DESIGN DIARY: Carly's Anniversary Ring

Art Deco decadence meets an eclectic vibe.

What happens when an interior designer asks a jewelry designer to make her a ring?? Something bold, beautiful, and magical that’s what!

Carly is the founder and principle interior designer of Unpatterned, an interior design firm located in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago. She reached out wanting to create a 10 year anniversary ring using her grandmother’s old gemstones. During our consultation, I also learned that she really wanted a ring that could embody her as a designer and person; a just-because ring, and I loved that!

Carly’s grandmother’s sapphire & diamond pendant.

As with most of my clients, I asked her to put together a mood board for me and she did not disappoint! Her board exuded a luxurious richness and a bold, eclectic vibe. It was paired with vintage details and an art deco decadence. My design goals were to take all of that and morph them into an everyday ring using Carly’s heirloom sapphires. Continue on to see the journey of this heirloom revival piece!

Carly’s mood board:

A few of my brainstorming sketches.

Scroll through to see the technical CAD, Renders, and wax prototype:

And finally, the end results!

Another element that really struck me about Carly’s mood board was the explosion of color; especially some of the jewel tones. We had the one color with her grandmother’s deep blue sapphires, but it needed more. Once I added in the emeralds and amethysts, it was * chef’s kiss * perfection.

I’m so thrilled and very proud of this piece. It’s always an intimidating challenge to create for another designer; let alone try to capture the essence of someone in such a tiny canvas. But I think it turned out successful! I also ended up delivering the ring right before the Christmas holiday making the experience feel even more festive and celebratory :)