The Story Behind Jackie Kennedy’s Dazzling Toi Et Moi Engagement Ring

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Given her status as a style icon, it’s no surprise that Jackie Kennedy’s dazzling engagement ring has provided inspiration for countless brides over the years. The toi et moi design from French jeweller Van Cleef & Arpels comprised a 2.88-carat diamond and a 2.84-carat emerald, both emerald-cut, on a band of baguette-cut emeralds and diamonds.

Toi et moi—which translates as “you and me” and features two gemstones nestled side by side—has enjoyed a surge in popularity of late, with the likes of Ariana Grande, Kylie Jenner, and Megan Fox all sporting the romantic design. But the style actually dates back centuries, with Napoleon Bonaparte proposing to Josephine de Beauharnais with one in 1796.

Rather unusually, Jackie wasn’t photographed wearing a ring when the couple’s engagement was first announced in 1953. According to writer Jay Mulvaney, she told reporters at the time: “I haven’t one yet. Jack and I have looked at dozens of them. Some I didn’t like and others weren’t the right type.”

In the end, it was actually her future father-in-law, Joseph Kennedy, who picked out the ring from Van Cleef & Arpels’s Fifth Avenue store in New York. Vanity Fair’s Edward Klein described how jeweller Louis Arpels’s wife Hélène, who knew Jackie, helped the former ambassador to the UK pick the now-famous engagement ring.

Not afraid to put her own stamp on the design, the First Lady actually redesigned the piece nearly a decade after their wedding, replacing the baguettes with flashier marquise-cut diamonds that tapered to round-cut diamonds on the side. “The new ring made a statement and marked Jackie’s growing self-confidence personally, and in her family’s role on the world stage,” British Vogue’s jewellery director Rachel Garrahan says of the upgraded design.

Of course, the toi et moi ring wasn’t the only influential piece that belonged to Jackie. On her later engagement to Aristotle Onassis, the shipping magnate gifted her an enormous 40-carat Lesotho III diamond ring from Harry Winston, which sold at auction for $2.6 million in 1996. Meanwhile, it was Kennedy’s so-called “swimming ring” that inspired daughter-in-law Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s diamond and sapphire engagement band.

Still, it’s Jackie’s emerald and diamond engagement ring that remains one of the most referenced in history. “Few women in the 20th century were more influential in terms of style than Jackie Kennedy,” Garrahan concludes. “Her engagement ring from JFK captured the clean-cut, timeless elegance that would forever define her.”

 

Our special thanks to Vogue and Emily Chan for this informative article

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The ‘It’ Ring for Engagements: Toi et Moi Styles

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The two-stone bauble has been the ring of choice for celebrities like Ariana Grande, Megan Fox and Kylie Jenner
Can’t decide on a pear-shaped or an emerald-cut diamond for your engagement ring? Or, perhaps a colored gemstone?
An increasing number of couples who want more options in rings are choosing the toi et moi style, which features two stones instead of one, and in many cases, a mix of gems and cuts in creative settings.
Demand for the toi et moi (French for “you and me”) ring has risen sharply in recent years after these rings have been spotted on the hands of celebrities like Megan Fox, Ariana Grande and Emily Ratajkowski following their engagements. Kylie Jenner and her daughter, Stormi, also sport a matching ring set.
Many other jewelers are seeing an explosion in interest. Ring Concierge sold, on average, two rings per minute in the first 48 hours after debuting a customizable ring of two semiprecious gems for $998 in March, Nicole Wegman, the company’s founder, said. Sales of all two-stone rings are up eightfold from the start of 2021 through September, she said, adding that she expects even more increases during the so-called engagement season that traditionally runs from November through Valentine’s Day.
Hannah Peck, the founder of the diamond-cleaning system Juli, who is based in Greenwich, Conn., said, “They are, without question, the ‘it’ ring for 2022.” She said she has seen an influx of two-stone rings among her clients.
“We see an influx of proposals now through February, and there is an increasing desire to propose with two-stone rings,” said Lindsey Leigh Hohlt, the owner of Lindsey Leigh Jewelry, which is based in Houston. She said that sales of their two-stone rings were already up 70 percent from the summer of 2021.
Many couples appreciate the design options in two-stone rings, as well as the ability to personalize them. The most popular pairings, according to jewelers: emerald and pear combinations.
“With two stones, there’s so much more creative freedom,” said Joey Otcasek, 27, an engineer now living in Sonoma, Calif. He proposed in September to Angela Hatcher, 25, a marketing consultant, with a black-and-white diamond pairing purchased from Berlinger Jewelry, based in Los Angeles.
“The combination suits Angela’s style, is easier to wear with the rest of her wardrobe, and the color contrast is so pleasing,” Mr. Otcasek said.
When Nicholas Mintz, 29, a teacher living in Chicago, proposed earlier this year at the Houston Zoo to Haley Manley, 29, a law student, the ring he presented had a round diamond heirloom passed down from his great-great-grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, paired with a pear-shaped diamond from Lindsey Leigh Jewelry.
“When I found out that toi et moi meant ‘me and you’ in French, it really stuck with me for some cheesy reason,” Ms. Manley, who offered some input in the design, said. “I look at the round diamond as his half, and the pear diamond as mine.”
She also likes the way it looks on her hand. “My fingers look longer in this style than they ever did in another cut,” she said.
Ms. Grande’s customized engagement ring from her now-husband, Dalton Gomez, two years ago featured a diagonally set diamond next to a pearl that reportedly had belonged to her grandmother. Mr. Gomez, a real estate agent in Southern California, had worked on the design with Jack Solow, a jeweler based in New York.
Cynthia Cook Clements, a bridal fashion stylist and a former Vogue editor, said, “Antique stones with modern settings are popular right now for fashion-forward brides.”
Modern, yes, yet toi et moi rings have a long, storied history dating back to the late-1700s when the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who has been credited with giving the two-stone ring its name, proposed to his beloved Joséphine de Beauharnais with a ring featuring two pear-cut stones — a blue sapphire and a white diamond — set in yellow gold. Mr. Bonaparte had the inside of the ring engraved with “toi et moi pour toujours,” or you and me forever. Joséphine’s ring was sold in 2013 for close to a million dollars at Osenat, a French auction house.
In more recent history, John F. Kennedy proposed to Jacqueline Bouvier in 1953 with a diamond and emerald toi et moi ring from the French jewelry house Van Cleef & Arpels.
Fans of two-stone rings say the style often gives them plenty of bang for their buck.
“With a single-stone engagement ring, it’s all about the diamond, and most clients try to maximize the size and quality of that stone as much as their budget allows,” said Ali Galgano, the founder of Serpentine Jewels, which recently opened its first atelier in Greenwich, Conn.
Ms. Galgano said that, when two individual stones are of a smaller carat size, the overall impression when paired together ‌can be greater than that of a single stone. And a ring with two one-carat stones, for example, will probably be less expensive than a single two-carat diamond of comparable quality, she said.
Pairing a diamond with a colored gemstone, like a sapphire or emerald, can also be cost effective.
Michelle Berlinger, the owner of Berlinger Jewelry, said many couples had chosen to pair a diamond with their partner’s birthstone. She added that her clients often preferred “muted color pairings,” like that of a light blue aquamarine or champagne diamond.
Sometimes the pairings come long after the wedding. A decade after her engagement, Jacqueline Kennedy added two carats of marquise and round diamonds to her ring to create the look of a laurel wreath.
“In the past two years, we’ve seen a number of clients opt to buy a second stone to set with their original instead of doing a trade-in,” Ms. Galgano said.
Consider it a modern makeover for the sentimental bride.
Our special thanks to Allison Duncan and The New York Times for this very informative article

