Rings & Earrings

Fifteen rings, earrings and ear cuffs, twelve of them buyable today — from a $23.95 sterling serpent ring to $643.95 architectural quartz statement rings. In short: ear cuffs need no piercing. Almost every ring here is a fixed US size — measure your finger warm, late in the day, before you order.

A silver statement ring set with a raw quartz point, gold hammered drop earrings and a brass ear cuff on dark green stone, lit by a single beeswax candle.

The full guide to rings, earrings and ear cuffs

Jewelry was ritual equipment long before it was decoration. A ring is a closed circle worn on the body — the oldest shape there is for a promise, a bond or a boundary — and stones have been set into them for exactly as long as people have believed a stone could stand for something. What has changed is the commitment: this collection runs from a $15.95 stainless serpent hoop — sold out as this page is written, which leaves the $23.95 sterling serpent ring as the least expensive piece you can buy today — to a $643.95 architectural quartz ring, and it includes a whole family of ear cuffs that ask nothing of you at all, because they need no piercing. Everything below is about choosing well and wearing it for years: what the three families here actually are, how to size a ring properly, how to tell decent metal from plated filler, and how to care for stones that should never have gone near your sink.

The three families in this collection

Rings split into two very different moods. On one side sit the wearable everyday talismans — the adjustable sterling serpent at $23.95, the black tourmaline band at $65.95, and the planchette ring, which lets you pick both the metal and the stone. On the other are the two sculptural Square Goliath rings, in golden glass and in striated crystal quartz, which are meant to be the only thing you are wearing on that hand. Between the two sits the rainbow moonstone planchette ring — a statement piece you can still wear to work, made in one size only.

Earrings cover the same range: stainless serpent hoops at $15.95 are the least expensive thing in the collection and sold out as this page is written, crescent moon drops at $35.95 and raw amethyst pairs at $39.95 are the daily-wear middle, the seven-stone chakra bar drops put the whole symbolic system on one line of silver, and the Aurora Fang spangle earrings in vintage glass and oxidized silver are the piece you buy once. The sun and moon tassel climber sits between an earring and a cuff and needs only the one lobe piercing you already have.

Ear cuffs are the newest family and the easiest to say yes to — enamel and glass talismans in luna moth in silver, the same moth in gold and a leopard that clip onto the rim of the ear and come off again at the end of the day.

Ear cuffs: the no-piercing option

An ear cuff is held by shape and tension, not by a piercing, which makes it the one piece of ear jewelry you can try, move, and abandon without consequence. Slide it onto the thinnest part of the outer cartilage — usually about a third of the way up — then press it closed until it sits without wobbling. A correctly fitted cuff feels present but not sharp. If it slides down through the day, squeeze it a fraction tighter; if you can feel a throb after an hour, it is too tight and should be eased open. Check the fit every few hours the first time you wear one, and take it off before sleeping. If you already have piercings, a cuff on the upper rim of one ear against studs below is the standard way to stack them.

Finding your ring size — and what to do if you are between sizes

  1. Measure late in the day and in a warm room. Fingers are smallest first thing in the morning and in the cold, which is exactly how people end up with a ring they cannot get off in July.
  2. Wrap non-stretchy string or a paper strip around the base of the finger, mark the overlap, and measure it in millimeters against a US size chart.
  3. Check that the loop still passes over your knuckle. The knuckle, not the base, sets your real minimum.
  4. Easier if you own a ring that fits: lay it flat and measure the inner diameter in millimeters, edge to edge.
  5. Measure twice on two different days. If the two results disagree, trust the larger one.
  6. Printing a paper ring sizer? Print at exactly 100% scale and check the printed ruler against a real one first — a mis-scaled print is the single most common sizing error.

Wider bands wear tighter than narrow ones at the same nominal size, so for the statement rings in particular, size up rather than down when you are between two.

