• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Wendy Brandes Jewelry Blog

Never Is the Next New Thing

  • HOME
  • SHOP
  • ABOUT
  • FAQ
  • CONTACT

Jewel of the Month: Lori’s Engagement Ring

July 18, 2012 by WendyB

I make custom engagement rings for all budgets and, as I’ve said before, I prefer the woman to be involved in the design. If the bride-to-be is not personally meeting with me because the man (or woman) who is proposing is trying to maintain some element of surprise, I want him (or her) to come in with pictures the ring’s intended recipient has torn out and/or specifics she has written down. Trust me on this. It’s much better for the lady to be thrilled with her ring than 100% surprised by the proposal but disappointed by her jewelry. Well, to be honest, I don’t mind if a few women are bummed out by their rings because I just so happen to specialize in engagement-ring redesigns. But I only enjoy redesigning rings that were purchased from other jewelers. If I’m doing the original ring, I want to get it right the first time!

My gorgeous graphic designer Lori Kadezabek — who is responsible for the look of my website and blog — told me a while ago (a) her fella, Brian “Roley” Riolo, had my contact information and (b) she dreamed of a non-traditional engagement ring. I thought she meant that she didn’t want a classic, prong-set, round diamond solitaire, so I threw out a couple of ideas about different gems, cuts and settings. Lori absorbed those, then got back to me and told me what she really wanted was an engagement-ring version of my Edburga poison ring.

My original Edburga poison ring, shown closed. Click for more information.

I can promise you that neither I nor Brian would have guessed that!

My Edburga poison ring, shown open.

Engagement rings experience a lot of wear and tear because many women never take them off (I always take off all my jewelry at home, and I never wear any to the gym, the pool or the beach). I told Lori I’d like to make adjustments to my original design to make a ring more suitable for constant use. Mechanical elements in jewelry are always delicate, so Lori’s ring wouldn’t open and close like my Edburga. I’d make the shank out of blackened 18K white gold instead of blackened sterling silver. And I wanted to swap out the original cabochon-cut rose-quartz stone — through which you can see a diamond — with a white sapphire. The Mohs’ scale of mineral hardness rates gems and other minerals from 1 to 10, with 10 being diamond, the hardest naturally occurring substance. Rose quartz is a respectable 7, but sapphire is 9, and white sapphire is often used for watch faces because it doesn’t scratch easily. To give the stone the pink hue of the rose quartz, I’d set it in 18K rose gold rather than the yellow gold of my original design.

When Brian emailed me this year and told me it was time, I placed an order for a custom-cut white sapphire and got to work, finishing up in time for Memorial Day weekend. That was perfect, because Brian had a beach proposal in mind. Lori and Brian first met briefly in the summer of 2005 on the beach in Manasquan, N.J.  A couple of months later, they ran into each other again at a mutual friend’s birthday party and had such a blast they became drinking buddies … then best friends … and then, within another couple of months, boyfriend and girlfriend.

After the weekend, Lori emailed me the whole story:

“We were at our family’s beach house and [Brian] tried to get me to take a walk to the beach with him a couple different nights — and I’m usually always down for a night walk on the beach but for some reason I just wasn’t this weekend. So Monday (Memorial Day), we spent the whole day on the beach and decided to call it a day around 4 PM to head to a local store to shop for some board shorts. On the drive down to the store I mentioned that I wanted to take a walk down by the bay later and that I love it down there. We shopped, ate, drank wine, and a few hours later, he asked if I wanted to go to the beach for the sunset. I was like, ‘Umm the sun doesn’t set on the beach — it sets on the bay’ and he said, ‘That’s perfect, didn’t you want to go down there anyway?’ Done and done.”

