Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with ring

What is this lead ring?

tellurian — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:17:20 -0800

In this excerpt from Beloved Son Felix, there is a description of a body that they have disinterred for an autopsy. They find a lead ring which causes disgust. What would the lead ring be? The relevant part:

On opening the winding sheet in which the body was sewn, we found a woman with a congenital deformity of the legs, the two feet turned inward. We did an autopsy and found, among other curiosities, various veins vasorum spermaticorum, which were not deformed, but followed the curve of the legs toward the buttocks. She had a lead ring, and as I detest these, it added to my disgust.

Surely not a lead ring on her finger, that wouldn't cause such detestation, would it? Could it be that it was some sort of device she wore because she had deformed legs?

Well then what's the sex for?

kthxbi — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:28:04 -0800

My mother is under the impression that a wedding ring (ie the band that you add in addition to the engagement ring) is the only way to "consummate the marriage in the eyes of God" ... where is she getting this from? I've never heard such a thing. [Bonus-filter] How do I convince her that using the same ring as both an engagement and wedding ring is ok? My "I'm pretty sure God could care less about jewelry" didn't go over very well. For what it's worth I'm not religious, she is Lutheran, and she is aware of my feelings (and not happy about them).

I'm going to bloody well fix this Xbox myself.

Frasermoo — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:11:33 -0800

Help me fix my Xbox 360. I'm looking for documentation on a tried and tested fix for the red rings on the 360. Having been through multiple consoles, I've decided to try the X clamp fix myself. Has anyone here done it themselves? What instructions did you follow? Was it successful?

Custom jewelry in Orlando, FL

Anonymous — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:45:53 -0800

I'm looking for advice on getting a custom engagement ring made in Orlando on a budget. So I'm starting with next to no knowledge of jewelry shopping, but I want to work with a jeweler to make a custom engagement ring. I'd like to make a narrow band of white gold, with a particular engraved or molded design which I can roughly sketch, and set with a round-cut sapphire of about 1ct/6mm (I'm happy to go lab-created to save money). I want it to be similar in feel to a particular one she's pointed out online that she really likes, but obviously not the same as it.

Is one to two thousand dollars a reasonable price range for this project? Is 6 weeks a reasonable time span to get this done in? Assume I'll be able to visit the shop conveniently. I'd also appreciate general advice/experiences with custom jewelry shopping on a budget. And most importantly (since I'm feeling adrift), does anyone have a recommendation for an independent jeweler around the Orlando/Central Florida area or advice on finding one?

Send private responses to mefiengagement@gmail.com.

How to find authentic goods?

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:16:42 -0800

Looking to buy a WW2 ring. Help me not get scammed on eBay. (Anonymous because this is going to be a surprise, and the gift-receiver is a sneak)

I'm planning on proposing to my long-time boyfriend some time in the next year, and I'd like to get him a ring. Since he's a history buff, I figured a German WW2 ring would be an awesome choice. Ebay has piles and piles of Todkopf rings, but I'm looking for something a little more subtle; something from a Panzer team would be great, but I'll consider anything that's not just a giant cross/swastika/skull. I've come across these two which are particularly nice. Too nice, I guess. Although they're being sold from different accounts, both accounts are in Latvia, and the listings are suspiciously similar. "100% original old! Solid and presentable appearance is suitable for a man’s collection." But both accounts have good feedback. For what it's worth, I know absolutely nothing about period jewelry, so I likely wouldn't recognize a fake if I held it in my hand. So here are my questions:

1. Am I right in thinking that these listings are a little shady?
2. Are there any policies in place to handle falsely advertised items; if the item arrives and it's not authentic, do I have any recourse aside from leaving a negative review?
3. Where else can one look for authentic military artifacts?

Throwaway email: germanring@gmail.com Thanks in advance for any help!

Recommendations for reasonably-priced and distinctive jeweler in Manhattan?

Grinder — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:56:33 -0800

Recommendations for reasonably-priced and distinctive jeweler in Manhattan? I'm looking for recommendations for a not-terribly expensive jeweler in Manhattan (if such can be found!). I'd prefer a place with a distinctive style. In particular, I'm looking for an engagement ring.

I can also travel out to the other boroughs, but don't have a lot of time in the city.

(Previous questions have been about repairs rather than purchases.)

Wedding commitment symbol that is not a ring?

