{"id":30884,"date":"2015-11-16T00:01:45","date_gmt":"2015-11-16T05:01:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/?p=30884"},"modified":"2015-11-15T23:25:00","modified_gmt":"2015-11-16T04:25:00","slug":"jewel-of-the-month-dragon-and-knight-maneater-ring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/jewel-of-the-month-dragon-and-knight-maneater-ring\/","title":{"rendered":"Jewel of the Month: Dragon and Knight Maneater Ring"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you follow me on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/wendybrandesjewelry\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram<\/a>, you&#8217;ve already seen the seventh ring in my Maneater series: the Dragon and Knight. If you don&#8217;t follow me, first of all: follow me! Secondly, enjoy this little video of the piece, which is November&#8217;s Jewel of the Month.<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-version=\"5\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\">\n<div style=\"padding:8px;\">\n<div style=\" background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:50.0% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;\">\n<div style=\" background:url(data:image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAAGFBMVEUiIiI9PT0eHh4gIB4hIBkcHBwcHBwcHBydr+JQAAAACHRSTlMABA4YHyQsM5jtaMwAAADfSURBVDjL7ZVBEgMhCAQBAf\/\/42xcNbpAqakcM0ftUmFAAIBE81IqBJdS3lS6zs3bIpB9WED3YYXFPmHRfT8sgyrCP1x8uEUxLMzNWElFOYCV6mHWWwMzdPEKHlhLw7NWJqkHc4uIZphavDzA2JPzUDsBZziNae2S6owH8xPmX8G7zzgKEOPUoYHvGz1TBCxMkd3kwNVbU0gKHkx+iZILf77IofhrY1nYFnB\/lQPb79drWOyJVa\/DAvg9B\/rLB4cC+Nqgdz\/TvBbBnr6GBReqn\/nRmDgaQEej7WhonozjF+Y2I\/fZou\/qAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/p\/96vd1sDZZY\/\" style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;\" target=\"_blank\">A video posted by Wendy Brandes Jewelry PR (@wendybrandesjewelry)<\/a> on <time style=\" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;\" datetime=\"2015-11-10T20:32:47+00:00\">Nov 10, 2015 at 12:32pm PST<\/time><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async defer src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\"><\/script><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I feel like I&#8217;ve been working up to the Dragon and Knight ring for a long time. The whole Maneater collection was inspired by bad-ass historical women, including Empress Wu, <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2011\/03\/jewel-of-the-month-empress-wu-dragon-ring\/\" target=\"_blank\">who already inspired<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/store\/products.php?product=Empress-Wu-Dragon-Cufflinks\" target=\"_blank\">three<\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2011\/12\/jewel-of-the-month-empress-wu-dragon-earrings\/\" target=\"_blank\">dragon-themed designs<\/a>. I explained my thought process last year:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>&#8220;The rings are inspired by my lifelong interest in powerful women. My signature Wendy Brandes jewelry line started with pieces that were named after real-life bad-ass women, including the warrior queen Xenobia and the 12th-century Empress Matilda. A lot of these strong women have been called \u201cdragon lady\u201d or \u201cman eater\u201d in pejorative ways. A tough man is just a guy doing his job, but there always has to be some kind of mean-sounding name for a tough woman, right? I got to thinking that some of these wimmins might have relished being called these names. I\u2019m sure 7th-century Empress Wu would have been like, \u201cHa ha ha! Dragon lady! YOU\u2019RE RIGHT!\u201d before she executed the guy who spoke those words. Accordingly, each Maneater ring has a triumphant animal on top and a man tucked away inside the band.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Also last year, I told <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jckonline.com\/2014\/03\/05\/gold-wendy-brandes-maneater-rings\" target=\"_blank\">JCK Magazine editor Jennifer Heebner about another inspiration for the collection and this ring in particular<\/a>. As she wrote:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>&#8220;Who would\u2019ve thought that a $10 trinket from a New York City street vendor could influence an artist for decades? Certainly not Wendy Brandes. Back in the 1980s, the jewelry designer bought a dragon-themed brass bell because the seller told her it &#8216;had a really good knight.&#8217; When she turned the piece over, she discovered a tiny knight-shape bell clapper sitting inside.&#8221;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Because of that, the Dragon and Knight is an especially meaningful Maneater design and I made sure it was perfect. I started with the <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2010\/03\/get-smart-about-custom-work\/\" target=\"_blank\">lost-wax casting process<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2010\/03\/get-smart-about-custom-work\/\" target=\"_blank\">which I described in 2010 for people who are interested in custom designs<\/a>. The Dragon and Knight ring required nine miniature wax models: the dragon body, the tail, two separate wings, the knight in the dragon&#8217;s stomach, the sword in the dragon&#8217;s mouth, the skull at her feet and two parts of her treasure chest. This photo shows six wax carvings. <\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax1.jpg\" alt=\"dragonwax1\" width=\"498\" height=\"465\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30888\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax1.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax1-300x280.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The different color waxes <a href=\"http:\/\/professionaljeweler.com\/archives\/articles\/1999\/sep99\/0999mm.html\" target=\"_blank\">all have different qualities<\/a>. Green is the hardest.<\/p>\n<p>When my wax carver finished all the pieces, I carefully put them together and tried the model on in order to approve the overall size of the piece.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax2.jpg\" alt=\"dragonwax2\" width=\"498\" height=\"618\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30890\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax2.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax2-242x300.jpg 242w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonwax2-300x372.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In the finished version of the ring, the dragon&#8217;s body is made of 18K yellow gold and covered with 400 tsavorites &#8212; green garnets &#8212; totaling 4.5 carats.