Gene's wife wanted something different than an average "mother's ring," which contains the birthstones of either all of her children or all of her family members. She definitely didn't like the ones she had seen in the mall, like these:
She hinted that she wanted a necklace. However, since Gene wanted to surprise her, he couldn't ask for her help in designing something, and didn't know where to start. That's where Robert came in.
Working from an example that Gene saw in a magazine ad, Robert came up with the idea of doing a circular pendant that could "spin" on the bail (the part of the pendant that connects to the chain) and added bezel set birthstones for each of the family members:
Gene liked it, but felt like it needed something more. So, in the next set of renderings, Rob added each person's name, set in a relief pattern:
To add a little more sparkle and provide a contrast with the birthstones, pave set diamonds were added to the bail:
Finally, the finished product on a pretty white gold wheat chain!
Karen was thrilled with the pendant, and impressed that Gene pulled off such a great gift. Happy Birthday, Karen!
