It was such a delight to work with S on her custom engagement ring. We had had some fun conversations about gemstones and creativity over Instagram DM, and she had previously snagged a special pair of Collage Earrings, so it was an honor when she got in touch to design a ring to celebrate her love.
During our initial consultation, S shared a sketch that her partner had made; he’d envisioned a ring representing an electron circling a nucleus, evoking the orbit of celestial bodies and the idea that two things vastly different in scale can be deeply connected. It’s so helpful when clients send a visual aid during the process - we also looked at some of her favorite jewelry, and talked about her personal style. This was a very special idea, and we were excited about the challenge of bringing their dream to life using Octave’s vision and visual language.
Every custom project starts with a sketch. We offered three interpretations of the idea: a futuristic, voluminous option, a sleek art nouveau-inspired style, and a third option reminiscent of ancient Roman and Etruscan rings. S chose number 2. She enjoyed the negative space, the crisp knife-edge details echoing the triangle-shaped side stone, and the design’s resemblance (unplanned!) to one of her and her partner’s favorite El Lissitsky paintings.
A gem aficionado herself, S was looking for an unusual pairing of stones, a cabochon center stone with vivid color to offset an orbiting stone with a lot of sparkle. I sourced multiple ethically-sourced sapphires for S to choose from, and she connected with an electric-hued Australian Sapphire. Together we decided we’d transform it into a buff-top, a specialty cut that is a hybrid of cabochon above and faceted below. That way, she got the smooth cabochon she wanted with heaps of sparkle and visual interest within the stone. For the side stone we chose an understated but sparkly grey spinel in a sharp triangle cut.
The ring, and its perfectly-matched wedding band, were hand-carved from wax and cast in bright 14k yellow gold.
This was such a fun engagement ring project! It's immensely satisfying to make heirloom-quality jewelry that is also a reflection of the wearer’s unique style.
Ready to design your own custom piece? Get in touch for a consultation!