The Anatomy of a Solitaire

A solitaire hides nothing. There is no pavé to distract the eye, no second stone to share the blame. Every decision — the height of the crown, the taper of the claws, the exact point where the band narrows — is visible from across a room.

In our atelier, a solitaire crown is raised by hand from a single piece of platinum. The six claws are drawn out, not cast, which keeps the grain of the metal continuous. A cast claw can snap; a drawn claw bends and warns you first.

The knife-edge band is polished on both faces until it catches light as a single line. Held at arm's length, the stone should appear to float. That illusion is the entire job: three weeks of work invested in looking like nothing at all.