I’m a huge fan of Cartier (see all my other Cartier reviews here), so I never really thought to try a ring in the store before purchasing it secondhand. I never met a Cartier piece I didn’t like. Well as they say, there’s a first for everything! And sadly this small Juste Un Clou ring with diamonds is the first Cartier item I don’t like.
First off, this is not a very comfortable ring to wear. I like rings that don’t feel like anything, like I forget that I’m even wearing them. That’s why the Cartier Trinity Ring is a favorite—it’s so comfy! But sadly this Juste Un Clou ring is just the opposite. Whenever I’m wearing it, I can feel the ring. Part of it is because the round nail head digs into the finger a bit, and that’s even when the ring fits a bit loosely (see the pic below where I’d only been wearing it for a couple of hours). If the ring was any bigger it’d fall off the knuckle. And on top of that the diamonds on the nail head go all the way around so now the diamonds are digging into the skin. I mean it’s not super rough but still it’s not smooth. I think a better design would have been to flatten out the nail head a bit so that it doesn’t become a pressure point on the finger. Plus is there a reason the diamonds need to go all the way around to where you can’t see?
I also wondered if the nail tip would snag things since it is a pointy end sticking out. This was one of the main reasons I didn’t go for this ring when my daughter was young—I didn’t want to accidentally scratch her with this ring. Though that doesn’t happen, the pointy end does snag loose threads and some sweaters.
So IMO this is a ring to wear only on special occasions. You put it on after you’ve changed into your going-out clothes or sweaters. But I’m the kind of gal that never takes off her jewelry. I sleep, shower, and change clothes, etc all with my jewelry on. It’s not a finishing piece for when I’m ready to head out. (That’s also why I don’t really go for the Van Cleef Alhambra items—I know some people shower and sleep in them but that wears down the stones faster). Anyway as pretty as this ring is, it’s just not for me so I consigned it with the RealReal.