Welcome to the Jewelry Buyers Guide for Cameo Rings! One of the reasons we felt it necessary to write a guide for cameo rings is due to their recent surge in popularity. Additionally, cameo rings lend themselves to being of poor quality due to the intricate design. So let’s learn some more about these rings and what you should look out for!
Cameo rings (and indeed cameos in general) have been popular for literally thousands of years. Cameos are essentially figures carved into a surface to produce an embossed look. Cameos can be carved into rocks, gemstones, and shells. Cameo rings became very popular during the Victorian era, and were typically carved shells inset into a metal signet style ring. It’s this look that has again become popular.
Where you can run into some difficulty is being able to find a good quality cameo ring. A traditional shell carved cameo ring of good quality can actually be quite expensive, whereas cheaper plastic molded cameo rings can be much cheaper, but of highly variable quality. Like anything molded in plastic, you can get really good versions that are almost indistinguishable from the real thing, and you can get others that look like they should come for free in a cereal box.
Buying your cameo ring online will give you a much wider choice than your local jeweler, but does open you up to ending up with a “Cereal box” cameo ring. This can be overcome by reading reviews of specific rings by other customers. Amazon is a site that will give you this option, as you can be assured that the product reviews aren’t “faked” like other smaller sites.
You can still buy the real thing on Amazon as well, all though be aware that a real carved cameo ring set in 18k gold will be a lot more damaging to your wallet than some of the cheaper varieties. You need to come up with a budget, and also determine your motivations for the purchase as well. If you’re looking at a cameo ring as a passing bit of fashion jewelry, then it makes little sense to purchase a $1000 cameo ring, when you can buy one that will look almost as good for a 10th of the price. However, if it’s something that you can easily see as being a family heirloom, or even as a long term investment (in the case of buying certified antique originals) than you may certainly be able to justify spending a lot more.
Remember to keep in mind though that even if you budget for cameo rings is limited, you don’t have to settle for a cereal box ring, so check out other customer reviews before purchasing!
