Meet "Rosie", the drop-dead gorgeous 15.90ct octagon cut baby pink sapphire.
With such a sparkling personality and a very soft yet striking colour, I just had to name her Rosie,
I simply adored everything about her. Her baby pink hue, her exquisite cut and, of course, her incredibly impressive size.
But I had no idea that in a very short space of time, Rosie was also going to capture the heart of a very dear friend and client...
I'm delighted that so many of my friends and clients share my love of gemstones. Rosie the big, beautiful baby pink sapphire certainly caught the eye of one of my clients. In fact, she was absolutely transfixed by it.
"Isn't she beautiful?" I asked, teasingly. "With her gorgeous blush pink colour, I've named her 'Rosie'."
My friend, who had carefully balanced the impressively large Rosie on the back of her hand, safely nestled between her closed fingers, looked up from the stone and with a bemused smile said, "I can't believe you've named her 'Rosie'. Rosie was my nickname when I was a child."
It was plain to see that when my client met Rosie, it was definitely love at first sight.
Sure enough, just a few short weeks later my client contacted me and asked if she could give Rosie a "forever home" and requested to commission a stunning dress ring to showcase Rosie's unique and striking beauty.
In truth, Rosie was such a new acquisition that I hadn't really given much thought as to how I could set such a substantial gemstone into a comfortable, wearable ring.
I did know that setting the piece in either yellow or white gold would be unflattering to the soft pink hue of this stunning sapphire.
Rose gold seemed to be the obvious choice of precious metal, confirmed when I placed Rosie next to both 18K and 14K rose gold billets.
It was great fun exploring different dress ring designs for Rosie with my client during her studio consultation. Pictured are the two ring designs for Rosie that my client liked the most.
Due to the substantial size of this octagon cut sapphire, both designs featured an east/west setting for the stone (set length-wise across the finger) rather than the more traditional north/south setting.
One design is a very Art Deco inspired ring featuring a decorative scrolled shank.
The other design is a far more linear, modern ring that also works well with Rosie's large octagon cut.
Which ring design would you choose?
Here is the early goldsmithing work for the ring design chosen by my client.
This sleek, stylish 14K rose gold ring featured a rather romantic design detail – a secret that I shared with my client only after she had selected the modern, clean lines of this design for her dress ring commission.
The ring design I had created for Rosie was inspired by a very specific piece of late nineteenth century wrought iron architecture - an iconic landmark that has come to represent the epitome of love and romance.
Completed in 1889 and situated on the Champ de Mars in Paris, can you spot the design influences in this dress ring?
They are inspired by an outstanding architectural engineer by the name of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel.
Rosie visits the Eiffel Tower - at least in miniature!
Goldsmithing work on the 14K rose gold ring is nearing completion - with the shape of the split shank and low profile bridge strongly reminiscent of the famous Parisian landmark.
When setting such a sizeable octagon cut gemstone, there's no room for error!
Here, I'm conducting final checks on the head of this impressive dress ring prior to gem setting.
The gemstone must sit precisely within the setting - being perfectly straight when viewed from all angles.
With such a large stone any misalignment in setting would be very obvious indeed...
Quiet please...
Gem setting in progress!
Rosie settles into her new 14K rose gold home.
With the setting and final polish complete Rosie, the 15.90ct octagon cut Madagascan baby pink sapphire looks perfectly at home in her new Eiffel Tower inspired ring.
Ready for your close-up, Rosie.
It just remains for Rosie to trip the light fantastic - going for a spin on the videography turntable.
Needless to say, being the diva she is, she carried herself with aplomb during the filming.
Saying goodbye to this beautiful gemstone ring, that had kept me captivated as I worked at the bench, was going to be difficult.
But Rosie and my client had one more surprise in store for me... a wonderful photograph and message I received several weeks later from a very special Parisian location.
Can you guess where Rosie was?
Pictured is the wonderful message and photo I received from Rosie and her "forever owner", Suzanna.
Rosie, the stunningly beautiful Madagascan baby pink sapphire has left her very unique imprint on my heart.
Looking and feeling very much at home beside the Eiffel Tower in Paris, I penned this brief adieu to my sparkling sapphire friend.
Au revoir, Mademoiselle Rosie.
Dansant à Paris, vous êtes parfaite dans votre beauté.
Puissiez-vous briller de lumière et d’amour pour toute l’éternité.
Tu brilleras à jamais dans mon cœur,
Julia x