Pam got in touch with me because her engagement ring was causing a skin irritation - the design was too sharp - but it also gave us the opportunity for a welcome redesign. A good few years after the actual engagement and it was time to rehouse her wonderful 1ct princess cut diamonds. This part by part blog post touches on the stages of the bespoke process all the way till the final reveal.
Part 1 - The 'Chat'
The Super Power
I am not sure what has happened of late but I will be as brash to say that I have a developing super power. Alas it is not having X-Ray vision or making a diamond from crushing coal in my hand, it's actually being able to ask just the right questions to a client so that I can create a design that is absolutely perfect for them. These questions are quite varied and personal but as I ask them each response is a piece of a jigsaw.
The puzzle at times is developing during the conversation and at other times it needs time to gestate and mature as I put pencil to paper after the chat. I would go as far to say that I always took this approach but the designs I have created recently and my clients' responses have really shown me that I am getting rather good at this - get me!
The Actual Chat
My location wasn't perfect - sat in a supermarket cafe because my home satellite wifi had died - clanking of cups in saucers and munching of pastel del natas in the background. But regardless of this, my phone conversation with Pam was excellent. My notes filled 6 pages of A4, most of it illegible as expected from a chaotic designer! We covered all the obvious criteria but also delved deeply into personality traits, how Pam met her husband Andrew, even an articulation of their love for each other.
The more of these types of conversations I have the more I see it also has an unexpected benefit to the client. They see and express clearly what the ring represents - it's not just another engagement ring - its absolutely personal and absolutely unique. The importance of the ring is amplified as its purpose is defined even if the feelings involved are in some ways indescribable.
Pam loved the bright 1ct princess cut diamond in her original ring so this was going to remain and as we continued to chat there were a few key words from our conversation that stuck with me - Traditional, Harmonious, Flawless & Comfort.
Discover in Part 2 how these words and our conversation started to help me create Pam's wonderful new ring...
Part 2
Well, I must say - this design is going rather swimmingly.
As with most bespoke pieces, I’ve spent time exploring a variety of ideas, sketching out what I feel has promise. I tend to do this in different places - at home, on the beach, in a café, on a plane - it really depends on when inspiration strikes or when an idea miraculously pops into my head.
Within my sketches, there was one particular view that caught my eye. It was the curves that did it - and the way the diamond was ‘held’ by the setting. My gut told me this one was worth developing in CAD to show Pam. A few other designs had potential too, so I included them in the mix
As I worked on the CAD, I knew instinctively I had something special. I eagerly Whatsapped all the design images over to Pam for her thoughts...
And we were in agreement - the design in the centre of the image hit the sweet spot for both Pam and Andrew. But here’s the thing - a design can look incredible when it’s enlarged on a screen, but the real test is how it looks at actual size.
So, after a few tweaks, I sent the CAD file off to my 3D printers - and before long, both Pam and I had the resin model in hand.
As I opened the parcel, I knew instantly that the design worked. It flowed beautifully. And I genuinely believe it embodied the four qualities that needed to be there: traditional, harmonious, flawless, and comfortable.
But that was just my reaction… what about Pam?
Part 3 will land later in August, as we get into the actual crafting of the piece.