She continued:

“We were taking pictures, sitting on the bench just chilling and watching the sunset. After the sun set, we’re just chatting about whatever and I sit on his lap to give him a hug or whatever and he tells me he loves me and gives me a kiss. I turned around for a second and before I know it there is an (amazing) ring in front of me and he is asking me to marry him!!! I was shocked and kinda didn’t believe it was happening … I think there may have been a ‘Shut up, really? You finally love me?’ and I think maybe a ‘pinky promise?’ was thrown in there. It was perfect … just like my RING!!!!”

While I shed a few happy tears for Lori and Brian after re-reading that, you can look at some photos. Here’s Brian getting a kiss and looking all like, “SHE SAID YES!”

Ah, young love!

Here is a closeup of the the ring — July’s Jewel of the Month. The picture was taken by photographer John Muggenborg (also an engagement-ring customer of mine).

Lori’s ring, side view.

As you can see from the front view, the way the light passes through the white sapphire makes the perfectly round diamond underneath the sapphire look oval, creating a striking cat’s-eye effect.

Front view.

I got another email from Lori this month that said, “I cannot even tell you how many peeps are loving my ring! They think it’s the coolest thing ever, they’ve never seen anything like this before, and it’s so perfectly ‘me.'”

The ring on Lori.

I’m thrilled that Lori is thrilled. All engagement rings are special but this one probably takes the (wedding) cake because it’s so unique. I’m sure the November wedding will be equally special. Congratulations again, Brian and Lori!

Awwwww!

Oh, and for the rest of you, my original Edburga ring is available exclusively on my website. There’s only one left. Purchase it here!

You might also like
Love Valentine's Day? Hate It? I've Got Jewelry for You.
Jewel of the Month: Heather's Engagement Ring
Vote for My Rings (Because Safety First!)

Warning: Attempt to read property "slug" on null in /home/wendyb7/public_html/blog/wp-includes/taxonomy.php on line 4695

Filed Under: Broken English, Custom work, engagement rings, gorgeous clients, jewel of the month, my designs, poison rings

Previous Post: « Rising Star Award Speech, Better Late Than Never
Next Post: I Do Traditional Wedding Rings; Tracylee Does Nails »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. liz says

    July 18, 2012 at 6:08 am

    Great ring!!!!!!

  2. Patti @ NotDeadYet Style says

    July 18, 2012 at 7:32 am

    Wow, got to be one of the most beautiful rings, EVER! Happy wishes to the young couple, and congrats to you, Wendy for a breathtaking design (not in the Seinfeld baby way, either!) xoxox

    • WendyB says

      July 18, 2012 at 4:12 pm

      Ha ha! That was a great episode.

  3. Steph says

    July 18, 2012 at 7:52 am

    Oh just slay me right now, that Lori’s version of the ring is gorgeous.

  4. Lara says

    July 18, 2012 at 8:01 am

    I love that she went for something unique! It truly is something special! Traditional engagement jewelry always looks a bit out of place with the rest of the large jewelry we wear daily so I love everything about this!

    • WendyB says

      July 18, 2012 at 4:09 pm

      Good point about the other large jewelry!

  5. Megan says

    July 18, 2012 at 9:38 am

    Such a pretty, unique ring! I love it.

  6. stacy says

    July 18, 2012 at 9:39 am

    They look so happy!
    And what a cooool ring. The photos don’t even look real — the front view with the diamond floating — so incredible. Awesome job as always WendyB.

  7. sulky kitten says

    July 18, 2012 at 10:57 am

    Original and beautiful – just perfect. I love romantic stories.

  8. Kathy says

    July 18, 2012 at 11:59 am

    Holy crap! That is the most incredible ring I have ever seen!

  9. Kristin says

    July 18, 2012 at 12:53 pm

    Coolest engagement ring ever!

  10. brett says

    July 18, 2012 at 1:36 pm

    that is one cool ring
    love it
    brett

  11. Susan Partlan says

    July 18, 2012 at 1:47 pm

    There’s something so romantic about a custom engagement ring. Lori’s ring is fabulous, no wonder she’s receiving so many compliments.

