Bracelets

Diamond tennis bracelets, Cuban link bracelets and bangles in platinum and 18ct gold. Every piece available for hallmarking and resizing.

A bracelet is the piece of jewellery most likely to be damaged and most likely to be lost, because it is on the part of the body that hits things. That single fact should drive the buying decision more than it usually does: on a tennis bracelet the clasp and the safety catch matter more than the carat weight, and on a chain bracelet whether the links are solid or hollow matters more than the gram price.

Photography on request

5ct Diamond Tennis Bracelet in 18ct White Gold

Ref ALP-BRA-001

View Details

Choosing bracelets

Tennis bracelets: the clasp is the product

A line of diamonds is only as good as the thing holding it on a wrist. Look for a box clasp with a figure-of-eight safety catch, or a double catch on anything substantial — a single push clasp on a bracelet worth thousands is an accident waiting to happen. The name, incidentally, comes from Chris Evert losing hers mid-match at the 1987 US Open and stopping play to find it, which tells you everything about why the catch matters.

Solid or hollow, on a chain bracelet

Cuban and curb links are made either solid or hollow, they look near enough identical when new, and they are entirely different purchases. Hollow links are lighter and cheaper and dent, crush and split with wear; solid links can be repaired almost indefinitely. Gram weight is the honest signal here — ask for it, because two bracelets of the same length and width can differ severalfold in gold content and price.

Sizing, which is not one-size

Measure the wrist snugly and add roughly a centimetre and a half for a comfortable bracelet, or a little less for one meant to sit close. A tennis bracelet that is too long rotates so the stones face downward and wears through faster on the underside; too short and it will not sit flat. Links can be added or removed at the bench, and it is worth doing rather than living with it.

The hallmark

Any gold bracelet over one gram sold in the UK must be hallmarked, and a bracelet is easily heavy enough to qualify. It is the independent check that the metal is what it is described as, tested by an assay office rather than asserted by a seller.

FAQS

Measure the wrist with a tape snugly, then add about 1.5cm for a comfortable fit that moves a little, or about 1cm for one that sits close. Seven inches is the most common women's size and eight the most common men's, but wrists vary enough that measuring is worth the minute it takes. Length can be adjusted at the bench by adding or removing links.

Hollow links are formed from a thin shell of gold around a void. They look the same as solid links when new, cost considerably less and weigh a fraction as much — and they dent, crush and split with normal wear, after which they are difficult and often uneconomic to repair. Solid links can be repaired, resized and re-polished more or less indefinitely. Always ask for the gram weight rather than just the width and length.

Insist on a proper box clasp with a figure-of-eight safety catch, and on anything substantial a double safety catch. Check the catch closes with a definite click rather than a soft push, and have it inspected once a year — clasps wear before anything else on a bracelet does. We will fit a stronger catch to an existing bracelet if the one on it is not up to the job.

Ask a Question