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One of the most frequent questions I am asked by potential customers is the one above.  It can, particularly in the current circumstances of social distancing, seem tricky or difficult to work out exactly what ring size you might need to order.  It is especially important to get it right when you are commissioning a piece of jewellery you want to last and when you add into the mix online shopping and that ring size can fluctuate, I am sure that many potential shoppers will be discouraged and hesitate over the add to cart button.

Never be reticent about asking your jeweller for sizing advice.  They will always be happy to help.  After all, hopefully for them, you want to know because you have fallen in love with a piece in their inventory!

Put simply, your ring size is the diameter (straight line across the centre line) of the inside of any given ring band.  We always use the inside diameter because the thickness of metal used or the width of the ring band can vary enormously between ring styles. whereas the inside diameter, which is the measurement that needs to most closely match your finger, remains constant.

I'll explain here a few different methods for working out your own ring size:

First and best is to go to the jeweller you want to make a purchase from.  They will be more than happy to help you.  They will be practised in taking ring sizes and will be able to make adjustments and recommendations as necessary depending on the type of ring that you wish to purchase.  For example, if you choose a wide band ring, in general, you will need to have it made around one whole size larger than you would normally wear in a slim band. 

The second next best option, when you are unable to have your finger sized by your own jeweller, is to have your finger sized professionally by another jeweller.  Many high street jewellers will be happy to do this for you (particularly if they think you may be about to make a purchase ;)  ).  It is important though, to tell them the style of ring that you are hoping to wear so that similar allowances as mentioned above in the case of wide band rings can be made.

Option number three:  You can, quite easily, purchase your own ring sizers from the big online shopping websites.  Please look carefully at reviews however, because the cheaper ones are not always accurate.  These can be useful though as ring sizes can and do change over time - weight loss or gain, pregnancy as well as conditions such as arthritis can effect your ring size over time.

Option number four:  If you have a smartphone and already own a ring that fits you well, there is a fantastic app called the "Jason Withers Ring Sizer".  It is truly clever!  Once downloaded, there is a small circle shown on the screen. You place your own ring on the screen over the top of the circle and use the on-screen toggle to increase or decrease the size of the circle until it just fits inside the inside circumference of your ring.  The on screen size chart adjusts and shows you the size of the ring.  You can then either write down or screenshot the information shown to share with your jeweller.  Links to the app are here for Apple and Android.

Option four and a half (sort of):  Again, if you have a ring that you know fits, as well as the ring sizers, it is possible to also buy a marked ring mandrel.  It is then just a case of dropping your own ring onto the mandrel and reading the size from the markings.  This comes with the same caveat as the ring sizers mentioned above:  Please read the reviews for any mandrel carefully as not all sizing mandrels are accurate.

Method five:  There are many different printable ring size charts.  This is another method that relies on you owning a ring that fits already, but if you have a printer, it is a simple one.   Find a suitable, well reviewed chart, print it, place your ring over the various sized circles and locate the one that best matches your ring.

Finally, option six:  If you are not able to get your finger sized through any of the above methods, many jewellers, myself included, keep a stock of small, plastic ring sizers that are not dissimilar to a plastic zip tie.  Most of us will be happy to post out one of these little sizers for you to measure your finger.  Whilst these are a cheap, simple and readily available option, their one downside is that they can slip as you put them on and take them off and it is easy to pull it snugly around the finger, but forgetting that you also need to be able to slide it over the knuckle.  Nevertheless, used with care, these little plastic sizers can be a perfect answer.

For a size comparison chart, please take a look at the Official International Ring Size Conversion Chart. This comprehensive chart shows all the relevant measurements in millimetres and inches as well as a side by side comparison of the various international sizing conventions.

Last, but not least, whichever method you use to measure your finger in order to work out your ring size, please follow these top tips to ensure you get the most accurate measurement:

• Always measure your ring size at the end of the day when your fingers are the largest. Our hands naturally swell throughout the day as well as during exercise.  You want your measurements based on when your finger is at its largest.

• Measure the ring finger on the hand you intend to wear it on. Hand and finger sizes can differ, so there is no point measuring a finger on your right hand, if you intend to wear the ring on your left hand.  Equally, if you intend to wear the ring on your middle finger, don't measure your third ("ring") finger.

• Ensure you allow a little room for your knuckle. Knuckles tend to be larger than the actual finger, so make sure you account for that while taking measurements. You want the ring to meet a little resistance at the knuckle, but not too much.

• If you decide to use a printed size guide, ensure your turn off scaling when printing  it. Most printable size guides are accurate, but printers can throw off the measurements on certain settings.  By making sure the scaling option is off you will avoid getting a warped image or print out.

• Take measurements over multiple days. Swelling, salt intake and other factors can influence your finger size from day to day. To combat that, take measurements over a few days — at the same time of day — and use the average to find the right ring size for you.

I really hope that this guide is useful to you.  I know it is a long post, but I wanted to try to write something really comprehensive so that as many of you as possible are able to confidently and accurately measure your own ring size. so that you are able to order with confidence  - well done to everyone who read to the end!

Much like my previous post about ring sizing, this post is intended to offer some useful information for those of you who want to buy a bangle.

Just like fingers, hands and wrists vary in size and it is important, when buying a bangle or bracelet to get the right size, both for comfort and for ensuring that your bangle doesn't fly off every 5 minutes, if like me and the French (sorry for the stereotyping to my Francophone friends!), you are incapable of having a conversation without also using your hands to emphasise your speech!

I generally make my bangles in three sizes: small, medium and large.  That doesn't really mean a great deal if I don't give you any measurements though, so here you go:

Small - 60mm inside diameter

Medium - 65mm inside diameter

Large - 70mm inside diameter

These sizes are a good average range for most women's wrists, but of course, there will inevitably be some people who fall either side of this selection.  When you wear a bangle, you should aim to have it fit snugly over your hand - with a slight squeeze over your knuckles, so that when it is on the wrist it falls comfortably below your wrist bone, but not too far down the length of your hand.  This ensures that it: a.  Doesn't fly off if you wave your hands around too vigorously; and b, that it is comfortable to wear and doesn't interfere with any manual tasks that you may need to do.  My own bangle is well sized and I never take it off, because it is completely comfortable to wear.

If you are unsure of which size would suit you best, there are a couple of different options available to you:

First, and always the preferred option, is to get your wrist size measured by the jeweller who will be making your bangle.  I have a comprehensive set of sizing bangles and it is a quick and simple task to try the various sizing bangles on until you find the one that suits you best.  As a next best, where distance precludes this, is visiting your nearest amenable jeweller and asking them to do the measuring for you.

Second, where you are unable to visit a jeweller in person, is to measure your own hand.   This is a relatively simple process, but needs you to be careful to ensure you are measuring at the correct point.  Rather than the wrist, you need to measure the distance between your index finger knuckle and your little finger knuckle.  To get an accurate measurement, follow these steps:

1. tuck your thumb against your palm as closely as you are able to (imagine you are sliding your hand into a bangle for the right sort of position). 

2. whilst maintaining this position, (you may need someone to help you with this) use a ruler with millimetre measurements to measure from the centre point of your index knuckle to the centre of your little finger knuckle.  This measurement corresponds to the size of bangle that you will need.

I hope you find this post helpful and that it helps you to make an informed choice when ordering bangles.