We know that designing your ring can feel daunting with so many options to choose from so we have put together this guide to explain the options.

Ordering Online~ Please see our design guide to choose your rings size, width, pattern, palette, and any stones or add ons that you might like. From there reach out to us and we can build you a quote, discuss timeline, and send an invoice for 50% deposit to get your order into our work queue.

Seeing Rings in Person~We make every piece to order so we don’t have a large collection of rings on hand, once the ring has been made and photographed its off to its new owner! We do have an intimate collection of already made rings that are ready to size and ship. These samples may not necessarily be the pattern, size or width that you are interested in but you’ll be able to see what metal colors look like in person and get a feel for Arn’s craftsmanship. You can choose which ring(s) you would like to see from our available now section which is the inventory we currently have in stock. You can find a link to our available rings here. If you would like to see any of these rings in person please know that our showroom operates on limited hours and is by appointment only. The fastest way to be in touch and to book an appointment is via email.

Showroom Hours of Availability

~by Appointment only~

9am – 2pm, M-F

Call us at: (401) 287-8050

Email us: info@arnkrebsmokume.com

Seeing Rings By Mail~ To see any of our available now rings by mail please reach out to us and let us know what you are interested in seeing. The cost of the Ring Sample mail program is $100-$300 depending on how many rings you would like to see. Up to 3 at ($100 per ring) This fee covers shipping and insurance and is non-refundable. If you decide to proceed with your order, we will apply $75 per ring towards your order. Rings may be kept for up to 48 hours. We ask for a copy of your driver’s license and your credit card info to authorize the full retail value of the rings in the event that they are not returned to us with 48 hours. Please be mindful that these rings are your responsibility while they are in your possession.

Mokume is a beautiful craft dating back to 17th century Japan for use in sword-making, characterized by a woodgrain like appearance of many layers of different metals fused together to make one piece. This specialized technique of successfully forging together sheets of metal into one billet so that they are bonded and structurally sound requires great skill and years of experience as a metalsmith. 

And with this method of creating and patterning rings by hand, either through forging or carving, there is an inherent variability to how the appearance of the ring will ultimately turn out! One of the things Arn loves about mokume and the practice of making it is that not all aspects of how the final ring will look is controllable, which makes each one truly unique. We know that you love this aspect of mokume as well.  Nature never makes the same thing twice and this is one of the most striking and under-recognized aspects of what we attribute beauty to. Much like life, handmade things are unpredictable and beautiful.  

When you order your ring with us there a few paths to consider. We can help you unravel the work of choosing by walking you through the process a bit here.  We offer Custom and  Bespoke options. 

To help you visualize, here’s an example. These two rings are both 7mm wide, made in our Firestorm palette (14kt red gold, 14kt yellow gold, palladium and sterling silver) and Twist pattern, with a low dome profile and etched and oxidized finish. There is no difference in the metals used or the proportion of the metals in the billet used for each ring, but they each have little details and differences that make them unique and distinct from one another!

Firestorm in particular of all of our billets has a range of variation that can be more noticeable and less controllable, as it is a four color combination, rather than two or three. As in its name, this palette is meant to be a whirlwind of color all mixed together to echo the complex and mesmerizing varieties of nature. 

Custom vs. Bespoke 

Our bespoke options are studio-approved alterations to existing AKM designs. For example, say you love the pattern but would like a different stock palette that we offer; while custom orders are designed from the ground up! This requires much more communication time as well as time at the bench, than a bespoke alteration.  

Here are a few examples of custom designs. This can include custom patterns designed by Arn, a custom billet different from our usual stock options, a custom setting for an unusual stone, the possibilities are wide open!

We hope everyone is having a wonderful February, and we look forward to creating with you!

Much Love,

Arn Krebs Mokume

One of Arn’s favorite aspects of mokume is pattern creation! When he has the time, he loves testing out concepts he’s been thinking about and using his knowledge of metalwork and forging to figure out how to bring his ideas to life.

Here we have a compiled process of a forged mokume pattern experiment Arn worked on recently, using a billet of silver and copper. This resulted in a swirling, wavelike pattern, curling and rolling across the band!

And here’s a video turnaround of the ring!

We know choosing the details for your custom ring can be overwhelming, so many choices! So we wanted to put together a checklist of factors to consider when deciding on your ring design.

Ring Dimensions 

Ring size (if you aren’t 100% sure on your size but have a general idea, we have a ring sizer service! More info here.)Ring width.

Pattern and Palette
See all of our pattern and palette options here on our design guide page! 
 
Stones (if applicable)
You can repurpose stones you already have (depending on suitability and their condition), or we are happy to source stones for you!
For rings we usually recommend certain stones over others, for more info on choosing stones check out this blog post. 

Specific likes and/or dislikes
Each mokume ring is a unique handmade piece, there will be variations in pattern, color, etc. Please let us know if you have specific preferences, not all factors are controllable (as is the inherent nature of Mokume Gane), but we can advise on which options would be best suited for what you’re looking for.
It can be helpful to pick out a few example rings from our listings to show us what you like!

