the original ruby and diamond ring was given to his paternal grandmother on her 45th wedding anniversary in the late 1940’s. she in turn passed it along to her daughter-in-law upon her 45th anniversary. and now on his own 45th anniversary, the family ring was passed on to his wife as well.

so the tradition of this family developed to pass along the ruby and diamond band on the paternal line upon the 45th wedding anniversary. a wonderful and unusual tradition but the original band has been well-loved and well-worn – too worn to be repaired. after 90-plus years of daily wear the rubies were damaged, some of the diamonds were missing and the ring was just in bad shape.

design notes with old and new ring parts

instead of duplicating the ring at great expense, the decision was made to capture the essence and flavor of the original piece using the diamonds where needed, replacing the rubies with new ones and – the extra special feature – we found a way to incorporate her original wedding band.

we created a new band with the ruby and diamonds theme plus the open floral pattern. in the original ring all of the stones were set in platinum with rose gold borders. in the new band the stones are all set in rose gold and white gold borders (from the original wedding band of the most recent recipient).

i love that the tradition is continuing and that i could be a small part of it.

redesigned anniversary ring in white gold, rose gold, rubies and diamonds.

location: New Hartford, CT

her daughter does not wear rings as she is entering the healthcare field, but she was thinking a necklace would be perfect for adornment. we adventured thru her jewelry box and found Read more →

as the only girl from a well-to-do family, she was the recipient of all the lovely kitschy and cha cha jewels. the race track across the street may very well have influenced the choice of some of the bracelet charms – horseshoe, slot machine, cash register, ace of diamonds. it has oversized charms that are just not made anymore. all in all, the jewelry is in really great condition for its age. the charms are intricate and Read more →

she came into the shop this past winter, needing to have several rings cut off her finger. once that was done, she began to cry. each ring meant so much to her Read more →

she had a sterling silver ring that she once wore. interchangeable glass and silver beads (remember those?) were the ring’s main feature. at long last she decided it was too much of a hassle to keep changing the bead. well, i am lucky to have Read more →

she does not wear a lot of jewelry but appreciates it and has some beautiful pieces, including a beautiful ruby and diamond pendant her husband had made to commemorate their two daughters. she wanted a piece to wear daily, not too frilly and nothing to catch. as a member of the “manure and mascara set,” she is around horses regularly so barn-wear is important!

but what to do when you cannot stand to have anything around your neck? when sometimes even your hair is too much to feel on your neck? we decided to repurpose the pendant into a simple band design ring.  the stones kiss each other set in bezels.

14k yellow gold mothers ring with one brilliant cut diamond and one genuine ruby.

location: Canton, CT

a young man’s squadron has a tradition of breaking apart their first set of wings, and he had the idea to give them to his beloved before his deployment at the month’s end. he was looking for a special pendant for her, something personal.

at first i thought of splitting the heart, each getting one half to be joined at deployment’s end. however, the metal the wings are made with will not allow any heat.

since he and she share the same first initial, i thought e², a kind of play on Einstein’s famous theory: relativity + energy = love.

the hand-engraved heart is sterling silver, a most noble metal. the assembly is riveted, much like his aircraft. the flying heart pendant hangs on a chain that can be shortened with a sweet heart tag.

i found this opportunity to help a young serviceman design a unique piece of jewelry inspiring.

location: Hartford, CT. via Westover Air Force Base, MA

it began as a traditional sapphire and diamond necklace, never hung well on her and was a bit dated. it was time to take it apart and make something to wear!

1one side of the chain became a bracelet using the original necklace clasp.

2we reset sapphires and diamonds into a slide-style pendant to wear on a different chain, with a little wabi sabi in the stone placements.

3the left over gold chain helped pay for the re do!

lots of sparkle.

endless circle of sapphires and diamonds pendant and 14k yellow gold bracelet

Location: Granby, CT

she lost her original engagement ring and this solitaire ring is the replacement. from the top, it looks like a traditional solitaire engagement ring, but the under-gallery (not visible except from the side of the ring) is quite beautifully scrolled.

the diamond in this new classic ring is not new but is part of a continuing story for the family. the stone was from her dad, now gone; he had given the diamond to her stepmother for a domed ring she had made for herself. when dad passed, stepmom gave it to daughter to use in this ring, keeping it in the family with all the memories and tales to come.

i love what i do.

location: Granby, CT

it began with three stones from both sides of the soon-to-be family… his grandma, her grandma and his mother. she really wanted to use all three stones but did not want a line of diamonds.

i carefully listened to what they both were saying, and when i pulled out this model it was love at first sight. with slight modifications and setting the three diamonds in bezels… voila! an unusual engagement ring using all three family diamonds.

i was thrilled that they found me on line and then came into the shop, but the most rewarding part of this process was being trusted with their treasured family diamonds.

location: West Haven, CT