how a ring is made

All wooden rings from HolzTraum are Bendwood rings. That is, the rings are bent from several layers of thin wood. Rings made with this technique are statically much more stable than turned rings. In the following you can see the individual steps of how a ring is made at HolzTraum.

Self-found wood

Many rings at HolzTraum do not start with an order in a veneer shop, but with a piece of found wood that somehow appealed to me. In the photo you can see a piece of a carob tree that smiled at me dark red under an old gnarled tree during a walk in Spain. There on the spot I sawed a piece out of the fallen branch. Similarly, pieces of beech appeal to me as they tend to develop those black truffle streaks unless they’ve been stored quite totally.

The scantling is created, veneer is cut

When I got home, I sawed and planed a scantling with parallel sides from what I found. Fresh pieces of wood must then be stored without cracking if possible.

Later, thin layers of wood 0.5mm thick are peeled off the scantling. This work process is very exciting and fulfilling for me when beautiful colors or structures come to light. But nothing good can come out of it either, then the scantling simply goes into the firewood.

The pictures on the right show the first carob veneer strips. The wood is extremely hard and fortunately not only reddish on the front side. A gratifying success for me.

The independence of industrially manufactured veneer enables me to cut my own veneers from local or European holiday finds. These small pieces of wood often hide unexpected grains that you can only find at HolzTraum.

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The blank is rolled

Next, the veneer strips are cut to the required length and laser engraved according to the customer’s requirements. When it comes to pairs of rings, I always select very similar strips so that the finished rings will look very similar.

The wood strips are boiled in a water bath, which makes the wood bendable, similar to the willow branches used by a basket weaver.
The strips are wound onto cylinders and glued while they are still warm and moist.
The blank is now complete. The photo shows three pairs of rings and three individual pieces.
At the lathe

Now comes the actual part of ring making.

The ring is ground on the lathe to the desired width and shape. Here, too, I take great care to ensure that pair rings have the same section as the blanks.
Once the width and shape have been achieved, the ring is sanded smooth with ever finer sandpaper.

If the ring is to have an all-round inlay, a depression is created by hand and filled with precious stones or metal.

The sealing

Now the ring is stabilized in a vacuum with acrylic resin. The air is sucked out of the wood pores by the vacuum and the acrylic resin can penetrate deeper into the wood. After two vacuum passes, the “pur” ring is freed from the excess acrylic resin and allowed to dry. With a “luxury” ring, the acrylic resin is not removed but hardens into a closed layer.

Now all the sealed rings are shiny. For the matt finish, the surface is sanded by hand with very fine sandpaper.

If a zirconia stone is desired, it is now embedded in the finished acrylic resin layer.

Hopefully you now have an idea of how a wooden ring is made using the Bentwood technique.

FAQ ring selection

Yes, there is no personalization configurator on my website, because I wouldn’t even know what to set there. Much more is usually possible than a configurator would allow. If you have any questions as to whether your wishes can be implemented, call me (+49 160 933 339 35) or write me at m@holztraum-ringe.de

When you go to the checkout there is a free text field in which you can please enter the ring size, width, engraving text etc. If you missed the field, just send me an e-mail with the data.

Production usually takes two to four weeks.

If you are in a hurry, please ask BEFORE by phone.

the shipping costs are
wirhin Germany 4,50€
within EU monetary union 8,50€
to Switzerland 12,50€

For all other countries, please inquire beforehand.

I send the rings by post, the ring boxes as a consignment. Delivery to packing stations is not possible.

“Clandestine” deliveries with Hermes Shop-to-Shop are possible on request.

You can choose to pay with PayPal or in advance.

The rings offered in the shop are personalized made-to-measure products, which unfortunately cannot be exchanged according to the terms and conditions.

It is therefore all the more important that you determine the ring size in advance. Or read Giving a Ring Without a Size.

FAQ about the order process

In general, wooden rings fit just like metal rings. So the material does not play a role in determining the ring size.
Note, however, that the individual fingers of one hand have different strengths. If the ring is to be worn on a specific finger, you will need the ring size for that finger. Dehydrating drinks such as coffee, sage tea or red wine but also pregnancy can affect the measurement result.

If you don’t know your ring size and walking around town isn’t an option, you can order a ring sizer with the ring. I will then send it to you in advance free of charge.

A String, chewing gum paper, bag seals or grandma’s tape measure are definitely not suitable tools for determining the ring size at home. I can no longer change the ring size of finished rings. Expanding or compressing, as is possible with metal rings, is impossible with a wooden ring.

It is mainly a matter of personal taste how ready a ring should be.
It is generally said that a wide ring looks good on a slender finger, and a narrow ring looks better on a strong, short finger.

But it is also the case that a narrow ring tends to pinch the neighboring fingers. A washer would be the extreme. A very wide ring, on the other hand, can limit the freedom of movement of the finger.

A small ring, e.g. size 48, is 4mm narrow and 8mm wide. A medium-sized one, e.g. size 60, is narrow at 4.5mm and wide at 9mm. A really large ring, e.g. size 70, is narrow at 5mm and wide at 11mm. Medium is in between, rule of three is possible.

Luxury (most sold)
Each luxury ring in my collection is covered with a matt polished, closed layer of acrylic resin. This looks very elegant and makes it more durable and hard-wearing (a ring like this can withstand a 40° wash cycle in the washing machine).

glossy
Like luxury, only polished to a high gloss. With finely structured woods, the glossy surface emphasizes the wood structure. However, the surface can become matt or shiny over time through daily use, depending on the stress.

pure
The pur rings in my collection are stabilized with acrylic resin but not sealed. The rings are a bit more natural but also more sensitive.
Rings made of black oak are not available in “Pure” due to the structure of the wood.

I engrave in the ring using a laser engraver. The laser beam burns letters, characters or shapes into the wood. You can choose from different fonts. I can also use image templates that only consist of black and white in jpg and png format.

Light to brown wood and a ring width of 4.5 mm or more are advantageous for an engraving.

It is difficult in dark wood, because black on black is difficult to read. Here I recommend choosing the inside of the ring from a lighter wood.
It is also difficult to engrave 30 characters in a small ring. Smaller font is harder to read.

With a Bentwood ring, the wood is bent with the grain so that a ring with 3-4 thin layers of wood glued together is created from a 25-30cm long veneer strip. This process makes the ring much more statically resilient than a turned wooden ring would be, and allows a lower material thickness of 2.2 mm and upwards.

Nevertheless, a wooden ring has a limited lifespan. Comparable to floors, there are materials for eternity and some for feeling good. A metal ring lasts a lifetime, a wooden ring cannot. It will wear out like a wooden floor.
Sand and hard objects that leave dents in the wood will damage the ring. You should take off the wooden ring for gardening, climbing, playing in the sand or carrying beer crates. Showering, washing your hands or going to the sauna is no problem.

Water and heat SOMETIMES. AVOID bruising, bending or sanding.

Unfortunately, since made-to-measure rings are non-returnable, buying a ring based on an estimated size is risky. If you would like to surprise someone with a ring from HolzTraum, call me first on +49 160 933 339 35 or email me at m@holztraum-ringe.de

I have almost 100 rings in different sizes and types of wood in stock, from which you can choose one that you are happy to give away as a surprise and then return it to configure your personal dream ring.

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