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Ring size is the one thing I cannot judge for you. Every ring here is solid 925 sterling silver and made to order, so it is cut and finished to the size you pick at checkout. This page shows how to find that number at home with a ruler and a strip of paper, and how the EU numbers I list relate to US sizes.

What the number actually means

Rings in this shop are listed in EU sizes from 50 to 74. That number is the inside circumference of the band in millimetres. It is the distance all the way around the inside of the ring, not the distance across it. A size 58 ring has an inside circumference of 58 mm, which works out to an inside diameter of roughly 18.5 mm.

The two are easy to convert. Diameter multiplied by 3.14 gives circumference. Circumference divided by 3.14 gives diameter. The number you need when ordering is the circumference.

Method 1: measure a ring you already wear

This is the most reliable method, as long as the ring you measure genuinely fits the finger you want the new piece on.

  1. Take a ring that fits that finger properly.
  2. Lay it flat and measure the inside diameter in millimetres, from the inner edge of the band straight across to the opposite inner edge.
  3. Multiply that number by 3.14.
  4. The result is your EU size. Example: 18.5 mm across, multiplied by 3.14, is 58.1, so EU 58.

Measure the inside of the band, not the outside, and use a ruler with clear millimetre marks. One millimetre of error on the diameter shifts the circumference by more than three sizes, so read it twice.

Method 2: the paper strip

Use this when there is no ring to copy.

  1. Cut a strip of paper about 5 mm wide and 100 mm long. Paper is better than string, which stretches and will give you a size too small.
  2. Wrap it around the base of the finger, snug but not tight.
  3. Mark the point where the strip overlaps itself.
  4. Lay the strip flat and measure from the end to the mark, in millimetres.
  5. That length is the circumference, so it is your EU size directly. Nothing to multiply.

Paper strip wrapped around the base of a finger and marked where it overlaps, to measure ring circumference in millimetres

Check that the loop can still slide off over the knuckle without forcing. If the knuckle is noticeably wider than the base of the finger, measure both, then choose a number between the two readings, sitting closer to the knuckle measurement. A ring that will not pass the knuckle is useless, and one that spins freely gets lost.

Measure at a normal temperature

Fingers are not a fixed size. They swell in heat and toward the end of the day, and they shrink in the cold. Measure with cold hands first thing in the morning and you will order a ring that is too tight by the evening. Measure straight after a hot shower or exercise and you will order one that slips off.

Measure when your hands are at a normal, comfortable temperature, neither cold nor hot. If you can, measure on two separate days and compare the two readings before you decide.

A wide band sits tighter than a narrow one

Two rings carrying the same nominal size do not feel the same if one is a 3 mm band and the other is 10 mm. A wide band covers more of the finger and has to travel over the knuckle as one rigid block, so at the same size it feels tighter and is harder to get on. Plenty of what I make is heavy and wide.

The practical rule: if your measurement falls between two sizes, go up on a wide or heavy piece, and stay at the lower size on a thin one. One customer wrote on a wide statement ring that she had ordered half a size up because of the width of the band, which was the right call.

EU to US ring size conversion table

EU size is the inside circumference in millimetres. The diameter column is that circumference divided by 3.14. US sizes do not fall on whole millimetres, so the US column is rounded to the nearest quarter size and is approximate. Where your measurement sits between two rows, take the larger row on a wide band.

Ring size conversion, EU circumference 50 to 74 mm to approximate US size
EU size (inside circumference, mm) Inside diameter (mm) US size (approx.)
50 15.9 5 ¼
51 16.2 5 ¾
52 16.6 6
53 16.9 6 ½
54 17.2 6 ¾
55 17.5 7 ¼
56 17.8 7 ¾
57 18.1 8
58 18.5 8 ½
59 18.8 8 ¾
60 19.1 9 ¼
61 19.4 9 ½
62 19.7 10
63 20.1 10 ½
64 20.4 10 ¾
65 20.7 11 ¼
66 21.0 11 ½
67 21.3 12
68 21.6 12 ¼
69 22.0 12 ¾
70 22.3 13
71 22.6 13 ½
72 22.9 14
73 23.2 14 ¼
74 23.6 14 ¾

Common mistakes

  • Measuring the outside diameter of an existing ring instead of the inside. That adds the thickness of the band twice and gives a size that is far too large.
  • Using string or a tape measure that stretches. Both read short.
  • Pulling the paper strip tight. Snug is correct, tight is not.
  • Measuring one finger and ordering for the other hand. The dominant hand is usually slightly larger.
  • Assuming a US size from another brand transfers exactly. Convert from your own millimetre measurement instead.

If you are still not sure

Write to me before you order rather than after. Tell me which piece you are looking at and what you measured, and I will tell you what I would send. Everything is made to order, so the size is set when the piece is made, and getting it right at the start saves both of us the return. The contact page has the ways to reach the studio.

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