Ring resizing,
measured and quoted
before anything is cut

It is quoted per ring and the estimate is free and given before any work starts. Cost depends on the metal, how many sizes it is moving and whether anything else needs doing while it is open, like retipping a worn prong. A plain gold band going down one size is not the same job as a platinum ring with stones set around the shoulders, so a single published price would be wrong for most people who read it. Bring the ring in and you get a real number for your ring.

Sometimes, and we will not promise it before seeing the ring. Astra coordinates repair work through jewelers we trust rather than a bench in the back, so the honest answer depends on the ring, the metal and what else the piece needs. Tell us the date you need it for when you come in and you will get a straight answer at the estimate rather than an optimistic one on a website.

Yes. Astra takes in pieces from any store, of any origin and in any condition, not only jewelry bought at the studio. An inherited ring, an online purchase, a piece from a chain store that has closed, all of it is welcome and all of it is quoted free.

Most plain bands move comfortably by one or two sizes in either direction. Beyond that the shank starts to get thin when sizing up, or the ring starts to lose its shape when sizing down, and the better answer is often to rebuild the shank rather than stretch what is there. Rings with stones set around the band have far less room than a plain band. You get told which situation your ring is in before anything happens.

Yes, and being told so is part of the service. Eternity rings set with stones the whole way around have nowhere to cut without disturbing the setting. Tension settings hold the stone by spring pressure, so changing the size changes the grip. Some titanium, tungsten and carbide rings cannot be worked at all because the material will not take solder. Rings with heavy engraving or a pattern that runs continuously around the band can usually be sized, but the pattern will not meet perfectly afterward and you should know that first.

Yes. Platinum is worked at a much higher temperature than gold and takes longer, which is reflected in the quote. White gold is usually rhodium plated, so a resized white gold ring often needs replating afterward to look right, and that is quoted with the job rather than sprung on you at collection. Silver is straightforward.

It should not, and the check that matters happens before the work rather than after. Stones are inspected for chips and loose settings first, because heat and pressure will find a weakness that was already there. Some stones, opal and emerald among them, do not tolerate heat well and are removed or the ring is worked in a way that keeps heat away from them. If a stone is a genuine risk you get told before you decide.

Come in and get measured, it takes a minute and costs nothing. Fingers change size through the day and through the year, so a measurement taken in a cold car in January and one taken on a warm afternoon are genuinely different. If you are sizing a surprise gift, bring a ring the person already wears on the right finger and that is usually enough to work from.

Yes, though that is a different job and it lives on our watch repair page. Watch bracelet sizing means removing or adding links rather than cutting and soldering a shank, and it is usually quick. If you have both a ring and a watch that need attention, bring them together.

Astra Jewelers is at 250 Bellevue Ave, 2nd Floor, Montclair, NJ 07043, in Upper Montclair. Walk in Monday to Friday, 10:00am to 6:00pm, Saturday until 5:00pm, or book ahead if you would rather have someone free to sit with you. It is a private studio on the second floor rather than a street level shop, and it serves Montclair, Glen Ridge, Bloomfield, Verona, Cedar Grove and the rest of Essex County.