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:22:13 -0800

Let's say you want to marry someone, but they don't want a ring. This would be because the person doesn't ever wear rings, not wanting to draw attention to their hands (long story, just know that hand-oriented things are out). What other options are there for a wedding token? Are there cool options from cultures that do not have the wedding ring as part of their history? Any non-hand-based suggestions are welcome.

Answering Machine with white list to permit only certain callers

royalchinook — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:39:36 -0800

I would like to find a hardware answering machine that has some advanced controls to manage which incoming numbers can make the phone ring. I have an annoyances that I'd like to cut out - telemarketers calling (I went on Canada's DNC list but that made it worse because now all the spam calls are from the States); the solution I thought of would be to have all numbers that I haven't approved to go straight to voicemail without ringing the phone at all. Other callers in a "white list" would ring the phone like usual. My current answering machine does actually have a "black list" feature but the spam calls are always from a new number so it doesn't really make sense.

The other annoyance I had that I was able to solve is to have certain hours where no one can ring the phone. I solved this with the Night Mode feature on my Panasonic phone which is awesome.

Some restrictions I have is that I'd like this to be a hardware solution instead of software because I don't want my computer running all night just to be an answering machine, I'd also like to stay away from VoIP because I've tried that previously with Vonage and found the quality and reliability to be unacceptable.

Classy fashion-y silver or white gold rings between $100 and $300?

NHlove — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:55:54 -0800

Classy fashion-y silver or white gold rings between $100 and $300? My mother has been trying to buy me a graduation present since May. I can't find anything for her to get me! She's set on a ring because she wants to get something nice and meaningful and thinks mine need to be replaced.

Right now I wear a couple of $15 silver rings from American Eagle years ago. I'd like to upgrade to something more grown up, but have very bad luck with rings, as I'm not very dainty. I've had amethyst rings that have gotten all scratched up and ruined.

I am looking for an everyday ring either in white gold or silver. I feel like most everything I have seen in stores is either super expensive or super tacky. I like the style of some Tiffany rings but think it's crazy that they sell silver for so much money. I know you all have excellent taste so I am trusting you to help me out!

Requirements:
-between $100 and $300
-simple design, but not as plain as a wedding band
-either no stone or a stone with a high Mohs rating like ruby, emerald, alexandrite, sapphire
-available either online or in the Boston/NH area

Some designs I have seen that might work:

1 2 3 4

Thanks!

How to dispute non-delivery of item?

silentbicycle — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 11:35:30 -0800

How do I dispute a claim for a handmade item when the PayPal dispute time has expired? The seller strung me along with claims that it was going to be sent until I ran out of time to dispute it. I ordered a $100 ring off of Etsy in mid-July, and the seller (shadejewelry) claimed that it would arrive within a few weeks. A month later, I returned to message him about when to expect the ring, only to find that his shop had been closed. Some googling found his Facebook page, so I sent him a message, a posting on his fan page, and an e-mail asking for an update. He said that he would send my ring the following Monday.

Two weeks later, I asked what was taking so long, and he responded, "Scott your ring was shipped, I'll give you the tracking number tomorrow." I haven't heard from him since. I also found a page about his banning from Etsy due to several other people reporting similar behavior. In retrospect, his e-mails were probably intended to string me along until after the 45-day window to chargeback the transaction on PayPal closed (which was within a day or two of the last e-mail). Still, it was quite a surprise - his Etsy feedback had been high, and I ordered a ring from the seller roughly a year ago without any problems. He was also a featured seller (the page has since been deleted), etc.

As word got around, he changed his store name from Shade Jewelry to Brink Jewelry (NOT Brink's in Minnesota), but still appears to be in operation. (There is even a picture of the ring I ordered on the front page.) Incidentally, the original ShadeJewelry website still redirects to the closed Etsy store page.

This was supposed to be my wedding ring (I'm getting married in two weeks), but at this point I think the odds of getting the ring in time or being reimbursed are slim. What can I do to prevent this from happening to anyone else? I used PayPal linked to a checking account, so (AFAIK) I cannot do a chargeback the way I could with a credit card, and the PayPal chargeback period is over. I reported non-delivery to Etsy and sent a report to the IC3. I also posted on the etsycallout blog, and have been followed by several similar complaints.

This scam seems to exploit a vulnerability in the way Etsy+PayPal operates: The buyer pays ahead of time for a custom item that can take weeks to make, but at that point the 45-day PayPal chargeback window is already closing. Etsy has already banned the seller, but since they don't handle the money directly, they seem to consider the matter closed. Still, they haven't done anything to remedy this major loophole in the way they operate, so it will almost certainly continue.

