Millenial Mavens

Joden Girl

Baubles, Bling, and  Non-traditional Rings

In my work world, we talk engagement rings on the daily…  We’re a team.  We share stories, offer advice, and often dissect current trends.  This year has brought an entirely new engagement adventure…  millennials want to savor the experience (while simultaneously documenting it on social media, of course) and ultimately find a ring as unique as their relationship. 

Today’s couples are choosing vintage.  They want mixed metals, rose gold and yellow gold often paired with colored stones.  2018 is all about floral motifs, shapes, and distinctive rings. 

This pairing is the absolute limit of style and individuality!  First, from the estate of Tamara Toumanova, is this 14 karat gold flower ring.  The curved rose gold petals bloom on your finger while the stem and leaves wrap around to form the band.  Four round diamonds twinkle from inside.  Wear it alone, or stack it with this charming eternity band.  Crafted from 14 karat yellow gold, eleven tiny flowers circle the band, each with a single-cut diamond center.  Perfect for those with an eye for exceptional elegance.

Some couples are opting to forego the engagement ring altogether, preferring instead to celebrate their union with a singular band.  The antique and estate jewelry at Joden offers hundreds of choices…  whether you have a vintage vision in mind or something sleek and modern, our selection will not disappoint.  Here are a few of my favorites…  enamel flowers, matte-finish modernism, and fabled moonstones – each one a tiny treasure in its own right.  Stop in, drop me a line (carrie@joden.com), or call me for details and pricing! 

“You can go to a museum and look, or come to Joden and touch”

Written by Carrie Martin

Photos by Shelly Isacco

A Revival

Joden Girl

Baubles, Bling, and Rejuvenated Things

Four months…  that’s how long it’s been since I sat down to share a story, a treasure, or a lovely little trinket with you.  I’m excited to be back – I feel rejuvenated! 

In business and in life, a new year often inspires (or requires) us to do inventory – whether it be a mental accounting of our own day to day habits or an actual itemization of our assets and possessions.  Joden is no exception.  The month of January (and often February) has us going over every single piece of jewelry…  Every.  Single.  Piece.

The most mundane part – the absolute worst part – of inventory is writing new tags.  Those tiny gold tags that are attached to each item.  I hate writing tags.  A lot.  I prolong it.  I ask my coworkers to write them for me.  Anything for a distraction.  My favorite form of procrastination is trying on jewels – especially rings!  I like to stack them on my left hand so that I can admire them while writing those darn little tags! 

That’s exactly how I discovered these beauties.  I was digging through a tray of vintage rings (not writing tags!) and there they were.  Just waiting for me.  Imagine this pile of rose gold goodness stacked on each finger, three or four rings high – maybe a midi band (a charming little ring worn between your top two knuckles) or two… Victorian treasures too good to resist!  These antique bands were all the rage during the 1880’s and 1890’s.  Sometimes referred to as “Cigar Bands”, they feature deeply engraved patterns in an eclectic mix of styles. 

There are flowers and leaves, tiny four-leaf clovers, lacey edges, and scrolled lines.  Some are gold-filled while others are crafted from 10 or 14 karat.  Each one is over 150 years old – some still have initials and wedding dates carefully inscribed inside.  I love them all…  especially the fourth one from the top.  It’s mine.  I wear it on the middle finger of my left hand.  Its soft rosy glow is a perfect complement to the cool platinum and buttery 18 karat yellow gold of my wedding rings (shown below).

They are ideal wedding bands, right-hand rings, middle and index finger rings.  They’re adorable midi rings, and perfect for everyday wear.  Each is unique with a style all its own.  Come visit me at Joden – you’ll be as enchanted as I am!

“You can go to a museum and look, or come Joden and touch.”

Written by Carrie Martin

Photos by Shelly Isacco

Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow

Joden Girl

Baubles, Bling, and a Mourning Ring

On Sunday morning, October 20th, 1839, John Gwynne bid farewell to his beloved wife of 26 years – Arabella.  Sometime thereafter, he had this heartbreakingly beautiful memorial ring made for himself.  

Each detail is a tribute to her life beginning with the hard stone cameo center.  This small oval black and white agate has been hand-carved with a ceremonial urn sitting beneath a weeping willow – echoing the grief that John must surely have been feeling.  The segmented band of the ring bears the words “In Memory Of”…  each bright yellow letter a sharp contrast to the matte black enamel background.  

 

Perhaps the most touching aspects of this dedication are on the inside – situated behind the center section is a hair receiver, carefully filled with a lock of braided chestnut colored hair.  Engraved in two rows are these words:  “In memory of Ararbella Gwynne the beloved wife of John Gwynne, Esq. who died on Sunday morn. Oct 20, 1839.  Aged 77”.  I can picture his wrinkled and aged hands holding her plait, and tenderly cutting a bit of it to be forever preserved beneath the glass.   

 

This is the only men’s mourning ring I have ever seen.  I found it to be terribly romantic, so much so that I was inspired to do a bit of research.  After many, many rounds of Google-ing, I was able to locate a trio of books as well as a website or two that list these two Plantagenets….

I uncovered three excerpts of interest (shown here…  in the order in which I discovered them).

  

I was both surprised and delighted to find any bits of information – imagine my excitement when I saw that John Gwynne is a direct descendant of King Edward, III!  Royalty, indeed.  I was also able to discern that they were married in 1813 – making Arabella a 51 year-old bride.  Perhaps it was a second marriage, or perhaps she had waited all those years for true love.  They had 26 years together.  John passed 13 years after his wife in 1852.  The ring is in quite good condition (especially for its age) – however, the enamel is chipped along the back side of the ring.  I like to think its because it was worn…  every day.  And that it brought John comfort to know that part of Arabella was still with him while part of her was waiting…  beneath the weeping willow.

“Oh bury me under the weeping willow

Yes, under the weeping willow tree

So he may know where I am sleeping

And perhaps he will weep for me.”

lyrics credited to The Carter Family

I hope you’ve enjoyed the story of John and Ararbella Gwynne as much as I enjoyed discovering it.  Come to Joden to see this rare royal treasure for yourself, and click on the newsletter link below to have Joden Girl delivered straight to your inbox.  

“Go to our site and look, then come to Joden and touch.”

Written by Carrie Martin

Photos by Shelly Isacco and Carrie Martin

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