Love is Your Color

One of the first recorded accounts of an engagement ring was in 1477 when the Archduke Maximilian of Austria presented Mary of Burgundy with a diamond ring 24 hours before their wedding. This introduced a tradition that has spanned several centuries and continents. 


For the next 400 years, diamonds were only a luxury for the extremely wealthy, because diamond mines weren't discovered in South Africa until 1870, making diamonds even more rare than today. Because of this, the engagement ring of choice for very many was a colored stone. Long before lab created stones, rings were set with precious and semi precious jewels to signify love and commitment. 


Along with many of our ancestors, hundreds of European royals choose sapphires, rubies, emeralds, and aquamarines for their engagement. 



Whether you're looking for finger coverage on a budget, or hoping for something different than the ever common diamond, a colored stone engagement ring is surely something to consider. Now, enough of my blabbing.. on to the eye candy!

Aquamarine and diamond baguette ring made by Daniel M Jewelry

Stunning Leon Mege custom-made yellow diamond ring. For sale on consignment at Jewels by Erica Grace.

This beauty is a Single Stone creation, with a breathtaking sapphire center stone.

This one is too beautiful for words. A mahenge spinel set in Jewels by Erica Grace's Kylie halo. Look at that color!

Leon Mege Emerald and diamond three stone ring. Drooling yet?

Here Comes the Mother of the Bride

Oops. I'm a day late! I meant to post this yesterday, but I was busy spending time with my wonderful momma.. Anyway, in honor of Mother's Day I wanted to post a few adorable mother of the bride dresses. Finding a cute and appropriate MOB dress can be more difficult than finding the wedding gown. Today I'm featuring looks from Sarah Danielle, Caterina, Siri, and Val Stefani. I hope all of you moms had a wonderful day yesterday, you deserve it!

 

Obsessed

I am seriously in love with this post from Benign Objects, so I had to share.

Oh.. And Did I Forget to Mention?

I'm sitting here, watching Grease play on ABC family and about to click submit to another blog post, when I realized I haven't blogged about the very exciting news in my life!

You see, I've been obsessed with weddings since I was a kid. In 8th grade we could write a research paper on any subject, and I chose the History of Wedding Traditions. I know, I know. I'm a total freak! It's been such a joy to help brides and their families with planning their weddings, and it's something I hope to do for a very long time. I even told my mom once, or twice, when I was younger that I thought the perfect proposal was to be all dressed up and on a bridge. Who does that?

So a couple of months ago when my handsome boyfriend went to talk to my parents, my mom said, "You know you have to find a bridge, right?"

Somehow all of this was lost on me, as I was wandering around the Botanic Gardens on Easter Sunday with my sister's, boyfriend, and brother in law. You see, they had convinced me that we should take pictures for Mother's Day at the gardens and have them framed for a gift. I was not even cluing in to the fact that something was up when we were standing right in the middle of a bridge taking a couple of posed pictures in our Sunday best. It wasn't until that wonderful man handed me a little purple Easter basket with an egg inside that I realized something was going on. The egg rattled, and my hands started to shake. LUCKILY it was just a jelly bean inside, because that ring would have hit the bridge! But he was down on one knee, and said some wonderfully sweet things that I don't remember. That's the thing no one ever tells you-- I haven't the faintest idea what he said. I was so excited it all went in one ear and out the other.Well, I forgot everything except that all important question, "Will you marry me?" Of course I said yes, and was treated to a limo ride home to an Easter brunch with family and friends.

I'm spoiled rotten, huh?

So anyway, now I not only get to help other brides, I'm also getting to plan my very own wedding! It's been great so far and we are so excited. Look for pictures next spring! Until then, I'll give you all a picture of the bling, because that's all anyone cares about!