oh! the places they'll go!

The most important thing I can impress upon the dear reader at this point is....what I am about to describe is NOT suggested jewelry care. That said, this is also a story of how being brutally honest with your custom designer can make the very important difference between a ring you can "have and hold" for a long, long time; or ending up with a memory made of precious metal.

It all started with this fun, lovely couple. It was clear they knew each other and knew themselves. Not only is this a delight to see, but a wonderful platform for making a custom ring for someone who "isn't a jewelry person."

The bride, Kirsten Kainz (née Reese), is now a celebrated Bozeman sculptor. At the time, she and her groom, Patrick, were pretty new to Bozeman, as was I. She explained how her sculpture was made from found objects, which she pounds, hammers, forges, and welds into pieces of art.

"How cool" crossed my mind about a million times as she and Patrick talked about her work. And then I realized...this self-admitted "no jewelry wearin' girl" was probably going to exhibit ideal jewelry care habits. I was promised otherwise, but that initial hunch was correct.

So, I braced myself for this little "child" to get some rough treatment. The design needed to be "interesting but not complicated." I settled on a three-stone ring with the outside diamonds being brilliant-cut half-moons. All three set in bezels, and then crafted in platinum for good measure.

I am proud to say that two daughters and countless hours of sculpture later, this ring is doing dandy. It doesn't look any more like this photo, showing it shiny and new and minus any dings. But, I can say it has been much-loved, which makes me smile.