Timelines
Different patterns and designs have different wait times, some rings will require only a 6-8 week timeframe, while others can be booked out 6 months or more. 
Please let us know if you have a specific date you would need to have your order delivered by! Each order in our work queue is worked through one by one, so we offer an estimated completion window rather than a firm completion date. To guarantee delivery by a specific date requires a rush order (if we are able to accommodate it in our calendar at the time).
 
Returns
Please contact us before returning any items. Not all custom orders may be returned. 
Our return/restock policy

At Arn Krebs Mokume we offer the unique opportunity to customize and design an heirloom piece of jewelry within our mokume gane aesthetic. We are so honored to create these bespoke pieces for our customers and to work together to build truly special and one-of-a-kind pieces of work.

We have put together this overview to help you understand the steps and conversations involved in creating your completely unique piece of art, and hopefully make it a truly enjoyable process.

Read more about it here and check out some killer examples below.

Consultation & Design

How long this part of the custom process takes varies widely depending on how complicated the design is. Sometimes people come to us knowing exactly what they want, while others have more of a general concept or an idea for something new. We’ll work with you to build out the details from the ground up! When you inquire about a ring design, we start the process of your custom order with a conversation about what you are looking for. Do you know what pattern, palette, finish, and other design options you’d like, or would you like some guidance? Do you want a plain band, or are you looking to incorporate stones? If you want to use stones, what kind? How would you like them set? And don’t worry — we’ll guide you through this process! Also during this time we’ll create quotes, Arn may make some sketches, and we will answer any questions you have.

Communication & Details

Once all the details have been decided on, you’ll place your deposit and enter our work queue. We ask for a 50% deposit to get started, with the remainder due once production is complete.

Sizing

Did you know your ring size can vary depending on the width of a band? We’ll send you a few different sizers (plain metal bands in different sizes) for a $75 fee, and you’ll have two weeks to try them out and send them back. We recommend you wear them as consistently as possible, because finger size fluctuates throughout the day and even from week to week. We want to create a ring that will fit you comfortably every day.

Gemstone Sourcing (Heirloom, Lab-grown or Natural?)

After we begin our conversations, you are welcome to send us heirloom stones if you’re reusing them from older jewelry pieces. Please let us know if you send them by mail; we’ll want to keep a close eye out for them. We love being able to give these sentimental pieces a fresh breath of life by incorporating them into new designs!We have some great suggestions of gemstones we work with, and love, on a regular basis, but Arn is also available to personally source stones for your design based on the setting style and your tastes. We have trusted stone dealers with established relationships from whom we can source lab grown or natural diamonds, sapphires, moissanites, and other stones. Understandably, this does increase project scope and turnaround time. We also welcome stones that you have sourced, but Arn must check them out first to be sure they are quality cuts and suited to the setting.

Recycling Your Metal

We’d love to be able to re-use your metal, but unfortunately we can’t properly fuse metal with unknown alloys into mokume. BUT, we can take it and melt it down and give you a credit towards your final purchase. Or, if the the metal has sentimental value, we have a few creative ways to incorporate the metal into a rail or a dot in all of our rings.

Production Time

Production time varies depending on the design and pattern. Most of our standard bands will be ready to ship in around 8 weeks, but more complicated and customized rings have longer and varied wait times, so keep this in mind while planning! We do offer rush services for an extra fee, but it’s always best to plan as far ahead as you are able.

If you have questions that come up while you’re waiting for your ring to be completed, we are always here to answer them!

Project Completion

Once your ring is finished, we’ll be in touch to let you know that we are sending over professional images of your completed ring so that you can preview (and have a keepsake). Once you approve your order, we’ll send an invoice for your final payment and ship it out! So exciting!

Shipping

We use secure USPS Priority shipping for our US orders, which is included in your final cost, and UPS for international orders, which is an additional fee. Both are very reliable services, and we purchase insurance for all shipments. We’ll notify you when your ring ships with all tracking info, and follow-up to make sure you love your ring!

We hope this has answered your questions and shown you that designing a custom ring is really quite simple (especially when someone else is doing the hard work!). We’d love to share more and guide you through the process, so please don’t hesitate to contact us by just hitting reply to this email, or clicking the button below.

Be well!

Arn Krebs, Sue Freda &
The Arn Krebs Team

We offer several options for metal combination palettes, and any of them could be the perfect choice for your beautiful custom piece! An important element to consider when making your selection is the different levels of contrasts of the palettes. Some are more subtle than others, and it just depends on your preference and the look you want for your ring! 

To offer some loose guidance for you, we’ve created this scale to show all of our palettes side by side and the range of contrast between them. All the palettes here are shown in the satin finish so you can see what the palettes look like with no additional assistance from etching or oxidizing. 

We also want you to keep in mind that all of our product shots are done professionally on a pure white backdrop with full lighting, and as with any type of physical item, colors look different in various lighting and environments. We do try to represent the colors in the rings as accurately as possible but do want to emphasize the differences between a photo and the naked eye.