A large share of the quote requests we receive begin with an image: a screenshot from a retailer, a photograph of a ring on someone's hand, a sketch on the back of an envelope, a picture of a grandmother's ring. This post explains what we do with that image, what we can work out from it, and what we will not do.

First, what kind of image is it

The type of image decides how much we can trust it.

  • A product photograph on white is the most usable. Proportions are roughly intact unless the image has been stretched or shot at an extreme angle.
  • A photograph on a hand gives scale but distorts proportion. A phone camera close to a ring stretches the near edge. Fingers also compress the ring slightly.
  • A screenshot from a phone may have been cropped, resized or filtered. We ask for the original if you have it.
  • A sketch carries your intent clearly and the dimensions not at all. It is a good starting point and a poor specification.

Send the highest-resolution version you have, plus any second angle. Two mediocre photographs from different sides tell us more than one beautiful one.

Measuring from a picture

We do not measure a photograph in millimeters directly, because there is no reliable scale. Instead we establish ratios.

The useful anchor is the center stone. If you tell us the stone is a 1.5 carat round — or a 7.4 mm round — we can measure the band width as a fraction of the stone's diameter in the image and convert that ratio into millimeters. From a top view, that gives band width and stone size relative to one another. From a side view, it gives head height and shank thickness relative to the stone.

If you do not know the stone size, we work from the band width: most commercial engagement rings are between 1.8 mm and 2.5 mm at the base, and assuming 2.0 mm gets us close enough for a first render.

Ratio-based measurement is why the first render sometimes comes out with a band that looks slightly heavy or light. The ratio was right; the assumed anchor was not. Tell us and we adjust.

Proportion decides more than outline

Two rings can have the same outline and look completely different because of proportions. In the render we set band width and thickness at the base and shoulders, center stone diameter and depth, head height above the finger, gallery depth, and prong length and taper.

If your reference is a ring you have tried on, the most valuable thing you can send is a note on how it sat: too high, too low, band too narrow, stone looked small on the hand. That converts a picture into a specification faster than any measurement.

Stone availability

Not every stone in a photograph is available in the material you want. A design built around a 9×7 mm oval moissanite cannot be reproduced with an 8×6 mm lab-grown diamond at the same price, and the setting must be remodeled for the different stone.

Before the first render we check whether we hold the stone in the size and shape required, or can source it. We hold 1,479 in-stock styles and a stock of loose stones, but a specific fancy shape in a specific size may need sourcing or may not exist in that material at all. If a substitution is needed we tell you before modeling, not after.

Colored stones are the usual sticking point. A photograph of a teal sapphire cannot be matched exactly by a lab-grown stone, because the material varies and is sold in ranges rather than exact shades. We send options and describe them honestly.

What we will not reproduce

We do not copy a protected design. That means we will not reproduce a ring that is clearly a named, trademarked or patented design from another maker — the identifiable signature pieces, the ones with a registered shape or a protected setting.

If you send a screenshot of a mass-market ring with a plain six-claw solitaire, there is nothing protectable in the concept and we will make it. If you send a screenshot of a design with a distinctive protected element, we will tell you and offer to design something in the same spirit: the same overall feel, the same stone, a different resolution of the detail.

We also will not reproduce another jeweler's CAD file or use a photograph of a custom piece made for someone else as a production specification. If a design was made for a private client, it stays private.

The workflow

  1. You send images, sketches and any measurements, plus metal, stone and size preferences.
  2. We reply within one business day with questions, a stone availability check and an indicative quote. Custom pieces are quoted individually, so this is a range until the design is settled.
  3. We model and send a render with dimensions.
  4. You comment. We revise. Most pieces settle in two to three rounds.
  5. You approve in writing, pay the deposit, and production runs 12–18 business days from that approval.

If you are starting from a photograph, send it to sales@holycome.com with a note on what you want to keep and what you would change. The how it works page has the full sequence, and the FAQ covers the questions that come up most often at this stage.