Apr 8, 2010

The Story of my Ring

Thank you all so much for your lovely comments about my engagement ring!  Frankly, I'm shocked that y'all even noticed it- when I'm faced with images of cheese in any form, that's the only thing my hungry little brain can process.

The diamond is a family diamond, which my father had made into a necklace for my mom.  Quick back story- when my parents were married, Daddy didn't give Mama an engagement ring.  Her father (Papa Bruce) told Daddy not to, as Mama was about to inherit her beloved great-aunt's beautiful diamond.  Can you tell that Papa Bruce is a child of the Depression, frugal Scot-Irish man?  Daddy, full of youthful machismo, protested, but Papa Bruce laid down the law- the diamond was to come from the McCampbell side of the family.
So that's the story of Mama's diamond ring, which is gorgeous by the way.  I can't find a picture, but y'all trust me. 

Anyway, so she always had this necklace made out of a diamond which my Great-Uncle Joe (brother to my namesake  Samma, who is my father's mother), gave to my parents.  It was my grandmother Samma's father's diamond, which he wore as a pinky ring (eek!).
Here is Samma my grandmother as a little girl.

Here is this Samma as a little girl.

This is my adored Great-Aunt Helen, wife of long-deceased Uncle Joe, who was the giver of the diamond to Daddy (is this story getting complicated or what?).

So back to my Mama's bling and my ring.  When Hubs asked permission to marry me, Daddy said, "Okay, great.  Hey, you need to use this diamond that's been in our family for generations."  Hubs of course, gets a little blustery back, stating that he can buy me a ring, blah, blah, blah.  Daddy,  remembering his own days asking his futures bride's dad, states in no uncertain terms that if it was acceptable for him to use a diamond from his future in-laws, then it better be acceptable for Hubs!

I was exceedingly grateful for this, because, let's be honest here, I'd definitely wrapped that necklace around my  finger in the past to see how the canary diamond would look as a ring.  More importantly however,  I  love having the antique diamond that was my great-grandfather's, in a setting which Hubs picked out- it's a combination of my past and my future family.

Plus it's pretty.  Hee.

16 comments:

  1. That's wonderful girl!! Antique rings are the best!!! I wish I had one. Congratulations on the engagement! I wish you the best! :)

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  2. Oh, I adore this story! Family heirlooms are just the best. Your ring is stunning, all the more so due to this amazing history.

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  3. Love it! That story is wonderful! Love that you have something so special. And can we just point out how presh-presh you were as a tot?

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  4. A beautiful story is even better than a beautiful ring. And you have both. How lucky you are!

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  5. Really lovely story! How special to have sweet family history sitting on your finger.

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  6. How lovely! I love that your ring carries on family tradition, and it is truly stunning. My family never had things like that, which makes me sad, and my husband really wanted to give me his grandmothers rings, but, due to financial issues, the ring got sold just before we met--so, the one I have looks similar to his grandmothers, which I love. And I occasionally wear my grandmothers wedidng band, but, it's a touch too small and I don't want to get it re-sized! Ha.

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  7. What a great story! I think it means so much when a ring has been passed down through the family. And how amazing is it that you and your grandmother favor each other in your baby photos? Strong genes!

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  8. I love that story! For me jewelry is sentimental, and that is why I love antique and family jewels!

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  9. What a great story! Loved your dad's theory - if I could do it you can do it! LOL

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  10. I love the story and I love your ring!!

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  11. Great story! Love that it's so sentimental to you. Your ring is gorgeous!

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  12. That's so neat! I love to hear stories of rings being passed on. My engagement ring was my great-grandmothers. The funny part of the story is this. My Great grandmother was famous for her temper and her and my great grandfather used to get in legendary fights. Durning one of these fights she flushed the wedding ring down the toilet. I kid you not! So now we only have the egagement ring which is too bad because it was really beautiful as a setting. The wedding band had dimonds that matched the engagement setting. We just bought a new band to go with the ring. However, despite their fighting and my grandmothers temper they were married for over 50 years and seemed very happy when they weren't fighting:)

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  13. What a fabulous story. I love it!

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  14. What a wonderful, beautiful story :o) How special to have such a family heirloom for a ring!

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