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New Wax Seal Signet Ring In Rose Gold


yachtsilverswan

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I wanted a new Signet Ring in rose gold to compliment my Montblanc 75th Anniversary Rose Gold and Mother of Pearl 149, and to compliment my rose gold MB Pope Julius II 888 pictured in my avatar.

 

And there is no one better at carving detailed wax seals than the artists at Dexter: http://www.familysealrings.com/

 

Dexter's Senior Partner, Mr. Simon Wright spent months drafting, re-drafting, and carving my ring from an 18k rose gold XXL oval signet ring. The result is as detailed as I have ever seen:

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/photo-3.jpg

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/photo-2.jpg

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/photo-1.jpg

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/photo.jpg

 

Dexter's 18k rose gold signet ring was the closest color match for the rose gold alloy of the MB 75th Anniversary LE 149 and for the 18k rose gold MB Pope Julius II 888 - though the 9k rose gold signet ring was even more deeply red-rose in color.

 

Surprisingly, their white gold signet rings in 18k actually look a bit yellow-gray in color, because the 6/24 white metal fraction is overwhelmed by the 18/24 parts of yellow gold, and because the resulting 18k alloy is not overplated with rhodium. Rhodium would give 18k white gold a bright silver color, but the plating process would obscure some of the detail of the carving. So when I order a white gold signet ring from Dexter, that ring will be 14k white gold rather than 18k.

 

Hats off to Mr. Simon Wright and the artists at Dexter in England.

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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:puddle: OMG That's stunning. It would be wonderful to have our family crest on ring like that . Congratulations on acquiring your latest piece of art!

 

Thanks Quilts.

 

Look at the way Dexter rendered the undulating folds of the burgees and the 3-D bas relief of the flagstaffs. The two logo images are raised high above the flag in the wax impression, and they really make the image pop.

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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Oh my goodness...

 

Gimme a sec while I pick my jaw up from the floor.

 

Getting a Dexter ring is one of those things that's on the 'Must Do, Worth Saving Up the Bucks For' list.

 

Food and shelter can wait!

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Oh my goodness...

 

Gimme a sec while I pick my jaw up from the floor.

 

Getting a Dexter ring is one of those things that's on the 'Must Do, Worth Saving Up the Bucks For' list.

 

Food and shelter can wait!

My sentiments exactly. :thumbup:

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Lovely! Can they do the old fashioned green gold as well?

 

Their website lists

 

Yellow gold in 18k, 14k, 9k

White gold in 18k, 14k, 9k

Rose gold in 18k, 9k

Titanium

Platinum

 

Dexter does not cast their own blank rings; they source them from a foundry in England that Dexter says makes the best rings in the world - so it's possible they could source a blank ring in Green Gold. Their email address is sales@DexterRings.com

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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what a beautiful ring and crest!!! i had never heard of Dexter rings before-- thanks for sharing their great work :) that ring's an heirloom piece for sure!

Currently inked:

Smoke TWSBI 540, F, with Diamine Onyx Black

Pilot Prera, M, with De Atramentis Jules Verne

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Absolutely spectacular, Ray!

 

They did a very nice job, and although the photos are great (mine are ugly), nothing beats marveling at the exquisite craftsmanship and the incredible detail of the piece in hand. I really enjoy my seals and pendant.

 

Simon and Kate are wonderful people to work with, too.

 

Congratulations!

Scribere est agere.

To write is to act.

___________________________

Danitrio Fellowship

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A fantastic object, but the prices are sinister! The price list has me seeing sable, semy mullets Or!

 

The pricing, Ernst, is even more puzzling than first appears. The pricing table, surprisingly, applies to only their most popular repeated designs. A custom design, in which the buyer provides an original idea and the artists refine the idea and then carve that idea - well a custom design costs significantly more than their table would predict. My design priced out at 75% higher than their listed pricing - with a rider that if the dollar fell against the British pound during design and carving then the price would be raised again to compensate. Pricing is my only complaint with Dexter. I don't suggest their final prices are not fair, and I don't suggest they don't quote prices in advance of carving (they do). My complaint is that their website pricing table doesn't quite make clear that the listed prices only apply to common repeated designs and that custom commissions are significantly more expensive. In the end, I felt my ring was well worth the price I paid. But I was annoyed by the surprise that their posted prices did not apply and by the second surprise that they declined to warrant their own quotes against changes in the dollar or pound.

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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Absolutely spectacular, Ray!

 

They did a very nice job, and although the photos are great (mine are ugly), nothing beats marveling at the exquisite craftsmanship and the incredible detail of the piece in hand. I really enjoy my seals and pendant.

 

Simon and Kate are wonderful people to work with, too.

 

Congratulations!

 

Evening Kiavonne -

 

I was hoping you would comment. You inspired me to pull the trigger. You have probably the greatest collection of Dexter Seals of any of us, and you understand the unbeatable quality and detail of their carving. It's like they have millimeter sized Michelangelos on staff swarming over a huge house sized ring with chisels and hammers. The miniaturized detail is amazing.

