Tim got in contact with me in September 2024, seeking to commission a jeweller to design meaningful rings to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary with his wife. He'd checked out my website, liked my style and we arranged for the 3 of us to meet in one of my favourite coffee haunts in York - Bluebird Cafe, Acomb.
We met and chatted, and they decided early on in the conversation that they wanted me to carry out the work. So I started to ask some questions - do you have a favourite holiday destination, a song, or a film you both love? There was a long pause before Catherine said 'we don't have a lot in common'. We scraped around for a few bits - kids, pets, food. But I largely left with the impression that they actually didn't have a lot in common and a worried feeling in the pit of my stomach as I wondered how I would find some common threads to weave into the design of their jewellery. My meaningful jewellery is usually designed to celebrate a couples commonalities, so you can appreciate my predicament!
I also usually start commissions with a Pinterest board, but that wasn't working for either of them, so instead they both emailed me separately with a bit about their relationship.
Tim told me the things they do have in common, two now grown up children, the stories behind their children's names and information about their much loved pets. It was clear that 'meaning' was one of Tim's core values. He ended his email with the sentence 'I won't bore you with the ways we're different'.
Then Catherine emailed. She told me all the ways they are different. How they are 'yin and yang' and how this was fundamental to their relationship's success. She shared her feelings about when she first met Tim and gave some examples of the rock he has been for her over the years of their relationship.
My initial panic that I'd struggle to find threads of commonality to use in the design began to fade, my shoulders relaxed and I started to think about how the design of their rings could celebrate their differences.
I feel like in society there is a lot of emphasis on finding someone you have lots in common with, but Tim and Catherine very much presented another view - a couple who were together in a very solid relationship, giving space for each other to be true to themselves. There appeared to be no expectation that either one would bend to be more like the other. They are solid in their individuality and solid as a couple and this was really inspiring!
It was clear that the individual threads of their personalities was the very glue that held their relationship together - the 'yin and yang', the light and shade, and so their jewellery design came to fruition. Five individual 'threads', connected together, offset on the outside but one solid core on the inside. A metaphor for their relationship. One 9ct gold thread would represent the rising sun in his ring, and the moon in hers, a nod to their differing body clocks.
Tim's ring is engraved with their initials and the Roman Numerals for their anniversary. Catherine's is engraved with symbolic Nordic Runes indicating the values that most deeply resonate with her soul.
