When I presented Sam with the finished ring, he leaned back in his chair and said a single word: Rad.
Working with Sam was an absolute pleasure. He was trusting, relaxing, and genuine from the beginning--A sincere Southern California gentleman with a bushy beard and smiling eyes who just happened to fall in love with his boss.
In many office environments today, boundaries can be blurred over community kitchen kegs and wall-less spaces. Regardless, there is a quiet understanding that while comforting your boss while she is going through a break up, you are not supposed to fall in love with her.
Nonetheless, through comforting Melissa, Sam fell in love and through persistent Happy Hour invites and continued companionship, Melissa fell in love right back.
Melissa possesses a modern aesthetic, an easy smile, and obvious incredible taste in people and clothes. The jewelry she wears is simple, yet bold. Clean, modern lines, color block patterns, comfortable, casual, and chic are the words that radiate from every photo. With her beautiful auburn hair and seemingly effortless style, it's easy to see how Sam was right to snap up this total catch.
The custom engagement ring Sam and I designed includes a 1.31-carat Emerald Cut Diamond set East-West on a yellow gold band to symbolize the couple's West-East move together from California to New York. The band features a split shank of tapered baguettes that lead to bead set baguette diamonds that extend 3/4 around the band, allowing the ring to appear to float on the light emitted from the diamonds.
On the interior of the ring, a 1mm ruby has been burnished into surface. It is a well known wedding tradition for a man to ask a father for his daughter's hand. Sadly, Melissa's father recently passed away. It was very important to Sam to commemorate her father in this important moment and we have done so with the inclusion of a small ruby--her father's birthstone--on the interior of the ring. With this gem, Melissa will carry a small reminder of her father's presence every day.
Between the loss of a parent, a cross country move, and new jobs (Melissa is no longer Sam's boss--at work anyway), Sam and Melissa have experienced a very hectic period of time that Sam hopes to follow with the joy and simplicity of planning a wedding...
Well, maybe the simplicity will have to come after the wedding planning is done, but, in the meantime, I wish Sam and his new fiancée Melissa heartfelt congratulations and a Rad and beautiful life!