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring1.jpg\" alt=\"dragonring1\" width=\"498\" height=\"664\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30894\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring1.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring1-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring1-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The 18K yellow gold wings are set with some of the 52 brown diamonds used in the piece, which total 35 points (there are 100 points in a carat). The dragon also has white diamond eyes.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring2.jpg\" alt=\"dragonring2\" width=\"498\" height=\"664\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30895\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring2.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring2-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The 18K rose gold treasure chest opens up to reveal pearls, rubies, diamonds and tsavorite.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring3resize.jpg\" alt=\"dragonring3resize\" width=\"498\" height=\"664\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30896\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring3resize.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring3resize-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonring3resize-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The helmet-wearing knight in the dragon&#8217;s stomach &#8212; hidden inside the band of the ring &#8212; is 18K white gold.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonundersideresize.jpg\" alt=\"dragonundersideresize\" width=\"498\" height=\"664\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30897\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonundersideresize.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonundersideresize-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/dragonundersideresize-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The skull with diamond eyes and the sword in the dragon&#8217;s mouth are both made of platinum, and the sword has a little ruby set in its hilt. <\/p>\n<p>The total weight of the gold in the piece is nearly 30 grams &#8212; nearly a full <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Troy_ounce\" target=\"_blank\">troy ounce<\/a> of gold. The platinum weighs an additional 2.79 grams.<\/p>\n<p>Jewelry expert <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/kremkow\/\" target=\"_blank\">Cheryl Kremkow<\/a> recently took a great close-up of the ring on her finger.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_30905\" style=\"width: 508px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/9UAt0lzTM1\/?taken-by=kremkow\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30905\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/cherylpic1.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Cheryl Kremkow.\" width=\"498\" height=\"498\" class=\"size-full wp-image-30905\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/cherylpic1.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/cherylpic1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/cherylpic1-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-30905\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo by Cheryl Kremkow.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Last week, <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/hanging-out-with-platinum-guild-international\/\" target=\"_blank\">I showed you how it looked when combined with a fabulous nail-ring design by Deirdre Featherstone<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_30906\" style=\"width: 508px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/hanging-out-with-platinum-guild-international\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30906\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/featherstone1.jpg\" alt=\"I&#039;m also wearing a platinum engagement ring, platinum thumb ring, and gold pinky ring. \" width=\"498\" height=\"636\" class=\"size-full wp-image-30906\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/featherstone1.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/featherstone1-235x300.jpg 235w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/featherstone1-300x383.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-30906\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">I&#8217;m also wearing a platinum engagement ring, platinum thumb ring, and gold pinky ring.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>And thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/diamondsinthelibrary\/\" target=\"_blank\">Becky Stone of Diamonds in the Library<\/a> for taking this set of photos.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/diamondsinthelibrary.com\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/diamondslibrary.jpg\" alt=\"diamondslibrary\" width=\"498\" height=\"498\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30907\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/diamondslibrary.jpg 498w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/diamondslibrary-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/diamondslibrary-300x300.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I like to think that both the real <a href=\"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2007\/12\/thursday-book-club-empress-wu-part-i\/\" target=\"_blank\">Empress Wu<\/a> and the fictional <a href=\"http:\/\/gameofthrones.wikia.com\/wiki\/Khaleesi\" target=\"_blank\">Khaleesi<\/a> would enjoy wearing this one!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you follow me on Instagram, you&#8217;ve already seen the seventh ring in my Maneater series: the Dragon and Knight. If you don&#8217;t follow me, first of all: follow me! Secondly, enjoy this little video of the piece, which is November&#8217;s Jewel of the Month. A video posted by Wendy Brandes Jewelry PR (@wendybrandesjewelry) on&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/jewel-of-the-month-dragon-and-knight-maneater-ring\/\">Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30888,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[295,659,43,37,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jewel-of-the-month","category-maneater","category-my-designs","category-queens","category-rings","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30884"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30884\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30910,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30884\/revisions\/30910"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30888"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}