Custom Photo and Portrait Pendants: Methods, Photos and Frames

"Photo pendant" covers four different techniques. Each one looks and ages differently, so pick the method before you pick the frame.

Printed and enamel images give a true likeness in color. Engraving and sculpture trade color for permanence and a more jewelry-like finish.

Our custom process is the same for every piece: you bring the idea, we come back with the design and the exact price before anything is made, and then the piece is made and delivered with insured shipping or picked up at the Miami showroom.

For a portrait piece, send the photo, the frame idea and the size you have in mind. Which portrait method fits your design is settled at the consultation, case by case, because the right answer depends on the photo, the frame and how you will wear it. Start on the custom page.

A pendant shrinks a face to the size of a coin. Small problems in the photo become big problems at that scale.

• Sharp focus on the eyes. If the eyes are soft in the original, they will be soft in gold.
• Front-facing or a slight turn. Full profile shots lose the likeness at small sizes.
• Even light. Harsh shadows across the face turn into dark patches, especially in engraving.
• One face per frame for frames under about 25 mm. Two faces need a bigger frame or two frames.
• The original file. Send the full-resolution photo, not a screenshot of a social media post. Social apps compress images heavily.
• No filters or heavy edits. Beauty filters and strong color grading print badly.

An old printed photo works too. Scan it flat at high resolution, or photograph it straight on in daylight without glare.

The window inside the frame is always smaller than the frame. A 30 mm pendant with a thick iced border might leave a 20 mm window for the face. Ask for the window size on the render, not just the outside size.

If you want a photo close to your heart without a custom build, a locket holds a printed picture inside and keeps it covered. Our lockets are 10K gold and start from $365:

• Classic Oval Locket, about 19 by 14 mm, from $365
• Classic Heart Locket, about 17.5 by 15 mm, from $380
• Oval Inlay Locket, about 23.5 by 16.5 mm, from $480
• Heart Tri-color Locket, about 18.2 by 18.8 mm, from $485

A closed locket protects the photo from sun and scratches, which is why printed pictures last so long inside one.

For a portrait piece, the render answers two questions: how the face is cropped in the window, and how the frame looks around it. Approve the crop carefully. Hair, ears and chin should sit where you expect, and nothing important should hide under the frame's inner edge. For sculpted portraits, ask to see the relief from the side to judge depth. See what a 3D render shows.

The frame is mostly metal, so karat moves the price on larger pieces. 10K gold is 41.7 percent pure and the hardest of the three common choices, good for a frame that will knock against things. 14K (58.3 percent) gives a warmer color. 18K (75 percent) is the richest and softest.

Yellow gold warms up color photos and sepia tones. White gold flatters black-and-white images and makes a diamond border look brighter. For engraved portraits, the gold color is the image, so yellow and rose give a warmer face and white gives a cooler, silver-like look.

Most iced photo pendants put the stones on the frame, not over the picture. A single row of pavé around the window is the classic look; wider pieces add a second row, a name banner or a halo of larger stones.

Lab-grown diamonds let you go bigger on the border for the money. Natural diamonds suit an heirloom piece. Both are real diamonds; the FTC requires lab-grown stones to be disclosed as laboratory-grown, so check the origin on your quote. For a comparison, read lab vs natural diamonds.

Portrait pieces have one more step than most custom work: preparing the image. Retouching, cropping and test prints or test engravings add time, and an enamel or porcelain image has its own firing step. Sculpted portraits take the longest to model. Iced frames add stone setting. The timing for your piece comes with the quote.

Portrait pendants have a front that needs to face out. A pendant that flips on the chain hides the photo, so the bail and chain matter more than usual. A flat, smooth chain such as a box or Franco link lets the pendant settle face forward. A twisting chain like a rope can turn a light pendant around.

Weight matters too. A large iced portrait frame on a 1 mm chain will pull the chain into a V and wear the bail. As a rule, a 30 mm frame wants at least a 2 to 3 mm chain, and anything 50 mm or larger belongs on a heavy link. Ready options in our catalog include the Franco Chain 2mm from $1,655 and the Miami Cuban Chain 5mm from $4,260, both in 10K gold.

• The original photo file, plus a note on who should be in the frame if it is a group shot.
• Your preferred method, or "not sure" so the options can be compared for your photo.
• Frame shape (round, oval, heart, shield, custom) and rough size in millimeters.
• Gold color and karat, and whether the frame is plain or iced.
• Any name, date or short phrase, and whether it goes on the front or the back.
• The chain you will wear it on, so the bail is sized to fit.

The more of this you send up front, the closer the first render will be.

1. Starting from a tiny or compressed photo. A face cropped out of a group shot often has too few pixels left to print or engrave cleanly.
2. A frame too small for the photo. Two people squeezed into a 20 mm window become two blurs.
3. Ignoring the inner window. A thick iced border can eat a third of the visible picture.
4. Choosing color print for rough wear. If the pendant will bounce against a heavy chain all day, a covered image or engraving holds up better.
5. Skipping the crop check on the render. Once it is sealed or engraved, the crop is final.

Keep printed portraits out of long, direct sun when you are not wearing them, and store the pendant in a soft pouch so the cover does not get scratched. Do not soak a printed or enamel photo pendant; wipe the gold with a damp soft cloth and dry it. Engraved and sculpted portraits can be cleaned like any gold piece with warm soapy water and a soft brush. Take any photo pendant off before swimming, the gym or cleaning with chemicals.

1. Method. A printed image in a simple frame is the lightest build; a sculpted portrait needs the most design work.
2. Frame size and karat. More frame means more gold.
3. Stones. Carat weight and origin, if the frame is iced.
4. Extras. Names, dates, a second window, a back engraving.

The full breakdown of each line is in our custom pendant cost guide. If the piece honors someone who has passed, our memorial pendants page covers names, dates and symbols.