 

I'm very pleased, and am already planning another commission in 14k white gold - for when I wear white metal accessories and carry a white metal trimmed pen.

 

My photographs were taken with just my iPhone 4 and an iCroScope adhesive mounted macro lens - just $30. I am no Ansel Adams. I marvel at the photographs of some of our members - light tents, macro lenses, post-production digital processing.

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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what a beautiful ring and crest!!! i had never heard of Dexter rings before-- thanks for sharing their great work :) that ring's an heirloom piece for sure!

 

Evening Staypuft -

 

I did my due diligence on this project, and no one compares to the quality of Dexter. Their 3-D bas relief carvings are unmatched anywhere in the world.

 

They are a British company, and I suppose Britain has a greater high end market for carved wax seals and signet seal rings with Coats of Arms and genuine Family Crests than any country in the world.

 

I am certainly not of noble birth; our family holds no title other than earned academic titles. But I can still enjoy wearing a ring with a storied and significant image, and using that image as a wax seal and a pictographic signature.

 

My next commission will likely be the logo of an Objectivist Society which inducted me in college - Atlas supporting the world on his shoulders - and shrugging. Or maybe I will ask Dexter to carve the touchstone image of my Alma Mater, and the logo of a second society that inducted me in college - The Old Well.

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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My sentiments exactly. :thumbup:

 

Thanks JBB -

 

To me, this looked tasteful. I don't wear much jewelry - just cufflinks. And I don't wear a wristwatch - though I have been hunting for a Cartier Tank Americaine in rose gold because my grandfather was a tank commander.

 

I really like the look, and I had been puzzling for several years over how to take advantage of a signet ring without having a genuine Coat of Arms or Family Crest granted by a genuine Royal College of Arms. I don't want to be a poser.

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lovely! Can they do the old fashioned green gold as well?

 

Their website lists

 

Yellow gold in 18k, 14k, 9k

White gold in 18k, 14k, 9k

Rose gold in 18k, 9k

Titanium

Platinum

 

Dexter does not cast their own blank rings; they source them from a foundry in England that Dexter says makes the best rings in the world - so it's possible they could source a blank ring in Green Gold. Their email address is sales@DexterRings.com

Thank you! :thumbup:

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I really like the look, and I had been puzzling for several years over how to take advantage of a signet ring without having a genuine Coat of Arms or Family Crest granted by a genuine Royal College of Arms. I don't want to be a poser.

 

 

Poser, schmoser.

 

As far as I know, there isn't even a smidge or inkling of royalty or nobility in me, but I did design my own coat of arms (I don't think Erik the Red counts). I don't pretend that estabilished coats of arms pertain to my last name (I know that just finding a SoAndSo coat of arms does not mean it applies to every same name). Mine cannot be "granted" by the English or Scottish authorities, but it is registered with our little American College of Heraldry and that will do. This coat of arms has deep meaning and that is what counts to me. Now, would I use that seal to send some kind of official correspondence to the British government? Probably not. I've other seals. But then again...

 

 

Side note, I see you have an Oscarson gray Valhalla... color me envious.

Scribere est agere.

To write is to act.

___________________________

Danitrio Fellowship

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Poser, schmoser.

 

... Mine cannot be "granted" by the English or Scottish authorities, but it is registered with our little American College of Heraldry and that will do. This coat of arms has deep meaning and that is what counts to me. Now, would I use that seal to send some kind of official correspondence to the British government? Probably not. I've other seals. But then again...

 

 

Side note, I see you have an Oscarson gray Valhalla... color me envious.

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/DavidOscarsonThor.jpg

Photograph from David Oscarson's website

 

David Oscarson's Valhalla in the gray Thor livery is one of my favorite pens. A Viking Longboat, the Midgard Serpent, Thor's Hammer Mjolnir as the clip, and Runic Script from ancient European Rune Stones relevant to fountain pen users. In muted shades of gray, the pen looks understated enough for a daily carry, and it's a common carry for my Saturday morning errands. But the artisanal craftsmanship of the guilloche and 3-D bas relief carvings makes the pen workable as a high end dress pen for evening events when I'm wearing a tuxedo, tails, or dark gray suit with a muted tie. All that, plus when I was on Carolina's club waterski team, my tagname was Thor, and the team once presented me with a custom painted slalom ski painted with Thor's hammer Mjolnir. That, and I'm of Norse heritage.

 

The 18k nib at the business end of David Oscarson's pens is the smoothest, wettest, springiest bit of wonderment in my small stable. Mine is a factory broad reground at Nibmeister Richard Binder's workbench to a 1.1 mm Cursive Italic.

