« July 2010 | Main | September 2010 »
Today's ring belongs to a bride married in September of 2007. We love the vintage setting of this ring, the pave accents, and the delicate detailing on the trapezoid side stones. And, the wedding band compliments the ring so perfectly! Not to mention, we love the fact that her husband picked this out all on his own...bravo!
Cut: Radiant cut center stone with faceted trapezoid cut sides
Setting: Vintage
Jeweler: Steiners Jewelry
Today's rings belong to a San Francisco couple married this past May. The bride's ring with the modified halo and double diamond studded band is a jaw dropper. We have serious ring envy and it's ridiculous how sparkly and elegant it is. The groom's band is an exquisite piece of jewelry as well. Such great taste all around! Carat: 3 carat center stone, .1 carat sidestones
Cut: Round Brilliant
Jeweler: Sonny Sheik at SP Diamonds, San Francisco, CA (415) 956-7125
An Engagement Story: We had talked about getting married but I wasn't expecting the ring for at least another year. My friend had recently gotten engaged so we were out looking for her engagement ring because she wanted to pick her own ring. We went to Shreve Company and I saw this beautiful ring in the case! It was a modified halo setting in white gold. I fell in love instantly because it was so huge and sparkly and didn't show in metal in the setting. I sent the pic to my boyfriend with the message ...'isn't this the most beautiful thing you have ever seen!'
That was in December. After a couple months I figured it wasn't happening in the near future. My husband's close friend is a diamond broker and he had wanted to go see the Cartier Exhibit that was in San Francisco. We had planned to go with him and his brother but at the last minute they had to cancel for work reasons, but on my husband's suggestion, we went anyway. After seeing all the amazing jewelry including Grace Kelly's engagement ring and Elizabeth Taylor's sapphire and diamond collection we toured the rest of the Legion of Honor. We sat down in the main room and that is when he asked me to marry him! I started crying as soon as he took the box out of this pocket and then almost peed when I saw what was inside... I still think it is the most beautiful wedding ring I have ever seen :)"
We don't see rubies enough when we are out and about and don't understand why. They are so beautiful with their bold an fiery color. And at the end of the day, you can never go wrong with rubies - and diamonds and platinum, of course.
Last June we featured a beautiful princess cut engagement ring, and today we have photos of the rings on the wedding day. We are very inspired by the creativity of this bride. Instead of having her ring bearer carry the rings on the traditional pillow, she decided on a DIY project. She made a fire truck from vintage toys, painted it, and gave it to her ring bearer as a keepsake. And, after selling a few trucks by word of mouth from the wedding, she opened an Etsy shop. Such a precious idea..and definitely one of the most unique ideas we've seen!
Photos by Richmond Photographics
We are re-featuring today's ring because not only did we realize that this is an antique miner cut diamond, but we also received the fascinating back story to this ring. How could we not?
The stone was given to this bride's great grandfather by the Czar of Russia while he was a guest at his home. The stone, which is over 100 years old, was reset into this fantastic octagonal halo setting by Schwanke-Kasten. Old miner cut diamonds are extremely rare today as they were the predecessor to the modern round brilliant cut diamonds. Just gorgeous!
Cut: Miner
Setting: Octagonal halo with pave band
Jeweler: Schwanke-Kasten
Miner cut diamonds, also known as the Old Mine cut date back to the 1830's and got their name because the diamonds were taken from old Indian mines. These diamonds maintained their popularity till the end of the century, and today, you can only find them in antique stores as diamonds are no longer cut with the Miner Cut facet designs. This is the early form of the modern round brilliant cut (because of it's facets), but more resembles the cushion cut because of its square shape.
Image source: http://hendersonvillejewelers.com/store/images/Hville%20Pics%20034_edited.jpg
Here's a beautiful piece to end your week...a stunning pearl ring surrounded by a halo of small square cut diamonds. So unique, so classic, so fabulous.
We don't get to see cocktail rings from Tiffany's very often, so we are loving this classic yet bold yellow emerald cut citrine ring set in sterling silver. Part of the Tiffany's Sparklers collection, the ring comes in amethyst, quartz and praseolite, all of which are simply gorgeous.
Amidst all the beauty of diamonds and jewels, there is a dark side that many of us fail to see. Perhaps this piece of news will help boost blood diamond awareness and get jewelry consumers to start asking questions! A global mining trading network (Rapaport) has stated that they would expel any member who knowingly trades gems with two Zimbabwe mines with extremely dangerous labor conditions. So before you buy, do your homework and ask questions! Find the full article on Yahoo! Finance News here.
Source: http://www.zimtelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/diamonds3.jpg
Zimbabwe's response? The day after the global ban, they stated that they would continue to sell their diamonds in Asia, claiming that the Rapaport Diamond Trading Network is a "lunatic organisation". "Click here for the story.
We'll admit it - yesterday's post on Cathedral rings was 100% inspired by today's submission. And how could you blame us! This round brilliant stone set in an elegant 4 prong cathedral setting is beautiful, as is the story behind it. It goes to show that great taste never goes out of style...
Cut: Round brilliant
Carats: 1.5
Setting: platinum solitaire 4-prong cathedral
Jeweler: Harry Beckman, www.harrybeckmaninc.com, Boston, MA
Wedding band: platinum 1.7 ctw channel-set eternity band
A Jewelry Story: My husband and I went looking at rings before we got engaged, and I knew that I wanted a solitaire engagement ring. With the help of my wonderful jeweler, my husband chose the beautifully unique 4-prong cathedral setting. What I didn't know is that my mother's engagement ring is also cathedral setting - it's hidden by a ring my father gave to her that makes it look like her engagement ring has sidestones. It's special knowing that my mom and I have the same setting 30 years apart, and funny that it wasn't at all planned!
