to the assay office.
Written at the bench by the Aldersmith team
From the article
Pieces made the way we write about
Every piece in the shop is made at the same bench, from recycled metal, and hallmarked.
Keep reading
More from the journal
Craft
5 min read
What “750” inside your ring actually means
Hallmarks are the oldest consumer protection law there is. Here is how to read the tiny stamps inside your jewellery.
Materials
4 min read
Why we only use recycled gold
Mining a single wedding ring's worth of new gold moves around 20 tonnes of earth. Recycled gold is the same metal, without the hole in the ground.
Guides
3 min read
How to find your ring size at home
Three reliable ways to measure, and the one mistake almost everyone makes on a cold morning.
Custom orders
Have an idea of your own?
Tell us and we will draw it to scale within a week.