Segments, anodised

About this ring

Segments, anodised, in detail

Here the balance tips the other way. The band is divided into wide anodised segments, separated by narrow bars of natural metal, so colour covers most of the surface and bright zirconium appears only as the frame. On the hand it reads first as a coloured ring and then as one with rhythm: blocks of dark blue or bronze or pink, punctuated at regular intervals. The boldest of the coloured designs, it is also the one where the shifting colour, made by light within the oxide film, has the most room to show.

How it wears

With so much of the face anodised, this is the ring where the colour meets the world most directly. Abrasion from grit, stone or rough materials can change or remove the colour, so heavy manual work is a time for the ring to come off; an ordinary day at a desk or in a kitchen asks far less of it. Dullness from residue cleans away, worn oxide is a separate thing, and the segments are cleaned, never buffed. The metal itself is hypoallergenic and hard.

Choosing yours

Because colour does nearly all the talking, the colourway matters more here than on any other coloured ring. Dark blue and purply blue make a deep, saturated band; bronze is the warmest and the closest to a traditional metal; pink and yellow are frankly bright. Width scales the segments: at 4 or 5mm they are short tiles of colour, at 8 to 10mm broad panels. It suits someone who wants colour to be the point of the ring rather than an accent, and two in different colours make a vivid pair.

Width by width

Weights are estimates for a plain band of the same width in anodised zirconium at UK size N with a 1.6mm wall, from the model in our ring weight calculator. A pattern cut into the surface removes a little metal, so the finished ring is slightly lighter. The price steps up at the widths that take more metal to make.

How it compares with the rings nearest it

There are 13 anodised zirconium bands in the range, from £269 to £365. All about anodised zirconium.

The metal, in brief

Zirconium grows its own oxide layer under electrical current, and the thickness of that layer decides the colour. Nothing is painted, plated or dyed. The colour is the surface of the metal itself, produced by light interfering with a film a few hundred nanometres thick, which is why it shifts slightly as you turn your hand.

Surface hardness Mohs 8.5, density 6.5 g/cm³, and hypoallergenic, so it is a sound choice for skin that reacts to nickel. It is not a precious metal, so it carries no hallmark.

Compared side by side: Anodised zirconium or black zirconium, Anodised zirconium or titanium, Anodised zirconium or sterling silver. Or read the full anodised zirconium guide.