Sometimes it’s easy to tell when things get worn out.
- The color fades from the bristles in your toothbrush.
- Your tire tread becomes smooth and flat.
- The sleeves of your sweaters stretch out, or the fabric pills.
These changes are easy to see, and we replace these items to help keep our teeth clean, our cars safe, and our wardrobes sharp.
But when it comes to our jewelry, changes aren’t so easy to see – and without proper attention, those changes may lead to missing diamonds. But never fear – Copeland Jewelers can help you prevent disaster!
Some of the Most Important (And Most Often Ignored) Parts of Jewelry Pieces Are Their Prongs.
Prongs are the little metal claws that hold diamonds and other stones in place in most settings. They can be flat, round, pointed, or V-shaped.
They’re almost always found in rings, and they suffer the most stress in rings since they’re worn on the hands and often worn every single day.
Most ring designs that feature prongs have either four or six of them – having four allows more of the stone to show, but having six is safer and more secure.
However, prongs can be a part of any piece of jewelry, and if the prongs of your necklace, brooch, or bracelet get damaged, it can be just as problematic as with rings.
Prongs work hard to keep your beloved stones in place, but they get rubbed, snagged, knocked against hard surfaces, and submerged in all kinds of substances while you wear your rings, and some of these things happen to other pieces as well.
Over time, prongs can become bent or flattened, which can weaken the metal and make the gemstone less secure. Prongs can even break off entirely, leaving stones free to fall out of their settings at any moment in any place.
How Do You Keep Your Prongs in Good Shape?
It’s simple – examine them on a regular basis with a magnifying glass.
Look at each prong from all angles – if there’s any space between the gem and the metal, you have a damaged prong, and you should stop wearing the piece until you can bring it to a jewelry repair store.
And even if you frequently examine prongs yourself and don’t find any issues, it’s important to periodically bring pieces into our store to be examined by experts, just in case you missed something.
To Conclude
We understand that your jewelry means the world to you – it’s got a lot of special memories attached to it, not to mention quite a bit of money.
Of course, you want to keep it safe, secure, and beautiful, so do yourself a favor and stay ahead of possible prong problems.
Copeland Jewelers can repair and replace your prongs any time you need, and we can also replace any gemstones that go missing should a prong break before you’re able to bring the damaged piece to us.
Trust us to prevent and repair all your jewelry emergencies!