Anthony contacted us in October. He had been shopping at several internet companies and wanted to come in and meet with Brian and look at several Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds in the 0.80 – 1.00 carat range. After a couple of visits he selected a beautiful 0.918 H VS2 Brian Gavin Signature H & A. We then started discussing the setting and he wanted to know if we could custom make a diamond wedding set comprising a cathedral style fishtail pave setting with the Truth head and a matching fishtail pave band using our Brian Gavin Signature Melee. He e-mailed us the specs and some inspiration pictures and we set to work to create the CAD. Once he had approved the CAD, we cast the setting in 18K White Gold and set the F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature Melee. We set one "surprise" diamond and one "surprise" sapphire on the inside of the engagement ring shank. A few days after he had received the rings, his fiancee Erika e-mailed us this wonderful testimonial:

Hi Lesley,

This past Saturday on Dec 17th, Anthony asked me what I wanted to do during the day. I noticed that he was looking at his phone for the weather updated and said, "Oh good, it's sunny." I told him I wanted to go to the museum. He was opposed to that. So I thought of another idea-the Houston Zoo, which was one of our most fun dates ever since we've been dating. His reply was, "Actually I was thinking about that too." Sometimes I like to get all made up on the weekends. I curl my hair and/or wear my "weekend" outfits. As I was curling my hair, I heard Anthony shuffling in his study closet and I was a little suspicious that he was messing with the engagement ring. It was a beautiful and fun day at the zoo. I had the best time there. After a while, Anthony asked me what I wanted for dinner. I told him I wanted some hot pot, which would require us to go to Chinatown. He was not up for it. He asked me if I wanted Italian food. I was neutral about it at the time until I was starving a few hours later and didn't care where we were going. While he was driving, I asked him where we were going to eat. He played dumb and said, "I don't know where we are going?" I replied, "TELL ME!" He again said, "I don't know where we are going?" As he turned onto Ella Blvd., I knew right away where we were eating. He was taking me to our first date restaurant called Cavatore. As we walked into the restaurant, he asked the owner if we could sit by the live music. There was a live duet playing that night-a guitarist and singer who were a couple. Since it's around Christmas time, they sung Christmas songs. Throughout our delicious Italian dinner, I noticed that Anthony had his "thinking face" on. I asked him a few times if everything was okay. He just gave me a short, "yeah" reply each time.

After dinner was over, I had to run to the restroom before we left. I came back and Silent Night was being sung live. As I sat down, Anthony looked at me deeply into my eyes and said, "It's a silent night, isn't it?" I looked at him funny and said, "Yeah…sure is…" As he reached out for his glass of water, I then reached out for mine and noticed that the engagement ring was sitting right on top of an ice cube. I was shocked and said, "OH MY GOD!" I looked at him and he got down on his knees and proposed.  He made me cry. It was a very emotional moment. After I said yes to him I had to remind him that he had to put the ring on my finger (it was still in the glass after all this time). The live singer came up to us and told us that nobody has ever proposed while she was singing and congratulated us. Shortly after, the owner of the restaurant came up to us and congratulated us. He surprised us with some champagne on the house. We both told him we didn't think anyone noticed the proposal, but he claimed that everyone in the restaurant did. After dinner, we called it a night and left the restaurant as a newly engaged and very happy couple. =) Erika O.

© 2012, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

VIDEO

A Gallery of Some of Brian Gavin's Jewelry Highlights…

© 2012, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

In June 2010 Shane contacted us to discuss his upcoming diamond engagement ring purchase. He was planning to propose to his girlfriend of 8 years and wanted to purchase a very high quality center stone and a magnificent setting. He selected the Platinum "Summer" 3 stone open basket setting with a 1.10 ct Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamond.

About a year later he contacted us to get started with the wedding bands. After much discussion he decided to order the Platinum Dream Half Eternity Band and a Palladium 6 mm Men's Three Textured Band. We set a "Surprise" Emerald and Diamond inside both bands and engraved a special note.

About 2 months before the wedding Shane contacted us for the wedding jewelry.  We created a magnificent Custom 18k White Gold Necklace set w/ 0.99 ctw F/G SI Brian Gavin Signature diamond melee for him and he added the 14k White Gold Leverback Huggies to his order.

The wedding was on Saturday, October 15 and we received this e-mail and the beautiful pictures below:

Hi Lesley,

Thanks for making stunning pieces of jewelry for my wife and I.

Your helpful advice helped us choose the perfect combination for our BGD wedding

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

Rusty contacted us with a very special project. He wanted us to create a custom rose gold setting for an approximately 2 carat pear shape diamond with 2 matching diamond bands. He e-mailed us a worksheet of what he had in mind design wise and Denise set about helping him to find the stone. She sourced a 2.27 black pear shape diamond and we shipped it out to him for his approval. He then shipped it back and we set to work to create the CAD for the ring and bands. He approved the CADs and we caste the settings in 18K rose gold. All the diamond melee used was F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature melee. The result was spectacular!!!

