Chris Ploof, designer and founder of Chris Ploof Designs, an award-winning master jeweller, recently launched the Precision Cut Precious collection, featuring an assortment of high-quality rings and wedding bands in all precious metal, marking a distinct brand expansion for the designer, who is known for hand-forged Damascus Steel and Mokume Gane, among other modern metals.
The 14-piece collection was unveiled in Minneapolis in early March this year. The gender-neutral designs can each be customised with a variety of options including metal combinations, sizes, widths, and gemstone additions. Current pricing ranges between $1,210 to $3,500, and the designer is planning to add diamonds (high quality precision melee, D-G colour and VVS or better) in the near future. Ploof also plans to expand the assortment into other jewellery categories such as bracelets, earrings, and pendants soon.
A two-time winner of the prestigious Santa Fe Symposium’s Industry Leader Award, Chris, noted, “I have never been a fan of the thin gold bands in the marketplace, made in the cheapest way possible, and my team and I knew I could make something better,” said Ploof. “None of our new ‘Precision Cut Precious’ rings are cast. They are made from drawn tubing which is then machined. This allows me to very precisely manufacture these pieces that are heavier and higher quality than most of what is available on the marketplace. These solid, heavy, beautiful thick big rings will last a lifetime.”
The collection was originally inspired by a retail partner’s request to make wedding bands as a replacement for a respected European brand that went out of business. These rings are hand-made with very precise manufacturing standards in Chris’s solar-powered studio in central Massachusetts. The bands rival the quality of high-end European brands, but they are made here in America, meaning no delays for orders and/or sizing, as well as no import duties.
“For those seeking a really high-quality precious metal band, nobody else is creating them with solar power and with such precise standards,” adds Ploof.