What to do if a stone cracks in your jewelry

Whether a simple stone design or something more complex like this ring, I can repair broken stone jewelry.

Many artisan jewelry pieces cabochons in their designs. These are hand-cut stones with a flat base and a domed surface. Depending on the stone’s durability and its wear, it may get a small surface chip—or even get cracked all the way through the stone.

Why did my stone crack?

Cracks can come from obvious incidents—like an accidental impact—but it also can be caused by pressure against hard surfaces or just wearing it daily.

With stones, its inherent nature needs to be taken into account. Does it have natural inclusions or fractures? Is it porous? Is it a softer stone? Is it thin? If you answered yes to any of these, this is what can make the stone more susceptible to damage.

How can I fix a scuff or chip in my stone jewelry?

For small scuffs or minor chips, the stone can often be taken out of the setting, reshaped, and set back into the jewelry design by a skilled lapidary (stone cutter). This way, the original stone can stay in tact, but will have a freshly polished surface.

What if a stone splits in my jewelry?

Sometimes the crack goes all the way through the stone and splits the stone in two or more pieces.

When this happens, the best choice is to choose a replacement stone for the jewelry setting. Matching the original stone as closely as possible is what I strive for with stone repairs. But because nature offers thousands of variety of stone colors and patterns, some repairs may need an alternative stone that will act as a complement to what is there.

The green turquoise in my client’s ring had cracks running all throughout, making it too crumbly for daily wear. Though I didn’t have the same material on-hand, my client liked this similarly-col green moss agate which but will be a more durable choice in a ring.

Another option for stones that split cleanly into bigger pieces—rather than crumbly bits—is to join them back together with epoxy. Because it is less expensive to cut a new stone than repair one, this is a possible solution with a stone that has sentimental value.

Because this stone meant a lot to my client, I took this broken turquoise out of the ring setting, stabilized the broken pieces with epoxy, recut the stone and set it back in the ring.

Who can recut a new stone for my jewelry?

The problem with most jewelry settings is that the stone is often not standard—it needs a specialty cut to fit the setting, which is something a corner jewelry store can’t do.

Because I cut uniquely-shaped stones for my own jewelry and for specialized inlay jewelry repairs, I can cut a new stone to closely match what is in your design.

What does your broken stone look like?

If you upload some pictures of it, I can take a look at it and we can discuss options on how it can be repaired or replaced.