  12. miss cavendish says

    July 18, 2012 at 1:58 pm

    I really, really like this.

  13. Kira Fashion (@KIRAFASHION) says

    July 18, 2012 at 4:00 pm

    I’ve never seen a ring like this… so unique and awesome…

    kisses and congratulations for the great job Wendy!

  14. Megan Mae says

    July 18, 2012 at 4:14 pm

    So beautiful! It really does have an almost unreal optical illusion effect to it. I think it’s so great that you get to work with people who are asking for what they really want, not cookie cutter rings.

    It must be awesome to work with people who are all happy and in love. Awww.

  15. alexys says

    July 18, 2012 at 4:44 pm

    the ring is so good.
    i have an opal- so i am all for alternative wedding rings.
    great post.
    xx
    fashionbater

  16. Lori says

    July 18, 2012 at 5:20 pm

    Ahhh Wendy!! Everything you do is so amazing, I am so very proud to wear this ring and brag about how great it is! 🙂 It is definitely unique that’s for sure… as am I, which is why it’s such a perfect fit! I thank my lucky stars that Roley (Brian) was also down with it. I wasn’t sure if he would actually go for something so non-tradish when it came to “go-time” but what a fantastic surprise!! Couldn’t be happier. Thanks you so much! I am so obsessed with the ring… and my man! <3 Lori

  17. Miss Janey says

    July 18, 2012 at 5:48 pm

    LOVE this, WendyB!

  18. Sarah says

    July 18, 2012 at 5:54 pm

    That ring is totally one of a kind and awesome! And the story to go along with it made checking it out that much more fun. (:

  19. That's Not My Age says

    July 18, 2012 at 5:57 pm

    That engagement ring is stunning – I love its organic feel, and Brian & Lori’s engagement photo is brilliant. Great story.

  20. Lynne DeVenny (@ExpertParalegal) says

    July 18, 2012 at 7:13 pm

    This is a good example of why we should speak up when asked what kind of ring we’d like to have, especially if it’s a ring that is worn every day. I’m so glad she received the proposal, the man, and the ring of her dreams.

    Once a year, I get a little royalty check, and this year I’m hoping it’s enough for a WendyB ring (no jewels in it o’ course) and a pair of Frye boots. It’s good for a woman to dream big 🙂

  21. Devon says

    July 18, 2012 at 8:49 pm

    This ring is gorgeous…and even prettier and cooler in person, if you can imagine that! It is so funky and beautiful at the same time…just like the girl it belongs to! I couldn’t stop squealing with excitement when I saw the ring in person, and I couldn’t stop the happy tears for my dear friend when I just read your blog! Ummm, I might sneak it off of Lori’s ring finger every time I see her to try it on mine… hehehe 🙂 Great job Wendy!

  22. Marti says

    July 20, 2012 at 12:08 pm

    Stunning!! So beautiful, I love the “cat eye” affect
    Marti

  23. Christine says

    July 21, 2012 at 9:31 am

    I’m speechless. So stunning.

    It sets a whole new standard for engagement rings!

  24. Rownak Jahan says

    July 21, 2012 at 10:45 pm

    This is a great ring. The eye effect is amazing. this is not something you see every day!

    XoXo

    –Rownak

Primary Sidebar

MEET WENDY BRANDES

Award-winning designer of fine jewelry inspired by women's history and pop culture. A former journalist who writes about jewelry, fashion, medieval history, news, feminism, dogs, cats and whatever else is on her mind. Blogging since 2007.
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

ARCHIVES

CATEGORIES

Facebook Pagelike Widget

POPULAR TOPICS

NEWSLETTER

Subscribe for Email updates.
* indicates required

Original jewelry designs, photos and text are © Wendy Brandes 2007-2016. All rights reserved.

© 2016 · FOODIE PRO THEME COPYRIGHT BY · SHAY BOCKS GENESIS FRAMEWORK · BUILT ON THE WORDPRESS