Ginkgo Engagement RingJanuary 2018 14 karat rose gold, champagne sapphire I was approached by a couple who wanted engagement and wedding rings that incorporated their Japanese heritage. The bride wanted to incorporate her mon into the design, which is three ginkgo leaves arranged radially; and while the groom's family crest has been obscured by history, we know that one surname in his lineage means "little river" and that they were from a fishing village. Since we didn't

but I suggested that they had their own story to tell and asked if they'd let me propose an original design

none of these compressed the coffee grounds well

but the design is certainly beautiful enough for any bride

Finally one day I thought "why not just string them

matted and mounted in the manner of a hanging scroll

I used the first letter of the Hebrew spelling

The couple had chosen verses from Psalm 92 that they felt summed up their situation and that they wanted to incorporate into the piece: צדיק כתמר יפרח

on this progression of intimacy

-Genesis 1:3

I decided to set it with a 3mm cubic zirconia (always with the jokes)

When I read the verse above

the lighter sections are silver and the darker striations are an alloy of white gold and palladium