Upon return from our engagement trip the ring was top priority for me. Partly because we were soon headed back to Michigan for Alexa and Kevin’s wedding, but mostly because it’s a super fun thing to choose a beautiful ring. David had a bit of a plan already: he liked Jeff Sahadi jewelers right on Piedmont avenue since that’s where he’d purchased the proposal ring and where he was storing my grandma’s diamond that my mom had given him at Christmas. They were up for designing anything we wanted and even though that was his idea for starters, he was happy to explore other options as I wished. I certainly appreciate having a clear plan and sticking to it, but I did want to look around a bit and be sure that we were working with the ideal people for the project. We read a couple negative reviews online, but came to realize that all that really told us was that there were rare cases of a mismatch of personality between staff and customers. But that whole process took a couple days to work through. Ultimately, our experience was wonderful and we are perfectly happy with my ring. But I think the evaluation process was still good just for peace of mind’s sake.
Given that David proposed in a abbey ruin, and his love of cathedral architecture had led him to that special spot years before, I suggested that we take that overall design scheme on as a theme for our celebration. It made good sense to us both to pick certain elements as anchors throughout our process. I was happy to be included in something special to David and he was happy to include me. Knowing that my client Kathy was a ring enthusiast my first action was to check in with her for tips. She recommended Pave on College so I stopped in to see their offerings. At this point I was still getting used to being a bride to be, mostly feeling awkward about all the attention with which I was being routinely showered. The gals there were very sweet and put me at ease with the whole idea of purchasing a ring far fancier than I had ever seriously considering wearing. The prices of the rings brought me back to my recurring theory that somehow I am a princess misplaced in a middle class family on the wrong side of the Atlantic in this lifetime. Pretty much every ring I liked had a price tag of around $10,000, definitely too much money and too much bling. I liked the overall styles, but was ultimately looking for something much simpler and understated. I landed on one ring that was literally covered in diamonds with a great big one in the middle surrounded by 12 little ones in a fashion reminiscent of a rose window. Remembering the awe I felt in gazing up at the huge rose windows in Notre Dame cathedral, I knew that this was the setting for me. Now, what about all those diamonds???
I headed back to the apartment a bit riled up on account of being overwhelmed with diamonds, money, and in the midst of all that finding something that I really loved and knew would always carry special meaning for me. Breaking my news to David turned out to be pretty fun on account of all three of his married co-workers being present and eager to witness the negotiations with the particular brand of pleasure that initiates feels watching others go through a potentially inharmonious rite of passion: navigating the desires of the bride to be vis a vis the future husband’s budget. We concluded that we could take the element that I like to Jeff Sahadi and make it work for us within the constraints of our budget and lifestyle.
And that’s what we did. We showed him a picture of the rose window ring, told him what we liked and what we didn’t need. We opted for molding the bands in the style of gothic cathedral columns with a rose window setting for my grandma’s diamond and 8 little diamonds surrounding it (my grandma’s diamond is a bit smaller than the one in the ring that I saw). Jeff assured me that the ring would be low set for good comfort and function, a definite must for my active days. The center stone is bezel set which we liked for design, function, and security factors. Not having a particular preference for the metal used and being assured that the stone was well secured with the setting, I opted for white gold instead of the more expensive platinum. I like my choice because in some lights I can detect the contrast between the metal and the stones which I find pretty. We did have to clarify our design a bit when it came to the columns, as the wax mold was made with Greek style columns instead of Gothic ones. Ultimately we were pleased that we insisted on our preference since it is true to our original design concept. Upon receiving the finished product, there were a couple elements that brought us surprise: that the center bezel wasn’t embellished with the same metal work as the surrounding petals and that the sides are fairly plain. The jeweler’s were happy to accommodate whatever changes we liked but we opted to start with the ring as was and consider modifications at a later time. Jennifer, who assisted Jeff in consulting us, suggested that the center stone was made more prominent by the bezel set being plain as opposed to having the intricate metal work that we had both expected. Ultimately we’ve chosen to trust her expertise and have kept the ring as we first received it. An added bonus: the cost totaled $1300 less than David’s maximum budgeted price. We ended up with just what we wanted without feeling fleeced in the least!
My ring is unique to us, a design that originates in personal and shared experiences close to our hearts. Aside from being rich with symbolism, we both enjoy gazing at it. As the richness of our life together deepens, I imagine that my ring will grow even more beautiful in my eyes. And that is ultimately what is most important.
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