Does anybody have any ideas what to do to keep this from happening again? (Besides not paying in advance for custom items?) Anything I could do to get closure on this would be appreciated as well.

A synthesizer image simple enough it can be engraved

ifjuly — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:30:44 -0800

In search of a fairly simple online image of a synthesizer for a wedding ring engraving. I have decided to go with this wedding ring set for my upcoming ceremony. I've contacted the jeweler and am good to go except for the images I need to supply.

I found the perfect one for my ring--an iconic, simple image of an open book. However, for the groom's ring I'd like a synthesizer image as they are near n' dear to my beloved's heart. Unfortunately, my Google Image Search-fu has failed me; all I can find are extremely cheesy, generic clip art synths or the kind of cool synths he loves but only in hyper-detailed photographic images. Ideally I'd have an online black and white drawing or stamp (or otherwise simple kind of image) of a cool, iconic synth like a Wasp or MS20. Do you have any pointers for where to look, or better yet, images on hand that might fit the bill? Thanks.

The jeweller also said this when I inquired about what kind of image would work: "any graphic should do--but not too linear, as it's cut through one sheet of metal & soldered onto the interior piece."

I'm not sure I understood what she meant by that, actually.

(And just in case you're wondering, the reason I didn't put this in the shopping category is the shopping part, namely the ring, is taken care of; it's the hunt for an image that's the problem.)

Ball + Chain, engagement rings and you

Anonymous — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:45:44 -0800

Engagement ring woes... to diamond or not to diamond? Any alternatives? I have been with my girlfriend for a while, and I think its time we get married. I know she wants to get married and am not worried about her saying no or any of that... no the problem is the engagement ring. She has said in the past that she thinks diamonds are fairly stupid from a financial / blood diamond aspect. That said I do think that she wants something special to show off, and I am worried about the "oh, so he couldnt afford a diamond for you" crowd. Her parents and grandparents are fairly traditional and I think they wouldnt approve if I broke too much from the norm. Not that there is anything wrong with that...

I looked into non-blood / debeers diamonds but they are still super pricey, and I have no desire to go the "fake" route.

I have looked at a few jewelers and could afford a nice ring, however it would be most of my savings... I think that she would more appreciate a nice long vacation in europe or something over a diamond ring for the same money... but again, I think she needs some kind of symbol to show our engagement.

I have been looking at estate jewelery @ www.topazery.com, I like the older style stuff. Any other advice the metacrowd has?

Where do I get the ring that Nancy Botwin wears on the show Weeds?

BuddhaInABucket — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 22:30:18 -0800

Asking for my sister: "On the show Weeds, Nancy is always wearing an awesome gold and emerald snake ring on her middle finger. Does anyone know where to get one?"

Boys like shiny things too!

Diagonalize — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:00:29 -0800

What are some good engagement ring alternatives/equivalents for a man? The boyfriend and I (the girlfriend) were having a conversation about this the other day, and we concluded that the current engagement traditions are in need of a massive overhaul. In this day and age, proposals should be fair game for anyone who wants to get hitched, so what do you do about the ring?

I know engagement rings aren't mandatory, but sometimes you want something special you can flash at your family and friends to say, "Look! I'm engaged!" DeBeers tells us that guys should purchase expensive diamond rings for their beloveds, but what if she wants to propose? Or what if it's a gay couple? What if she just loves her ring and wants to reciprocate? I feel like a male engagement ring would just be interpreted as a wedding ring by most, so it doesn't seem like a good substitute, and I've seen watches listed as a potential equivalent, but what if he doesn't wear a watch? While I'm sure an iPhone or fancy TV would be much appreciated, it doesn't have quite the same romantic glitter of an engagement ring.

And if you're reading this, honey, relax. It's just a question.

Finding a missing wedding ring in a field

Kwine — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 18:47:25 -0800

I lost my wedding ring playing soccer today. Help me maximize my chance of getting it back with a metal detector, or provide another better idea. I am a person of extreme stupidity, and volunteered to play goal keeper without taking off my wedding ring. I noticed it was missing right after I made a save on a hard shot; I'm pretty sure that knocked it off since I'm sort of OCD about messing with the ring.

Both teams searched the area at halftime and after the game with no luck-which makes me think that I need to broaden the search area. I notified the field manager, and left my name and number with her; she said they would hold off mowing that field tomorrow (I am on Eastern Time USA)

I am going to buy a metal detector in the morning and head out there, but I know nothing about them. How do I use it? Does it matter how expensive it is or will a cheapo one work just as well? Do you have another idea for helping me get it back?

