Want a Green Lantern ring

March 14, 2006 9:09 AM

I'd like to get a replica Green Lantern ring made, because I am a ridiculous dork. What's a good place?

I realize this forever bars me from any form of personal pride, but I want to get a ring made. Specifically, a replica Green Lantern ring (Kyle's model). Yeah, I know. Anyway, there exist cheap plastic copies and glow-in-the-dark version, and metallic replicas are all over eBay, but none of those look either authentic or good to me.

I don't want to have to spend a fortune on this. To my limited knowledge, it seems like the best way to get this done would be by carving it out of a piece of stone - preferably something translucent and fairly bright, not pale or drab. Something like jade or aventurine or somesuch.

I've got some reference pictures, which would help with the shaping, but I don't know where to go with this. Is there an internet source that's good? I live in Baltimore, so if someone knows of a local place that would serve my purposes, that would also work.

And, also, does anyone have any idea what something like this would cost?

posted by kafziel to clothing, beauty, & fashion (15 comments total)

I'm going to contribute a tiny only sort-of-related tidbit that I'm sure will get flagged as noise, but so what? I think kafziel will appreciate it, even if it's not ring-specific.

I was browsing through t-shirts at a thrift store recently, looking for workout clothes. I was looking for geeky stuff, or goofy stuff, when what should appear but a shirt that was both: a big, beefy shirt with the Green Lantern emblem. And the thing was just my size! Now I take great delight in pumping away on the elliptical machine with the mark of the Corps on my chest.

As for your dilemmat at hand: I can offer no help, but I look forward to reading the replies.
posted by jdroth at 9:16 AM on March 14, 2006

There was a manufacturer of such rings... I saw them on sale in a catalog... I ordered one for a friend as a humorous gift from ebay... but the quality was pretty good...
posted by ewkpates at 9:22 AM on March 14, 2006

It's not in Baltimore, but Rubini Jewellers in Alexandria, VA, are the folks who made my wife's ring. Sure, they gave me some strange looks when I told them what I wanted done, but they did it all with good humor. They also were open to altering the ring, adding a stone, whatever, so they may be good folks for you to talk to, especially if you can bring in a model ring for them to work from.
posted by MrMoonPie at 9:31 AM on March 14, 2006

Green soapstone will be much easier to carve than jade, though not as strong.
posted by RobotHero at 9:43 AM on March 14, 2006

There are some good recommendations for area jewelers in another AxMe thread, including one from terrapin that's not too far from you.
posted by MrMoonPie at 9:52 AM on March 14, 2006

Just called Creative Goldsmiths, and they said they don't do what I'm after.

Perhaps I was slightly unclear; what I'm after is a ring carved entirely - band and all - from a single piece of stone. The whole thing is one solid piece. So it might be more akin to statuary than standard jewelry, in terms of what the person doing it would need to do.
posted by kafziel at 10:04 AM on March 14, 2006

Maybe a MICA student looking to pick up some work? You could post something on campus?

There's also some sort of artists' studio space in Mount Washington - I'm blanking on the name.
posted by KAS at 10:08 AM on March 14, 2006

I'll be watching this thread as well - BF and I have said it'd be great to get engaged or married with lantern rings. Yay, nerd love.
posted by luftmensch at 10:12 AM on March 14, 2006

Try contacting a gravestone company. Most gravestones these days are stenciled and sandblasted, but they'll still know someone who can handle more intricate stone work.
posted by RobotHero at 10:18 AM on March 14, 2006

You could use eMachineshop to design and order it yourself, milled from aluminum. Then you'll need to anodize it. I suspect there are companies that will anodize it cheaper than the cost of the raw materials, however.

I wonder if there's enough market to make trying to license it from DC worthwhile? I'd buy a nice one rather than these plastic POSes.
posted by phearlez at 10:22 AM on March 14, 2006

Can I second Rubini in Alexandria! They are awesome and MrMoonPie is not alone in getting strange looks from Joanna, who also happens to be super cool!
posted by Pollomacho at 10:39 AM on March 14, 2006

This place has already made one...
posted by Jart at 10:54 AM on March 14, 2006

from Jart's link:
Cast sterling-silver, vague copyright violations, 14 karat yellow gold and green fiber-optic glass.

What were they thinking? They can't use yellow gold!
posted by RobotHero at 11:25 AM on March 14, 2006

Jart, the only problem is that what they have made is pretty ugly. or at least not a good representation if you want something that looks like the ring as show in the comics.
posted by phearlez at 11:48 AM on March 14, 2006

How to make a Green Lantern ring (via BoingBoing)
posted by Guy Smiley at 10:19 AM on October 10, 2006