Cece’s Diamond Engagement Rings Put the Focus on Romance and Passion

Cece Fein Hughes wants to tell your love story—that is in diamonds, enamel, and gold. The London-based jeweler, whose recent commissions include a ring for Taylor Swift, featuring the singer’s beloved blue-eyed feline Benjamin Button and is rendered in enamel, surrounded by a halo of diamonds, is putting her own romantic spin on engagement rings.

Known for creating lyrical imagery of fairytales, mythology, and romance on gold signet rings and pendants, she’s applying that same artistry and personalization to natural diamond engagement rings. Each chunky gold ring is a canvas for storytelling, whether it’s one of her new signature love stories or a bespoke commission.

A true romantic, the jeweler looked to some of the greatest artistic expressions of love for her Extraordinary Lover’s collection. The Apple of My Eye ring, with a heart-shaped diamond center stone on a wide gold band, is hand-painted with vibrant grapes, peaches, flowers, and a red apple that symbolizes yielding to temptation. It’s a beautifully executed work of art and a playful nod to romance. It was inspired by Fragonard’s 18th-century oil painting The Swing, Apple of My Eye, which celebrates love in all its abandonment.

If that doesn’t hit the right note for your love story, Cece Jewellery’s Window to the Soul ring, inspired by Rodin’s 18th century The Kiss sculpture, tells the story of two hearts intertwined. It features an emerald cut diamond framed in a gold signet ring, surrounded with images of a starry moonlit sky through a miniature window with two doves carrying a secret message.

Of course, she will also create entirely bespoke commissions that express a couple’s unique and intimate story painted with anything from the sea (to mark a favorite destination) or meaningful poetry, fairytales, hearts aflame, and cherubs in flight. The possibilities are limitless.

Like all of Fein Hughes’s designs, the inspiration for the rings came from her personal life, her own love story. She was married on September 14 in England wearing a round diamond ring flanked with heart-shaped diamonds on either side. “Searching for engagement rings is terrifying and exciting all at once,” she said. Working with clients, she observed that they are naturally drawn to symbols of love. “This inspired us to invest even more time and creativity into crafting a truly extraordinary collection that celebrates the essence of love.”

She also created gold and diamond lockets featuring hand-painted symbols and diamond accents for those who wanted pendants to match their rings. The Window to the Soul locket features a hand-painted enamel eye (similar to the antique lover’s eye, which was a way to hold your beloved close) surrounded by diamonds with space for personal engravings.

One thing that’s consistent in all her pieces are the diamonds. She sources only conflict-free natural stones. “Diamonds are formed over billions of years and that slow process reflects the slow process of our handmade jewelry,” said Fein Hughes.

Indeed, Fein Hughes has a waiting list for her enameled jewelry, and a new commission takes about 18 weeks. Each piece begins with a conversation with a client, getting to know their dreams, their love story, and combined with the jeweler’s own background, she sketches and paints their designs. Once approved, the colorful, finely detailed watercolor paintings are brought to London’s historic jewelry-making district, Hatton Garden, where master artisans use champlevé—a Byzantine-era technique whereby metal is engraved, then painted with powdered-glass enamel— to create the miniature works of wearable art.

The results are joyful, rich stories and family heirlooms that are more than just a jewel, they are a history one’s enduring romance.