A Diamond Jewelry Remake: It Means Family and Friends

by Nancy Plante October 11, 2016

“After fifty years of marriage, I decided to have a new setting for my old diamond engagement ring,” Gerva remembers. "I wanted to combine the diamonds from my engagement ring, with the diamonds on my grandmother’s watch, to make the new halo setting. I wanted something unique, sentimental, and brilliant.” She went to Plante Jewelers for this diamond jewelry remake, and they made her wishes come true.

Gerva’s old engagement ring was an elegant ribbon of gold, with her original engagement diamond in the center, and two smaller diamonds on either side. But there was a problem - Gerva had lost one of the diamonds on the ring. And, she wanted a new setting. She also had her grandmother’s watch, which was not her style. “My grandmother bought it in Switzerland,” she says. “It had a lot of diamonds around it. In fact, it was surrounded by diamonds. It was a more dressy watch than I wanted.” All of these factors prompted the jewelry redesign.

Asked how Gerva would describe her own style, she explains, “I am kind of a conservative person. I wasn’t looking for a big diamond in my new ring. Some people go by size rather than quality. I wanted quality and also a ring that meant something to me.”

In her new ring, she has found something that fits her style. In the center of her new engagement ring is her original engagement diamond, surrounded by a circle of smaller diamonds from her grandmother’s watch. The band itself consists of two circular rows of diamonds. To be sure, the new ring has a modern flair which could be called “dressy,” but it also has an elemental geometric simplicity to it. It is designed to be practical to wear at the same time that it sparkles and shines.

Diamond Jewelry Remake: Step-by-step

After Gerva saw an ad in the paper for Plante Jewelers, she initially thought to remake diamond jewelry that belonged to her mother. “My mother passed away eight years ago, and I was going to do something with her rings,” she says, “ but then I realized that none of the diamonds were the same size, and that they were ‘old diamonds.’ They were of a different quality than modern diamonds. I took these to Plante Jewelers. Pierre Plante was kind enough to find a buyer for those.”

Instead, she looked through a number of designs that Plante had done previously, and fell in love with the halo-style engagement ring. “It’s exactly what I was looking for,” she says. “They went through everything, took measurements, and drew up a design, which I approved. They were very nice to work with.”

For Gerva, the process did not just provide her with a great-looking ring, it also provided a creative outlet through which she could express herself. “I never chose my engagement ring, my husband bought it for me as a surprise,” she remarks, “but this is something that I designed and created out of sentimental jewelry from my mother and grandmother. It means something to me. It is very sparkly and very unique. I certainly haven’t seen anyone else with a similar ring.”

Asked what the ring means to her, Gerva continues, “In the center is the diamond that I got from my husband. Around that, the smaller diamonds make me think of family and friends. It definitely means a lot to me when I look at it.”

“It’s on my hand right now,” she concludes. “I have been getting lots of compliments on it. People see it and say, ‘that’s beautiful!’ It’s not something I have any plans of ever changing.”

Plante Jewelers is a family-owned Jewelry store located in Swansea, Massachusetts. It is owned by Pierre and Nancy Plante.