Wendy Brandes Jewelry Blog

Never Is the Next New Thing

Mariel’s Engagement Ring Reminds Me of ABBA

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When gorgeous blogger Mariel of Preppy With a Twist asked me to create her engagement ring, I immediately got ABBA’s “Waterloo” stuck in my head. It took me a while to recall that the song was featured in a key scene of the 1994 movie Muriel’s Wedding.

In the movie, Toni Collette is shy Muriel of Porpoise Spit, Australia, who dreams of a glamorous wedding. After escaping her hometown, she changes her name to … Mariel. Ha! Free association that makes sense. I love it.

I also love doing engagement rings, so I was thrilled that real-life Mariel gave me the chance to do hers. You can read all about her experience as a customer here. (And Mariel, the emails were perfectly fine!) I’ll explain the experience from my end.

Mariel and her fiance Matt wanted to use a diamond that belonged to his great-great aunt. It was set in a necklace.

Photo from Mariel. Click for her post.

First, I took the diamond out of the necklace and took a look at it. Diamonds are the hardest naturally occurring substance. That doesn’t mean they can’t break! If they couldn’t, we wouldn’t be able to cut them into pleasing shapes. So, with an old stone, I make sure there are no chips or breaks that would make the diamond unusable. This one looked good, so I took it to the Gemological Institute of America to have it officially graded. With an old, previously ungraded stone, it’s good to have this information for insurance purposes. Also, despite the emotional factor, some people decide to go for a stone of a different quality based on the report. Others decide to recut their stone to improve color or clarity. I recently recut my own sapphire. It was originally set in a ring that my parents gave me for my 16th birthday. It was very dark, almost black. The recutting made it look more blue and sapphire-like. Whenever you recut a stone, you lose some weight. A 95-point stone (there are 100 points in a carat) might be reduced to 85 points, yet gain in quality.

Mariel and Matt were satisfied with their GIA report, so Mariel and I discussed what she wanted. She was very specific: a platinum ring with a thin bezel setting, and a 2.5 millimeter band that was rounded on the outside and flat on the inside. Here’s what I made for her.

Mariel's ring.

I would say her style is “classic,” but not “traditional.” Here it is on her finger.

Photo from Mariel. Click for her post.

I am happy to do any style engagement ring, whether you want a diamond in a traditional four-prong setting or a white sapphire in an insect-themed band. Basically, if you can describe it and pay for it, I’ll do it. Holla at me at wbjewelry at hotmail dot com if you want to talk to me about engagement rings and/or wedding bands.

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Comments

  1. I LOVED that movie! Toni Collette is amazing. As is that beautiful ring. It seems even more precious coming from a beloved heirloom. Here’s the the happiness of the lucky groom and lovely bride. And Abba for good measure.
    -Bella Q
    the Citizen Rosebud

  2. I love this setting for a ring! It really gives it something else compared to “normal” rings.

    I think I’m going to have to start showing your blog to my boyfriend from now on

  3. “Waterloo,” complete with the patented Muriel dance moves, is the karaoke go-to for my friends and I. The windmill arms are surprisingly hard to coordinate.

    I love the ring you designed. It’s amazingly similar to what I’ve always imagined I might want one day, so you can be sure I’m bookmarking this post!

  4. Looks great! Nice, simple band really features the beautiful stone. And OMG, I loved that movie! I haven’t seen it in years and I don’t know if I even realized that was Toni C. Must watch again.

  9. I was so happy to see this post this morning! Thank you again for making me such a beautiful ring – I love love love the design and am constantly getting compliments on it. And this is shameful to admit, but I’ve never seen Muriel’s Wedding. Adding to Netflix now!

  10. Best line of that movie was: “Let her finish her orgasm” right before the tizzy ones told Muriel they didn’t want to be her friends anymore.

    Wendy, you had me at Muriel! That’s a truly beautiful ring and I love the story behind it.

  15. Gorgeous! I have a diamond my grandmother gave me that would love really lovely in that setting, I think. It’s eensy weensy but would make a nice little right-hand ring. Someday when I have money to play with I’ll do something with it!

  16. Great to know that you do engagement rings. Not that I’m quite there yet, but when I am, I’m sending the boy to you. 🙂

  17. That is a gorgeous ring – you are one talented Wendy Wendy B! And love Muriel’s Wedding – the phase “You’re terrible Mariel” is frequently uttered in our house. Not that any of us are called Mariel…

  18. That is a LOVELY ring & the style is timeless. What a great way to preserve an heirloom & create a new one at the same time. I can’t believe you cut stones. Seriously, that would scare me to pieces. Great job!

    • I assure you I don’t personally cut stones! Stone-cutters cut stones. They have to be really good at what they do because it is no joke to ruin someone’s gem!

  22. Great work Wendy, I like that the ring is minimalist but timeless. The design will never age.

    I adore Muriel’s Wedding!!!! I cry each time I watch it. Toni was brilliant in it. Absolutely brilliant.
    xoxo
    Marian.