Stefan was going to propose with the ring his girlfriend had dreamt of for years. With her Pinterest page in hand that should have been easy to do. But after a few visitis to well-known jewellery shops the perfect ring (the best diamond, the best band, all within the budget) just wasn’t coming together. It was exactly a project for me.

We first had contact when the proposal was about to take place, on vacation with a (very nice!) fake ring. Back home, the three of us met at a nice location in Amsterdam to look at diamonds. It was clear immediately which one suited her best, a 3.20 carat diamond in the color W-X (light brown).

A photo of the engagement ring of a celebrity was her favorite, but “the photo” was really a computer rendering and only from the top. I knew that a goldsmith with experience, who listens very well and always goes for the perfect finish, could make a better ring than this computer rendering. The assignment for the goldsmith was broadly speaking: round, elegant, not too high and especially not too thick of a band. Oh, and double prongs please.

We thought very well about the setting of the diamond. It shouldn’t be in a basket, as this can look bulky. The setting would preferably be of thin, round gold “thread”. But an engagement ring is worn daily and a diamond with this weight needs to sit firmly. The best way to set it turned out to be very beautiful as well. When I picked up the finished ring, I was stunned and over the moon - and the goldsmith was too.

On the night we met where I presented the finished ring, the future bride was wearing an outfit in the same color range as the 18 carat yellow gold ring and the light brown diamond and everything really came together. The perfect engagement ring exists - it’s just not for sale ready made.