Custom Engagement Ring Story: Heirloom Diamonds in 20K California Gold
We love creating meaningful, one-of-a-kind engagement rings that tell a couple’s unique story. Here we’re sharing a recent custom design journey for Jed and Mary—a sentimental ring made from 20K California gold ring and heirloom diamonds, designed entirely remotely from our Los Angeles studio.
Custom tapered engagement ring band by Bracken Jewelers, 20K California Gold and heirloom diamonds, Photo Credit: Freya Fennwood
A Sentimental Vision
Jed and Mary are both passionate about the outdoors, so Jed wanted to propose with a ring that felt personal, natural, and deeply tied to their shared values. Since Mary is a California native and family is so important to the two of them, he loved the idea of using our California-mined gold with heirloom diamonds from relatives.
Our Custom Engagement Ring Process (Remote Design)
One of the joys of our work is collaborating with clients all over the country. Though we’re based in Los Angeles, we designed this ring entirely remotely: using phone calls, emails, sketches, and photos to keep Jed in the loop while maintaining the element of surprise for Mary.
Our custom design process is always tailored to the couple, and in this case, we worked carefully to integrate heirloom stones and create a design that felt timeless yet personal and would be able to stand up to the active lifestyle these two lead.
The happy couple officially engaged, Washington state, USA, Photo Credit: Freya Fennwood
About the Materials: 20K California Gold + Heirloom Diamonds
20K California gold is a very special and unique offering of ours. It is sourced directly from small-scale, local mining operations in the Sierra Nevada foothills—a large portion from our own operations (learn more about California Gold here). It has a distinctive warm greenish-gold hue and carries the history of California.
For this ring, we paired our signature California gold with diamonds from Jed’s family. Incorporating heirloom stones is one of our favorite ways to add meaning to a design as it connects generations and gives new life to family treasures. Design choices like these make for a ring you can feel good about too: local craftsmanship, recycled diamonds and known-source gold that was locally mined without the use of cyanide or mercury.
The Finished Ring & Surprise Proposal
The result was our tapered Rich Diggins ring, stamped inside with our Grizzly Bear hallmark to authenticate its genuine California gold composition, with 15 heirloom diamonds sprinkled like stars in the sky. Subtle details nodded to the couple’s connection to California and the significance of family in their lives. Jed proposed during a backcountry ski outing in Washington state—a moment that was intimate, adventurous, and true to them as a couple. We feel honored to have contributed to that memory with a ring that is uniquely theirs.
Surprise backcountry ski proposal in Washington state, USA, Photo Credit: Freya Fennwood
How to Start Your Own Custom Ring Journey
Whether you’re in Los Angeles or across the country, we’d love to help you create a custom engagement ring that tells your story. We work with new stones, heirloom diamonds and other gems, as well as our locally-mined 20K California gold and all other metals (including white gold, rose gold, platinum and silver). First step: schedule a complimentary in-person or virtual consultation with us.