Give your jewellery a second life, as Emily Ratajkowski did with her divorce rings

For most people, an engagement ring will be one of their most significant and important pieces of jewellery. Of course, pessimism is the last thing you want to associate with an object like that. But a break up or divorce can and does happen. And when a split or a change in circumstance occurs, what you’re left with are the gifts from the relationship. Take it from Emily Ratajkowski, perhaps, who divorced Sebastian Bear-McClard in 2022. Recently, the model debuted a symbolic and poignant retooling of her famous toi-et-moi engagement ring on Instagram.

The original, which featured a stunner pair of pear- and princess-cut diamonds was split into two different rings, with each diamond as a new centrepiece. These divorce rings, Ratajkowski told British Vogue, represented a personal evolution. The pear-cut diamond was set on the diagonal as its own solitaire, while the princess-cut stone was framed with a pair of trapezoid diamonds. The remodelling of Emily Ratajkowski’s jewellery was done by her jeweller friend Alison Chemla, the creative director and founder of fine jewellery brand Alison Lou.

Divorce rings are, strictly speaking, not a new idea. But they are a testament perhaps to the lasting investment quality of jewellery. Precious metals and gemstones are materials that can be reworked and remade almost endlessly. Consider, for an example on a lighter note, how the actress Cate Blanchett worked with Louis Vuitton to dismantle and reconstitute its high jewellery for her red carpet appearances. The idea of redesigning your jewellery is particularly au courant—after all, it’s better to put in the work to remodel pieces than leave them to gather dust.

In Singapore, the coloured gemstone specialist brand Madly Gems has made a number of bespoke rings from divorce or dissolved engagements. Sabrina Leong, the brand’s head of marketing and communications, explains that there tends to be two approaches to these projects. The first, and slightly more sentimental, are designs where the engagement ring diamonds are incorporated into the piece as a symbol of having overcome a challenge. Think of it as having absorbed changes in your life and evolving from it.

The other, more liberating one, is what Leong dubs “a giant ‘eff you’ ring”—an all-out piece that closes a chapter with exuberance. She recalls a fabulous Madly client who commissioned a design with a centrepiece 11-carat egg-shaped Namibian blue tourmaline. The owner of that creation dubs it her ‘Libertine’ ring—a jewel that has in its spirit the chutzpah of emancipation.

But romantic, if formerly, jewellery is just one of many categories that can be considered for remodelling. “A lot of our clients come to us wanting to reset their engagement rings to mark milestones like a new addition to the family, a ten year anniversary, or simply because style changes,” shares Leong. And because engagement rings are almost always diamond solitaires, there’s some creative room to explore the addition of gemstones with alternative cuts, settings, or even adding coloured gemstones to the mix.

Heirloom pieces can also be a very poignant type of jewellery to invoke with change. The pieces that you inherit don’t always have to stay the same way that you received them. Singapore jeweller Carolyn Kan, founder of Carrie K., even created a whole collection of modular, transformable pearls as a response to a piece she inherited from her mother. The way Kan tells it, her Pearl Bar concept came out of finding ways to wear her mother’s pearls in her own way. Think of additions or changes you make as your own stamp on the history of heirlooms that you intend to pass down.

Leong mentions another client that brought to Madly a blue sapphire ring that their late mother wore every day. The ring was set with another stone, almost as a ‘me and mum’ toi-et-moi. “It was really one of the most special pieces we’ve made,” says Leong. “I think this is really what sets fine, and especially bespoke, jewellery apart. The fact that it’s precious in every way, from the innate value of the metal and gems to the design and the memories locked within each piece.”

The precious quality of fine jewellery does mean certain considerations when it comes to second or third lives. Lab-grown diamonds, which are extremely popular for their more accessible price point, are fine for resetting into new pieces of jewellery. If you’re considering selling a piece outright, however, the value diminishes immensely. It’s said that some jewellers may not even buy back lab-grown diamonds.

There’s also an unavoidable risk of damage to gemstones during the resetting process. The chances, according to Leong, are slim but present regardless. It’s a toss up question, then, of whether you feel that a piece in your collection is due for a change. “We do believe that sentimental pieces are worth preserving,” she comments. “But at the end of the day, it’s the client’s choice. If you imagine yourself looking at it and feeling happy, why not?”