It’s not a bevel! Bezels are like a frame for a gemstone. They are smooth and sleek, easy to wear, low to the finger without sharp prongs to catch on your clothes and cut your children. We use bezels extensively in our designs. It takes more care and time to do a clean job, but we think it’s worth it.

For those who are interested, the process of setting a gemstone in a bezel is quite precise. The bezel is not too thick, for small stones perhaps a half to a full millimeter depending on the look you like. Once you have your setting, measure the gemstone to the 10th of a millimeter and choose a cutting burr that is slightly smaller. Once your seat for the gem is cut with a gentle pressure push the gemstone into the bezel with a stone pusher and make sure the stone is firmly against the seat. Then you take a small punch and a light hammer and work around the gemstone from the 12 to 6 to 3 then 9 o’clock positions on the bezel to keep it level. Once all the metal on the bezel is punched down it is burnished with a burnishing tool and the last step is to take the burnisher or an engraving tool and add the final bright cut at a 45 degree angle. Look closely at the examples below and it will help you to understand the concepts.

Below is a graphic showing some of the major types of bezels.

As always if you have questions about this or any other topic, please get in touch.