Bespoke Engagement Ring: The Jaipur Jewel
Making a Bespoke Platinum Engagement Ring for a Sentimental Gemstone from India
Engagement Ring Design
The blue topaz in this pendant travelled all the way from India, brought home as a gift many years ago. It's a treasured memento but it wasn't getting much wear. The silver mount had tarnished and it was, generally, feeling pretty unloved.
When I met her, T was looking to commission a new engagement ring to sit beside her antique platinum wedding and eternity rings. It seemed like the perfect time to give the little jewel from Jaipur a new lease of life.
T adores Art Deco design, particularly sunburst patterns, and wears a gorgeous set of inherited Art Deco-era rings as her wedding and eternity ring. She wanted her new ring to look like part of this set but to also have a little bit of drama and impact.
We looked at a lot of Art Deco styles for inspiration and eventually decided to keep the ring design neat and slim, with a raised sunburst forming the sides of the new stone setting.
It was really important to T to source the materials for the ring with as much historical accuracy as possible. Whilst I wasn't able to find any diamonds for her that were guaranteed to be from the 1920's, I did collaborate with the team at Gemmology Rocks, who sourced a beautiful pair of matching baguette stones for us. They're post-consumer diamonds, so they're guaranteed to have been taken from existing jewellery, lessening their environmental impact and adding even more recycled elements to the project.
T's current vintage rings have two engraved faces featuring a simple leaf pattern. We opted to include these on the new engagement ring as an extra connection to her antique rings.
Making the Platinum, Topaz & Diamond Ring
I began work on the ring by breaking up the existing pendant, carefully extracting and then cleaning all the stones. Once I could measure the topaz accurately, the setting and tiny sunburst detail were designed in CAD software before being 3D printed and cast into platinum.
The separate parts of the setting arrived in the workshop; I delicately cleaned them up, preserving the tiny, geometric details on the sides of the setting. I then made a simple, flat platinum band and cut a section of it away to leave room for the topaz setting.
After some careful soldering I polished the ring, ready for one of my hand engravers to work her magic on the sides of the band.
Art Deco Inspired Topaz, Diamond & Platinum Ring
The finished ring is a beautiful blend of modern technology and traditional hand skills. Using T's sentimental topaz, two repurposed diamonds and beautiful grey platinum, we've made a new ring with a very vintage, Art Deco feel.
If you're inspired by T's bespoke engagement ring and would like to have a chat about designing your own piece, please get in touch to start the conversation
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