StyleSizes offeredWorth knowing
Square Goliath statement ringsUS 5, 6, 7, 8, 9Wide, heavy bands — take the larger size if you are between two
Planchette Ring (sterling / gold vermeil)US 5–10Also choose your stone: onyx, labradorite, rainbow moonstone or garnet
Black Tourmaline RingUS 6–9No size 5 in this style
Rainbow Moonstone Planchette RingUS 8 onlyA single-size piece — check before you order
Sterling Silver Snake RingAdjustableThe one ring here that does not need a size at all

How to judge quality: metal, setting and the green-finger question

Three things tell you most of what you need to know. The metal: sterling silver is stamped 925 and is 92.5% silver with roughly 7.5% copper; stainless steel does not tarnish and is the most forgiving choice for daily wear; gold vermeil is a thick gold layer over sterling, which is a real material rather than flash plating over base metal. The setting: look at how the stone is held — prongs and bezels are mechanical and last, glue-only settings do not. The stone: natural stones vary. Color banding, inclusions and small differences between two pieces of the same design are evidence the material is real, not evidence of a defect. The green-finger question comes up constantly and the answer is undramatic: it is the copper in sterling reacting with moisture on your skin, it is harmless, it washes off, and keeping the ring dry all but eliminates it.

Care: water, lotion, tarnish and storage

The rule that saves the most jewelry is simple: on last, off first. Put rings and earrings on after lotion, perfume, sunscreen and hairspray, and take them off before washing up, swimming, showering or cleaning. Stone pieces need the extra caution — several popular crystals should not be soaked at all, and repeated water contact loosens settings even when the stone itself survives. For tarnished sterling, a dry polishing cloth is enough for light film; for anything with a stone or enamel in it, keep abrasive dips and ultrasonic cleaners away entirely. Store each piece separately in a closed pouch or a lined box: air, humidity and rubbing against other metal are what dull a piece over a year, not wearing it.

Who this collection is for

If you are buying your first piece and do not know a size, start with an ear cuff or the adjustable snake ring — neither can be the wrong size. If you want a stone you will actually wear every day, the black tourmaline band is the workhorse of this collection. And if you are buying a piece to mark something — a decision, a year, a change — that is what the statement rings are for, and they are priced accordingly. For necklaces, malas and bracelets, see the full spiritual jewelry collection, or browse loose loose tumbled and pocket stones if you would rather work with the material directly.

From the Desire Diaries

Read more on crystals and stones in the magazine

Frequently asked questions

Do ear cuffs need a piercing?

No. An ear cuff slides onto the outer rim of the cartilage and is held there by the shape of the metal, not by a hole in your ear. Place it on the thinnest part of the rim, slide it to where you want it, then close it gently until it feels secure without pinching. It should hold for hours; if it slips, squeeze it a fraction tighter, and if it aches, open it slightly — a cuff that hurts is too tight, not too loose.

How do I find my ring size at home, and what if I am between two sizes?

Wrap a strip of paper or a piece of non-stretchy string around the base of the finger, mark where it overlaps, and measure that length in millimeters against a US ring size chart — checking that the loop still slides over your knuckle. If you already own a ring that fits that finger, the easier route is to lay it flat and measure the inside edge to inside edge in millimeters. Measure warm and late in the day, when fingers are at their largest, and measure twice on different days.

If you land between two sizes, take the larger one — especially for the wide statement bands here, because a broad band sits on more of your finger and always feels tighter than a slim one at the same nominal size. Fingers swell in heat and shrink in cold, so a ring that is snug in a warm room is very hard to remove after a hot day. If you would rather not guess at all, the adjustable sterling snake ring avoids the question entirely.

Are the statement rings adjustable?

No. The Square Goliath rings are solid sculptural bands made in fixed US sizes 5 to 9, and they are not designed to be bent open or squeezed closed — doing so would stress the setting around the glass or quartz. Only the sterling snake ring in this collection is adjustable.

Will sterling silver turn my finger green?

Sometimes, and it is harmless. Sterling is 92.5% silver alloyed with about 7.5% copper, and it is the copper that can react with sweat, lotion or humidity and leave a green mark on skin. It washes off. Keeping the ring dry, taking it off before hand cream, swimming or cleaning products, and storing it in a closed pouch all reduce it. Tarnish is a separate thing: a piece can go dark in a drawer without ever marking your skin.

Which stone should I choose?

Choose by what you want the piece to remind you of, not by what claims the most. In this collection moonstone is traditionally linked with intuition and cycles, black tourmaline with grounding and boundaries, labradorite with protection during change, amethyst with calm and clarity, and the seven-stone chakra bar with alignment across the whole system. These are traditional associations, not medical or psychological claims.

Can I wear a crystal ring in the shower?

Better not. Water and soap loosen adhesives and settings over time, and several popular stones do not tolerate soaking at all — the ones that scratch easily or contain water-soluble minerals degrade with repeated contact. Take stone jewelry off before showering, swimming and washing up, and put it on last after lotion, perfume and hairspray.