Vintage. Color. Signet rings. Three elements of jewelry sitting on the current list of what’s hot among consumers. Putting them all together results in something more niche, though no less temptingly exquisite, with San Diego jeweler Seal & Scribe‘s latest line as proof: Love Letters, a gorgeous offering that celebrates long-ago love.
Featuring intaglios from the Georgian and Victorian eras, the Love Letters capsule collection builds on designer Shari Cohen’s familiarity with the signet ring, combining these colorful amulets from bygone times with modern, wearable styles. Each ring is one-of-a-kind, spotlighting the features of the antique seal in it.
“All our seals come from trusted sources around the world—we have a network of people who source for us from a variety of places, as well as individuals selling their personal collections, and of course we source directly from sellers, including other dealers,” Cohen tells JCK of how the intaglios were obtained.
There are three broad categories of seals, Cohen explains: glass Tassie seals, the type used in her collection, hardstone seals (made of carnelian, bloodstone, or agates), and gemstone seals (amethyst, citrine, clear quartz, and occasionally sapphire). “Working with glass seals proves the most challenging because the material can be brittle and sometimes contains artifice that got into the molds, like small pieces of debris that are like a sand grain, or sometimes air bubbles,” she says.
“It’s fairly easy to break them when setting, so one has to use a light hand and get to know the material until it feels like second nature to work with. That said, our jewelers probably take more care when setting a glass seal than they do setting a 10-carat diamond. Diamonds are a material they have decades of experience with, and for most of our team, they hadn’t worked with seals until they began working for us.”
My favorite of the Love Letters rings is the one named The Higher, the Tighter (pictured at top), a beautifully electric blue intaglio encircled by waves of diamonds, further enhanced by a two-tone setting of blackened metal and rose gold. I chose this favorite based on looks alone, but with each ring’s many elements, picking a favorite can be hard to do—especially for the creator. “Collectively they are all like children, I cannot possibly choose one over the others,” Cohen says.
“What I will say is that I love each Love Letters ring for a different reason. I love the blue The Higher, the Tighter for its swirly setting and lack of actual text, and for its message to let one’s partner always soar to reach their fullest potential in life—what a beautiful gift to give one’s partner.”
While the signet ring has typically been worn in statement fashion, one could argue that the romanticism of these rings makes them perfect candidates for engagements.
“I envision our Love Letters collection to be rings that are worn either daily or very often, because they are so laden with sentimentality,” Cohen says. “I want our clients to wear them through all of life’s ups and downs, infusing within each ring all moments, big and small, that make up a life well-lived.
“I’d like to think that when these pieces are handed down to the next generation of each client, that along with passing that piece down, the stories and memories of seeing that ring on the hand of their mother/aunt/grandmother, etc. is something that adds yet another layer of meaning and family storytelling being kept alive,” says Cohen. “To me, jewelry passed down through a family is the most precious adornment because it is not only beautiful in its own right, it also is a receptacle—a repository, if you will—that holds family memories and seminal moments within multiple lifetimes.”
Top: The Higher, the Tighter ring in 18k custom alloyed blush gold with 0.37 ct. t.w. diamonds, price on request (sold); Seal & Scribe
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