I love Abalone jewelery. My great aunt gave me a conch shell ring when I was really young and I'm afraid to wear it because it's so old. I found Abalone and it was the closest thing I could find that reminded me of her ring. The band is strong and durable, but learned the Abalone is pretty fragile. I've broken a couple of pieces out of the band, but I work in a rugged environment with metal parts so it was partly my fault. The only thing I would recommend to make the ring better is a sealer finish in the band to keep the shell from breaking out. Overall, I'm still very happy with it and love it! People ask me about it all the time and I love talking about it.