 

And this little nugget should nudge your interest. Neither the cap top nor the barrel end cap of the Valhalla series is ever shown in official David Oscarson photographs - to make counterfeiting more challenging - and to set aside a small surprise for Valhalla owners. The cap top is a wax seal for the Valhalla Series - a small pictograph to represent the Norse heritage of the theme. The similarly shaped but differently themed David Oscarson Jacques DeMolay pen carries on its barrel end cap the ancient wax seal of the "Poor Knights of Christ and the Temple of Solomon" - the Knights Templar - of which Jacques DeMolay was the martyred GrandMaster. The DeMolay pen, like the Thor pen, is executed in muted shades of gray, so it looks understated despite its quality and price. The DeMolay pen features a bas relief carving of the storied Apprentice Pillar at Rosslyn Chapel. The subsequent editions - "Tree of Life," "Consider the Lillies," "Alfred Nobel," "2012," and "Lewis and Clark" do not seem to show the same depth of carving or the same high level of craftsmanship as the older "Harvest," "Celestial," and "Valhalla" Series pens.

 

With the recent release of the summer movie, I've been puzzling over a draft review of the pen. The movie was great fun - high action - high fantasy - and the CGI renderings of the Imperial Capital of Asgard are stunning.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHBnrJowBZE&feature=relmfu

 

Oh, and I cannot accept your kind anointment of "Poser, Schmoser" as the appelation does somewhat conflict with my primary title as ArchDuke of the Misanthropes.

 

When marshaling the Armies of Goodness, I shall look for the Pennant flying your Coat of Arms among the Legions.

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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Ah, Ray.

 

You just killed me! How on earth am I going to get my hands on that pen,now?? Pen, seal, vikings, runes... /gasp! I can't breathe...

 

And, who knows, we may be distant cousins. The Norse blood flows in my veins, as well (though I've a tendency to let more of the barbaric side show through at times).

Scribere est agere.

To write is to act.

___________________________

Danitrio Fellowship

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Ah, Ray.

 

You just killed me! How on earth am I going to get my hands on that pen,now?? Pen, seal, vikings, runes... /gasp! I can't breathe...

 

And, who knows, we may be distant cousins. The Norse blood flows in my veins, as well (though I've a tendency to let more of the barbaric side show through at times).

 

The Valhalla Series was David Oscarson's homage to his own heritage. Like you, I really like the iconography; and the execution of the guilloche and bas relief must be seen to be believed.

 

My second favorite is the Harvest Series in Amber. Mr. Oscarson was stranded in Europe during the complete shutdown of US air travel just after 9/11. One song kept looping through his head as he watched images of the destruction and saw the resolve of the American people rise from the ashes. Mr. Oscarson sent a personal letter and one of the amber Harvest pens to President Bush. The President still has the pen at his new home in Dallas.

 

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/yachtsilverswan/Harvest.jpg

Photograph from David Oscarson's website

 

Words by Katharine Lee Bates,

Melody by Samuel Ward

 

O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea!

 

O beautiful for pilgrim feet

Whose stern impassioned stress

A thoroughfare of freedom beat

Across the wilderness!

America! America!

God mend thine every flaw,

Confirm thy soul in self-control,

Thy liberty in law!

 

O beautiful for heroes proved

In liberating strife.

Who more than self their country loved

And mercy more than life!

America! America!

May God thy gold refine

Till all success be nobleness

And every gain divine!

 

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea!

 

O beautiful for halcyon skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the enameled plain!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

Till souls wax fair as earth and air

And music-hearted sea!

 

O beautiful for pilgrims feet,

Whose stem impassioned stress

A thoroughfare for freedom beat

Across the wilderness!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

Till paths be wrought through

wilds of thought

By pilgrim foot and knee!

 

O beautiful for glory-tale

Of liberating strife

When once and twice,

for man's avail

Men lavished precious life!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

Till selfish gain no longer stain

The banner of the free!

 

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

Till nobler men keep once again

Thy whiter jubilee!

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nItcJV2f35I

 

 

****

 

I expect you'll be needing the email address of a David Oscarson rep:

 

oserb@aol.com (Bert Oser at Bertram's Inkwell - who sourced my Valhalla)

bryant@pentime.com (FPN's Bryant)

cclements@artlite.net (Atlanta's largest pen store)

sales@totalfinewriting (sponsor of the Atlanta Pen Show)

 

or the man himself - info@davidoscarson.com

 

 

See you at the Family Reunion...

Edited by yachtsilverswan

Ray

Atlanta, Georgia

 

Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point with Richard Binder ItaliFine 0.9mm/F Nib

Faber Castell's Porsche Design with Gold & Stainless Mesh in Binderized CI Broad nib

Visconti LE Divina Proporzione in Gold with Binderized CI nib

David Oscarson Valhalla in gray (Thor) with Broad Binderized CI nib

Michel Perchin LE Blue Serpent (reviewed) with Binderized CI nib

Montblanc 149 in Medium Binderized CI nib

Montblanc Pope Julius II 888 Edition (reviewed) in Bold Binderized CI nib

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