For years I’ve heard the question among skull ring collectors – Who made Keith Richards skull ring?

From what I can tell, the origin of the guitar-players-in-skull-rings thing is Keith. Eric Clapton wears one, Billy Gibbons wears one, Zakk Wylde wears one, James Hetfield wears one. Johnny Depp wears one.

But Keith’s is the original.

Who made it is the easy part. David Courts and Bill Hackett. The hard part though, has been how do I get one like it? For years people have attempted to copy Keith’s ring (or just put jewelry up on eBay saying it was a ‘Keith Richards ring’ without any attempt to make it look authentic).

Finally, David and Bill said – look, we’re getting jacked with this, why don’t we make our own version. After long talks with Keith, they came to agreement.

David and Bill works long and hard to get a version of the ring they could do commercially (since Keith’s was made one-of-a-kind). And shortly, it will become publicly available (any day now as I understand, as soon as final business details get worked out).

But heres the important part; I just heard from David (who’s a lovely human being) that mine shipped last monday. And I can’t be more stoked about it. I’m expecting to get it somewhere around the end of the week. And I’m just vibrating with excitement about it.

[EDIT]

I just got my ring. While David asked me not to share pictures yet, until the new site is up and the ring is shipping (soon, he says, but isn’t giving a hard date), I can say that it’s stunning. It fits like it’s made for me.

It’s no identical to Keith’s own ring (as it should be, since Keith’s was a hand made one-of-a-kind), but it’s teh same in look, feel and spirit. It comes in a bead blasted ‘shadow’ finish (I don’t know if they’ll also offer it in a bright-polished finish), which will gradually grow shiny with daily wear.

It’s a big ring; as big as my Deadringers ‘classic’. Only my Ruby Crush ring is bigger. And it’s heavy; a solid chunk of silver, not hollowed out For all that though, it fits so comfortably I didn’t notice the mass ’til I’d taken it off.

It’s a stunning piece.

My skull ring collection, so far.

Left to right, that’s:

Deadringers Yorrick, Tony Creed Riffman, srs slvr ‘eric clapton’, Ruby Crush full-jaw, Deadringers classic, Ruby Crush jawless, Dave’s Custom Skulls jawless.

Click for a full-size view.

The Dave’s Custom, above, is the last ring available after Dave’s death. I’m glad to have it, it’s one of my most wearable rings. The ‘clapton’ ring is by a vendor I suggest never ordering from (I won’t even list their name to avoid google pointing them out); they’re known to rip people off.

Missing is my Sinners Inc. spade (it didn’t work, composition wise) but I’ll post another pic, later, that features it.

I tell ya, it just makes me need more, seeing ’em like this. Damn list keeps growing, where my budget doesn’t.

(thanks for the pick, B. Love it!)

To quote a recent post on ‘i can haz cheeseburger’, Want Want Want Want Want.

I just found this ring via a link form some mySpace page, and it’s just fabulous – click the image to see more photos and more info (and click on the ‘Click to enlarge’ link, you really need to see the side and back views to get how bitchin’ this thing is).

It’s a brilliant rendering of a mexican calaveras de azúcar (sugar skull).

I’m a huge fan of mexican Dia De Los Muertos iconography (like Posada), and mexican folk art in general; I won several pieces by the Linares family, and my house is full of mexican skulls and skeletons. So this is a cross-over of two of my favorite aesthetics; teh silver skull ring with the calavera.

Have That as my daughter used to say when she saw something she wanted right now.

The jeweler, House of Wittelsbach, have a number of other great pieces. But it’s the sugar skull I gotta have.

After a long wait and a lot of requests from customers, here’s a first look (in real life anyway) at the Deadringer jawless skull.

I’ll take a better pic later, this is with phone-cam and none-too-stead mitts. Even so, the ring is a thing ‘o beauty, considerably smaller than the Classic, yet with a more primal appearance.

I think it’s fabulous.

Mark, Steven, thank you. As usual, you guys are too kind.

The latest from DeadRinger – and yes, I have one on it’s way to me, any day now they tell me.

“Yorick“, Steve calls it, but you could just as well have called it the caveman. It has all of Steve R Gillespie’s attention to detail and precision, all of his amazing artistry, yet it’s absolutely primal, from the heavy brow to the crooked teeth.

It’s fuckin’ gorgeous. And I can’t wait to get mine.

Larger versions of the above images are available on DeadRinger’s site.

My pal Mark at Deadringers sent me pictures of some new work.

I can’t post all of ’em yet, not ’til the new stuff’s officially released; but I can show off this glorious thing (click for a larger view).

This is a ring they made (custom) for some Disney muckity-muck to wear at the Pirates III premier; I can only imagine they got a huge stack of orders from press and other mouseketeers.

I have – in case you don’t know – quite a thing for silver jewelry, and skull rings in particular. But I swear, every time Stephen comes up with something new, it always amazes me. He is an absolutely brilliant artist.

I can’t wait to see – and show off – his newest piece. Expect that shortly.

My buddy and co-worker Carlos from Sinners Inc just laid a new ring on me. Carlos rocks.

Here’s a quick snap from photobooth; I’ll do a better one later.