The best gifts are worth so much more than the object itself. They carry a special meaning that celebrates the connections between our loved ones, our memories, and the ties that bind us. So when a client reached out about a sentimental Christmas gift for her sister, I couldn’t wait to get started.
We’d worked together before on a custom Ripple Ring, so she was familiar with my style. But now, she wanted to create a set of matching rings for her and her sister using pieces from their late mother’s jewelry. What a thoughtful surprise! I knew these Sister,Sister Rings were going to be extra special.
Mom’s Materials
We started off with two pieces from my client’s wonderful mother, who had passed away a few years ago. There was a watch with six petite diamonds and a 10K yellow gold bracelet with a whopping 64 diamonds! We agreed that I would use all the diamonds from the watch and as many of the additional diamonds as needed.
I was also going to try something new: crafting and hand fabricating the rings 100% with gold from the bracelet, with no additional metal added.
The Inspiration
This project is a great example of how to look at previous creations, pull parts and pieces, and create a personalized design. We used the 20th Anniversary Band and the Wavy Wedding Band as our jumping-off points but added my client’s personal touch.
She loved the bezel-set diamonds from the Anniversary Band but liked a thicker ridge on the edge. The sister rings would have a minimal wave, a thick ridge, bezel-set diamonds, and lots of nice texture. After drawing up a few sketches and mock-ups, I had my work cut out for me!
The Process
To tackle this project, I started out by melting all the metal from the bracelet into two gold ingots, which I rolled thin and formed into two ring bands. I used my signature melting process to create that nice ridge. Then, I placed three teeny-tiny diamonds from the watch flush-set within the ridge itself. It was such a cute, delicate detail!
Each ring then had nine additional diamonds from the bracelet set into bezels within the channel, like stars across the Milky Way. The result: two lovely gold ripple bands scattered with fifteen diamonds, plenty of unique touches, and even more hidden meanings.
A Sweet Surprise
Once I had the rings polished and sparkling, I shipped them off to my client. She was so excited when they arrived at the post office that she ripped the box open right in the parking lot! She immediately messaged me to let me know that “The Eagle has landed!” I was thrilled to hear how much she loved the rings, but I was even more excited to see how her sister would react on Christmas Day.
I’ll let her tell that part of the story…
“(The ring) fits her perfectly and she was SUPER surprised. I had mine on and she noticed it. She asked if you had made it and wanted to try it on then said she would just ‘keep this as my Christmas present!’ I was like ‘Uh, nope!’ And played it totally off…
Then when she got to it and unwrapped it she was so surprised. Then I told her to read what was in the envelope and she just started crying…It was awesome. Said she will never take it off. Thank you for being part of a super special moment.”
You’re so, so welcome and thank YOU for letting me be a part of it! Moments like this are what makes everything worthwhile.
