When crafting claddagh rings it is important to pay careful attention to every stage of the process. It is only by this careful craft that we can achieve high quality claddagh rings which are treasured by our customer.
This pictures shows a high quality gents silver claddagh ring receiving its final polish at the polishing buff in our authentic claddagh workshop.
Before this buffing stage I always like to use tumbling. This involves placing the jewelry in a small barrel with a polishing compound and a series of small, steel beads. The barrel is then rotated, causing the jewelry to be gently rubbed against the stones and polished to a shine. Tumbling is a quick and easy way to polish small, intricate pieces of jewelry.
Next is the jewelry buff polishing. This is the process of smoothing and shining the surface of a piece of jewelry to give it a bright, lustrous finish.
Buffing is the most popular method of polishing claddagh rings. This involves using a soft, rotating wheel coated with a polishing compound to rub the surface of the jewelry, removing scratches and imperfections. Buffing can be done by hand using a buffing wheel attached to a motor.
A third method of polishing jewelry is hand polishing with string also known as 'stringing out'. This involves using a polishing compound on many pieces of thin string. It is used to access areas on the surface of the claddagh that are difficult to reach with a buff machine.
