CUSTOM ENGAGEMENT RING

THE GREEN LAKE SHOP YOUR CUSTOM DESIGN YOUR GEMSTONE MODEL & CASTING THE JEWELER'S BENCH YOUR FINISHED PIECE

THE GREEN LAKE SHOP

Translating our client’s ideas into beautiful custom jewelry
to celebrate the iconic moments in life since 1996.

Your piece was crafted in the
the Seattle studio

The Seattle shop was our first large scale facility with room for 50+ artists. It includes a state of the art casting and production shop, all visible to the public. The design studio has 14 design stations, private meeting rooms and a full scale coffee and wine bar.

Green Lake Jewelry Works opened its doors on Seattle’s Green Lake Drive in 1996. Since then, its craftspeople have grown to win national recognition for excellence in the art of fine jewelry making with two distinct workshops where each piece is made by hand.

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The flagship Seattle studio is home to all metal casting and a majority of 3D printing technologies for Green Lake Jewelry Works. Its workshop is also home to some of the most talented jewelers in the country, where a tradition of dedicated craftsmanship is passed from masters to journeymen and women.

YOUR CUSTOM DESIGN

Custom jewelry at Green Lake always begins with ideas, inspirations, and a sketch, where the many design elements that make for the perfect ring are discovered through ideation.

Oftentimes, a ring will go through many iterations and changes along the way before the final look is achieved.

DESIGNER

Jim Tuttle

Jim Tuttle is the founder and President of Green Lake Jewelry Works. In his nearly thirty years as a bench jeweler, designer, and CAD modeler, he’s made thousands of custom pieces with and for his clients at Green Lake. In addition to his bench and CAD training, Jim has several GIA jewelry and gemology certificates and is on the MJSA Custom Jewelry Advisory Council. Jim is often referred to as a leader in the custom jewelry industry and speaks at many industry events, including MJSA Expo, JCK Vegas, Seattle Metals Guild, the Instore Bench competitions, Portland jewelry symposium and Gemvision conclaves on topics ranging from online custom design and customer experience based retailing to CAD/CAM and the resurgence of traditional fine jewelry making skills.

YOUR GEMSTONE

Your gemstone was hand and eye selected from thousands of stones that we view before choosing the finest, most beautiful gems that suit our very choosy designers and clients.
We are as picky about our gems as we are about every other aspect of our work.

GREEN LAKE GEM LAB

Above and BeyondTM Gemstones

The Green Lake Gem Lab sources rare stones through a responsible network of globally dispersed miners and reputable traders, and verifies the validity of each gem with sophisticated testing equipment and independent certifications.

DIAMONDS + THE KIMBERLY PROCESS

Green Lake’s collection of diamonds only maintain gems with certifications from the GIA or other internationally recognized laboratories, all with an assurance of the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme — the UN resolution passed in 2000 to ensure ‘conflict diamonds’ do not enter the global supply chain.

3D MODEL

CAD

Engineering the X, Y, and Z coordinates of a design is not only a way to inform sophisticated milling and growing machines to create a model; they’re also a powerful way to communicate the vision for a ring.

Realistic renderings and physical models help transform sketched ideas into reality in an interplay between the client, the designer and the CAD team, all of whose input and ideas help create something that both looks right and fits perfectly.

The entire Green Lake project team collaborates on each piece, adding nuanced details and subtle improvements to the design, all while making sure that design cohesiveness, stability on the finger, and stone security are perfected.

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CHARLIE
CAD Designer

Bringing your design to life

CLEANUP & DETAILING

Each ring in a small casting batch shares a common vein of gold or platinum, from where it’s cut and prepared for setting. Rough castings first need to be carefully cleaned and polished before more bench work can be done. Even the inner surfaces are carefully detailed.

100 PERCENT RECYCLED

Green Lake’s use of gold and platinum comes from 100% recycled or certified Fairmined sources. We are one of the nation’s first adopters of recycled casting grain certified by SCS Global Services. Today we return all scrap and unused noble metals for refining in a transparent supply chain.

CRAFTSMANSHIP

All areas of old-world jewelry making are completed in a single workshop. Master gold and platinumsmiths receive rings from casting and set to care for each pieces as a one-of-kind, collaborating with designers to ensure each detail is included.

GEMSTONE SETTING

It required steady hands and confident mastery to set your gemstone for a lifetime of confident wear. Gems can be especially small and terribly rare, so the responsibility for this final stage in crafting a ring falls to our most experienced professionals.

HENRY
Stonesetter

ARTFUL FILIGREE

Filigree is the thinnest of wire extruded from precious noble metal, and fashioned by hand into delicate curls to add intricate details to open spaces. The ability to form fine wire like this is almost a lost art. In a world of mass produced jewelry, it’s a skill that takes years to master and it imbues pieces with a beauty that’s nearly impossible to match.

HENRY
Filigree Artist

FINAL POLISH

Each custom made item in the Green Lake workshop receives a final polish before it’s carefully inspected and reviewed for standards of excellence. Each project is at last stamped with the Green Lake leaf quality mark before delivery.

YOUR FINISHED PIECE

Custom Engagement Ring

Custom platinum halo mounting with 4-prong setting for .90ct asscher cut diamond center stone raised 1mm above halo. Halo, split shank and side faces have round diamond melee and milgrain edges.

CLIENT IMAGES AND COMMENTS

Each project is designed with and for a specific client, taking into account personal style and preferences.

Owners Comments

Jim & the crew at Green Lake Jewelry Works did an amazing job taking the initial concept of what I envisioned as an engagement ring for my fiance and crafting an incredibly beautiful piece of art! The level of detail and precision was beyond what I could have ever imagined. When I proposed to Tova on 9/18/11, she absolutely loved it. I really can't thank you guys enough! -Mike


Mike