The old switcharoo....

When we left off I was 99% sure that this was my ring:
In my mind I was done looking now it was just a matter of waiting for J to get down on one knee!

About a month before the proposal, out of the blue, J suggested that we check out one more jewelery store. We both loved the 5-stone ring, but we didn't love the jeweler (bad customer service, etc, etc..). I checked around and found a jeweler in the area who had the ring and a reputation for good customer service. So we headed out....

I have to say that the customer service alone was enough to make us buy from them. We sat down at the counter and started talking with one of the sales people about what I was looking for in a ring and pointed out the ring we had picked out. I slipped the 5-stone on my finger and thought that was the end of the discussion. The sales woman brought over a few more rings that she thought I might like; they were nice, but not it. As we were talking stone sizes and ordering times J spotted another ring. It was a small, unassuming ring, hidden toward the back of a case. White gold, one stone, and the minute I saw it, I knew that it was my ring. And when I put it on J said you could see my face just light up. That was it, I had found my ring, end of story. We didn't leave with the ring that day, because J wanted to surprise me with it....and surprise me he did. So here she is....

This picture was taken right after J proposed (that story to follow)....

And here she is with some tomatoes...because every ring looks better with tomatoes, right??

So there you have it...the story of my ring! Did you have a last minute change of plans when picking out your ring?

Penelope is comin' home!

That's right...my baby is coming back to me. I just got an email from our jeweler letting me know that she just got the wax back from her caster in Chicago and has already put everything in the mail (Fed Ex overnight).

I don't know what I'm more excited about...seeing the wax of my wedding band or getting my ring engagement ring back. Either way, I'm excited!

But, I thought that while I'm (not-so) patiently waiting for the FedEx truck to pull up to my house I thought that this might be the perfect time to tell you about how my ring...came to be my ring.

J and I began looking at engagement rings about 8 months before he actually proposed. Now when I say "looking" what I mean is that I started casually suggesting that we stop in to some jewelry stores whenever we were at the mall. For a long time I had always envisioned myself wearing a 3-stone diamond ring; similar to this:

But after trying on a few 3-stone rings I didn't really like how they looked on my hand....too much bling. I won't lie, I was disappointed...I had my heart set on a 3-stone ring, but it just looked so wrong on my hand. I guess I shouldn't have been suprised though, I've never worn a lot of jewelry and what I do wear is usually pretty understated. So after saying goodbye to my 3-stone dream we started looking into "alternative" engagement rings and by this point it really was "we," not just me persuading him to go into stores anymore. He was as determined to find "the one" as I was.

We considered a traditional anniversary band...but it didn't have the movement and the curves that I wanted.

Better, but still not right...

Then we found this little beauty and I was 99% sure that I had found the ring....

It's a 5-stone journey ring, but the one I liked was in white gold. It was different than most of the rings I had tired on, it had some movement to it and it looked great on my finger. I was just about sold on this ring...I even took some friends to "visit" it while we were shopping at the mall and they all agreed that it was a great ring for me. After that I thought my ring search was over.

But I was wrong....how did I end up with Penelope? You'll just have to stay-tuned to find out!

Was your dream ring "the ring," or did you have to search a bit before you found the one?

The ring has landed.

I just got word that my ring made it safely to the jeweler! Whew!

Yesterday I said "good-bye" to someone very close to me...

....my engagement ring.

That's right, my engagement ring is no longer on my pretty little finger. Before you begin to freak out...no, I didn't lose it. I parted with it willingly.

You see, for months and months J and I have been trying to come up with a suitable wedding band for my uniquely shaped ring.

"Penelope" in all her glory. (Yes I named my ring...so what??!!)

You can see that with the shape of the ring, finding a wedding band that fit was going to be difficult. I contacted several jewelers in Milwaukee about a custom band, but they were all having a hard time working within the budget we had and with the stones we wanted (no diamonds for this girl). I had pretty much given up on the idea of a engagement/wedding ring combo and instead had decided that I would just move my engagement ring to my right hand and wear a completely unique wedding band on my left hand.

On a recent camping trip to Bayfield, WI, J and I came across an add in the local tourist guide about a jeweler, Donalee Designs, who worked with semi-precious and gem stones. I was intrigued. We almost didn't stop...it was raining and we were tired...but in the end we did and I am so happy we decided to!
Donalee's studio is in her converted garage and is really impressive. Plus she is just the sweetest woman you could ever meet. Right away I knew I wanted to get my ring from her. I explained my ring situation to her and I started out trying on some stand alone rings that could serve as wedding bands. As we talked we started throwing around ideas for custom rings; Donalee got my style right away and together we came up with an amazing custom wedding band that will fit with my engagement ring! The stone is a 0.25 carat blue topaz that will be flush mounted into a white gold band. The band is going to be shaped so that it fits with the wave of my e-ring while still looking delicate and light. I am beyond thrilled with what we came up with and I can't wait to see the finished product.
But...before I get my hands on that beautiful ring I had to say good-by to my e-ring. Donalee needs the ring to make up the final sketches. Then my ring and her sketches go down to her caster in Chicago who will make a wax casting of the ring. At that point I get my e-ring and the wax ring back. I can make any suggestions or changes that I want (changes means parting with my e-ring again). After the wax gets the final OK, they cast it in white gold, set the stone and we are done! I was told that it will take about a month to get the wax cast made, which isn't too bad, but it's still a long time to be away from "my precious."
To fill the empty void that's left on my finger I've moved the sapphire ring that J gave me years ago from my right to my left hand...not exactly the same feeling, but it will do. I'm pretty sure that the guy at the FedEx store thought I was crazy when I mailed out the ring yesterday, I just kept saying over and over, "please don't lose it, it's really special, please don't lose it."
Now I'm just waiting for an email from Donalee saying that she got it; I'll breathe easier when I know that Penelope is safe and sound. But for now...I wait.....