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ROMAINTIC NYC MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY PROPOSAL

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Congrats Matt on your romantic proposal at the Museum of Natural History here in NYC!
Thank you so very much for your following kind review on Google
Wishing you both happiness and success together always!
NYC Wholesale Diamonds was an amazing experience throughout the entire ring buying process! Keith was extremely professional and honest when looking at different options. Quality and craftsmanship are amazing. Could not be more thankful for the work Keith and the team did to make a perfect ring. Highly recommended!
Matthew DeSantis
FIVE STARS

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DIAMOND TENNIS BRACELET SALE

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Diamond Tennis BraceletS
All G Color, VS Clarity with full ideal cut diamonds.

3.00 cts $4,500
4.00 cts $5,850
5.00 cts $7,500
6.00 cts $8,500
8.00 cts $14,500
10.00 cts $18,500
11.00 cts $22,500
12.00 cts $29,500
20.00 cts $64,500
30.00 cts $85,000

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GIA CERTIFIED DIAMOND STUD EARRING SALE

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GIA Certified Diamond Stud Earrings
Perfect ideal cut pairs all with GIA’s highest grades of Excellent Cut, Polish, and Symmetry
1.00 Carat J Color SI2 Clarity $2,500
1.00 Carat I Color SI2 Clarity $2,950
1.25 Carat I Color SI2 Clarity $3,950
1.50 Carat J color SI1 Clarity $5,950
1.60 Carat I Color SI2 Clarity $8,950
1.80 Carat I color SI1 Clarity $10.750
2.00 Carat I Color SI1 Clarity $12,850
2.50 Carat I Color SI2 Clarity $15,500
3.00 Carat J Color SI1 Clarity $23,500
3.00 Carat H Color SI1 Clarity $29,500
3.60 Carat I Color SI1 Clarity $36,500
4.00 Carat J Color SI1 Clarity $39,500
4.00 Carat I Color SI1 Clarity $47,500
5.00 Carat J Color SI1 Clarity $58,000
5.00 Carat H Color VS2 Clarity $74,500

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NYCWD’S Most Recent Google Reviews

 

Google Review left by parmida shariat
Five Stars
This is waaayyy overdue but I just had to come back here and write this review. If you are searching for the best place to get an engagement ring please continue to read.
First of all, CONGRATULATIONS! Second of all, you need to at least make one appointment with Keith! Not only he has the best prices/ quality ( and I’m talking about even better than some other countries people fly out to get a diamond ) he also cares about his customers. He made us feel like family and educated us on different types of diamonds and what we should look for. He never made us feel that he just want to sell us the most expensive diamond and he even advised us to make sure on a budget instead of trying to push that budget a bit more like other salesmen do.
He worked so hard for us and rushed our orders since we needed it earlier and went above and beyond. He stayed late to accommodate for of us both working. He made sure we were comfortable and ready to pull the trigger instead of rushing us to make a decision.
I don’t really trust people with any decisions I make nor do I go out of my way to write a review but I just can’t believe people like Keith still exists and I just needed to come here and let you guys know!

Google Review left by Jacqueline Folan

Five Stars
Keith has been my family’s jeweler for quite some time now, but this was my first experience using him personally. My partner and I met with him to discuss both of our engagement rings, and we knew immediately we would be using him as our jeweler. Everything was easy and seamless throughout the process, from initial emails and making appointments, to showing diamonds/band options and picking out what we wanted, to putting in final orders and picking up our rings. Keith is very knowledgeable in everything diamond related, and he answered every question that we had (probably more than once!). He was very respectful of our budget and honest in what that budget would get us, and never pressured us into anything. We both ended up with the most beautiful rings that we could have ever asked for, and it was truly a dream working with Keith. I would HIGHLY recommend him to anyone!!

 

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