How to propose to a book lover?

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:56:23 -0800

Proposing to a book lover. Ideas? I'm planning to propose to my girlfriend. She loves books, she must have close to 1000.

I'd like to do something private or semi-private. Any ideas on how to incorporate books into the proposal?

How do ringside pro photographers do their thing?

wastelands — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 12:08:11 -0800

How do ringside (boxing, MMA, etc.) photographers work? Are there any pro or serious amateur photogs at MeFi who could satisfy my curiosity about ringside photography? Specifically:

* Given how fast action can occur, do they plan shots or just take a ton of them and filter out later?

* I notice they use two cameras, presumably for close up vs. far off shots. Do they pre-focus at the two distances so they don't have to think about it? Or do they still do some adjustment on the fly?

* Analog or digital? I'd assume digital would favor the approach of taking loads of shots and culling later. But I think a lot of pros still use film.

* How do they decide which shots to use? Or is it their newspaper/website/etc. editor that does that for them? I assume shots with punches landing, people dropping from knockouts, etc. would be favored over all other shots?

Thanks!

Looking for a specific elvish ring

nihraguk — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 05:45:20 -0800

Due to a screw up on my part, I misplaced a friend's ring. I would like to order a replacement online, if possible. The ring is thick and bulky with elvish inscription around its sides. The ring is, as mentioned above, thick and bulky. Most 'fantasy' elvish rings I've turned up on Google are dainty and elegant 'love' rings meant for couples and such. This ring is nothing like that. It looks like it is made of dull iron, not silver. It is also chunky, as opposed to delicate.

The inscription is not carved into the ring; rather, it is carved out of the ring (by carving out the blank spaces around the inscription in order to give it its shape; sorry, forgot the technical term for this). The inscription is a dull gold or copper colour. Whilst I describe the inscription as 'elvish', I don't think it is pedigree Tolkien elvish script. It's just something that looks relatively arcane and scrawly.

The ring is much longer than a regular ring. If you set it on a table it would stand at approximately slightly less than 1.5cm tall... which would be around half an inch, I'm guessing.

I do not have any photos of the ring available, unfortunately. But please let me know if you think you know what I'm talking about, and have seen it before. My friend purchased the ring in London, from a 'dinky little shop' that was down to its last piece.

Thanks a lot!

Is it wrong/weird to help my boyfriend pay for my engagement ring?

kerri13 — Sun, 03 May 2009 21:08:30 -0800

Would it be wrong to help my boyfriend pay for my engagement ring? We are the type of couple who talks about everything... that's just how we are. We have already picked out the ring that I want, and we've known that we were going to get married for 3 years. We pretty much are engaged, it's just not official yet since we are young (19).

I really think it's time to make it official though. Only problem is, my boyfriend doesn't have a lot of money. Not that he's lazy or anything- he works about 7 days a week. It's just that he isn't blessed with parents who are able to help pay for ANYTHING, so he's stuck paying for all of his college, his apartment, his car, etc. He will be able to work a lot this summer and save up some money, but it would still be hard on him.

I, on the other hand, am blessed with parents who can pay for what's left of my schooling after scholarships, and still live at home. I have plenty of money, and I would not mind at all helping pay for my ring. But, that might hurt his ego and is completely untraditional.

It's not like I'm some selfish brat who wants some big flashy ring, (the one we're looking at is $1,000.. I know that's a lot but it's not crazy is it?). I want a conflict-free diamond and I found EXACTLY what I want at brilliantearth's website. He's just wanting to wait and propose when he has more money, but goodness I feel like we should be engaged already! We won't be married until we graduate, or right before, but I really think it doesn't do us justice not to be engaged. I'm ready to be officially committed, and I know he is too- he's just worried about money.

He could get a cheaper ring, or a promise ring? And then we upgrade later? But if I can afford to help, why not? I'm always reading to spend "what the couple can afford" which makes it sound as if you spend it together. But apparently that's horrible.. so which one is it?

What if I just start paying for dinner/movies all the time, and maybe offer to make a college payment for him every once in a while? That way I'm helping him out, but not directly.

I need to find a gold wedding ring that I dropped in the yard!

RustyBrooks — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 18:24:35 -0800

I need to find a gold wedding ring that I dropped in the yard! I know where I was when I lost it, I can narrow it down to about 10-15 square feet. I've tried getting on my hands and knees looking for it but can't see it among the grass and dirt.

If anyone in the austin area has a metal detector that I can borrow, that would be totally sweet!

If not, I'm wondering if there is somewhere I can walk into and rent a metal detector?

Barring that, would a metal detector like this be useful? I could use one anyway for getting bits of metal out of wood.

What about a stud finder? If I was slow and careful, think it might work? Or a smaller metal detector, like this?

Jack Bauer's Ring Tone

miraimatt — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 19:51:03 -0800

What is Jack Bauer's cell phone ring tone? I'm on a quest for a new ringtone for my phone, and having a preference for things that aren't music but still have some sort of dorkiness to them, I've decided that I would love to have the ring tone that Jack Bauer (and tons of other people on 24) use.

I'm NOT talking about the CTU ringtone, the old "dootdoot, DEEEdoot" which you can find in a billion and a half places on the internet; I already have that, but it seems somewhat... passe since there is no longer a CTU. Also, everybody and their mother has that ringer.

I've heard the cell phone ringtone on other shows, which leads me to believe that it's an actual ringtone on an actual cell phone. If anyone has any idea what it is or (preferably) where I could download it, please help! My phone can do mp3s, so pretty much any file I could convert would be useful.

Matching a shade of gold in photographs

ukdanae — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 05:04:15 -0800

I have an engagement ring that is a unique shade of gold. How do i accurately depict that shade to a goldsmith 2,000 miles away? My engagement ring is an antique, and is a pale shade of rose gold - a jeweller here in the UK described it as "pink" gold, but to my understanding there is no exact guide between "pink" and "rose", just a suggestion of intensity. I'd like to get a wedding band made to match both the colour and shape of my engagement ring, and have found a goldsmith in the states who has quoted me at least £100 less than my UK jeweller.

The wrinkle is, I don't want to mail my engagement ring anywhere, especially because it's an antique and in many ways, irreplaceable.

My question is:

1. Can you think of any creative way that i can depict an accurate shade of my ring to the jeweller so he can make a reasonable match, or

2. Is this just not going to work, and should i stop overthinking this and pay the extra £100? (I'd prefer to avoid this as we have the rest of the wedding to pay for)

Apart from taking the photo on a plain white background, the only idea that I have so far is to photograph the ring with something that is a constant colour - a red Lego brick, for example, so that he could compare like for like. I know how difficult colour-matching can be in photos, though, so I'm not sure if this is a lost cause or something worth pursuing.

Smuggling a wedding ring into a foreign country might be the most James Bond thing I'll ever do

Anonymous — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:11:42 -0800

I'm planning to ask my girlfriend to marry me this summer, when we take a two-week vacation overseas. The trick will be to bring the ring with me in a way that doesn't attract customs', or her, attention. Am I beanplating this? Maybe I could just hide it in my luggage... but I'd be afraid that it would show up in an airport x-ray. I don't like the idea of risking it, since she would flip OUT if I got into an unnecessary altercation with security personnel (it would also ruin the surprise, of course, and probably the entire vacation). Oh, and getting arrested would suck.

I don't know anyone in the countries we'll be visiting, so I can't send it ahead. If you have some advice you'd rather not post here, you can email me at transportthatring@gmail.com.

Which ring adjuster for an engagement ring?

bibbit — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 11:45:55 -0800

I am now wearing a shiny new engagement ring (yay!), but it's sliding a bit more on my finger than I'm comfortable with (boo!). I suspect it's just because of the cold weather and so I don't want to get it resized yet (and besides, I have larger knuckles). I'm looking for opinions on what type of ring-size adjuster I should use until I determine whether this ring is the right size. Options listed inside. These are the different type of ring adjusters I've seen:

Full band style
Jeweler's universal ring adjuster
Ring reducer

I want one that won't pinch my finger, won't get caught on stuff (like when trying to stick my hand in my pocket) and won't beat up my ring. Anyone have experience with any of these?

What worth a pearl ring?

Oktober — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 11:07:40 -0800

My mother gave me a pearl ring (one white and one black natural pearls on a simple silver band, can't find a close match online) to give to my fiance. It's incredibly small, and I would absolutely need to have it resized to fit her finger, by at least a half size, and as much as a whole size. What would that cost, and given the ring, is it worth it? It's from about 1970 or so. I'm in Chicago, is there any place that you can recommend?