Hi Denise, I just called you to tell you that I picked up the ring during my lunch today. There aren't any words that can express how excited I am about the ring. It is so beautiful. I can't wait to see it on Marie's finger. She is going to love it. Take care – Rusty

We received this e-mail a couple of weeks ago:

Hi Denise, OK wow! I have been so busy lately. It has now been 1 month since I popped the question and gave Marie the ring. She said yes . She absolutely LOVES it… I really appreciate the great customer service that you and your team provided. The ring speaks for itself. It is amazing. Everyone that see's it is just in awe. It truly is one of a kind. I hope all is well and I know your making other couples very happy – Rusty

The CAD and breathtaking gallery of Glamor Shots follow!

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

In July of last year Khanh contacted us from Australia to discuss her push present. At the time she was 6 months pregnant and wanted to select her diamond band but wait until after the birth to make sure of her ring size. She selected a 1/2 Eternity U-Prong band and we then waited to make the band until February. During that time Khanh also purchased a Diamonds By The Yard Necklace and Sapphire Halo Diamond Pendant for her mother. Her friend Alex purchased a beautiful Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamond for his wife along with a 1/2 Eternity Bead Set Band. Everything was shipped out to them in March along with two Brian Gavin Signature Blankees and we just received this testimonial along with the pictures in the gallery below.

Jamie, I have some pictures for you with our BGD goodies! Apologies they have taken so long. Please feel free to photoshop the wrinkles and circles from our eyes Just some background info for you: with my ring (1/2 u-prong eternity), this was a push present from my husband for our baby Benjamin. When I showed Alex and Soan (who travelled with us to Las Vegas and Hawaii) the glamour shots of the eternity, they were so impressed, they just had to get one for Soan (1/2 bead set eternity)! Unbeknownst to me at the time, Soan was actually pregnant (she is due in mid October)! And also unbeknownst to both Soan and myself, Alex secretly bought Soan the BGD loose stone. Needless to say, when she unwrapped her package, she was extremely surprised! She was especially surprised that Alex was able to keep it a secret from her for so long as he is a big blabbermouth. We are all so impressed with our goodies. Our rings are so super sparkly and my necklace was very elegant and delicate. We could not stop looking at our bling during our trip. I then had to get something special for my mum too – hence the last minute purchase of the sapphire halo necklace. My mum kept commenting on how bright and sparkly the diamonds were, even though they were small. Thank you so much Jamie for helping both myself and Alex with our purchases. You have been so fantastic to deal with and made our experience so smooth and easy. Thanks to everyone at BGD for our gorgeous jewellery. I can't wait to receive our next pieces! Thank you! Khanh

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

In 2009 WT called in inquiring about purchasing a fishtail pave engagement ring and Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds for his future wife, Nancy. We were always pleased to hear his voice when he called in getting closer to making his purchase. Needless to say, Nancy was thrilled with her beautiful new ring.

A few weeks ago they sent in the engagement ring to be checked and refinished and ordered the matching fishtail pave band. When they received the new set they e-mailed us a link to their wedding  website and we feature some pictures from it today.

Congratulations to our dear customers WT and Nancy on their upcoming wedding!!

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

Following are just 5 of the projects we have shipped in the past few weeks. Details and Pictures follow for our readers to enjoy!

• PROJECT 1

Custom 18kt 2- Tone Diamond Halo setting  featuring approximately .75ctw of F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature Melee size (yellow gold bezel and white gold shank) – set with a  Jeff White cushion cut canary stone – approx 10 x 10mm

It is so beautiful! I can't wait to receive it Tuesday! Thanks much! Jackie

• PROJECT 2

Halo Pendant with airline using F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature melee and 16" cable chain. Center stone is a .52 G SI1 Brian Gavin Signature H & A.

Lesley, I absolutely LOVE the necklace! It is exactly what I pictured in my mind. Thank you so much for all of your help!  Amy

• PROJECT 3

Custom Double Row Diamond Huggie style earrings in 18k White Gold set w/ 24 x 0.03 = 0.72 ctw F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature melee

Hi Denise, I'm been rather busy but just wanted to let you know how much I love my earrings. They are so sparkly and absolutely comfortable. As a matter of fact, I can't even feel them on my ears. I had a couple of miscues with our local fedex office but finally picked them up on Wednesday before Christmas and I have worn them every day since. Please tell Brian and Lesley how absolutely perfect they are and that I am one very happy customer. Happy New Year to all of you. Warmly, Gayle

• PROJECT 4

Custom Platinum Ladies Diamond band featuring approx 1.40ctw of F/G VS Square Cut Diamonds

Custom Platinum Men's Wedding band featuring alternating diamonds of approx 3- 2×2 Square Cut diamonds and 3- 3×3 Square cut diamonds F/G VS

Lesley, I picked up the rings today – they are beautiful! We're both really excited to wear them. I'll send some pictures of our wedding and some close ups of the rings, especially Kirby's wedding and engagement rings together. Thanks, Kyle

• PROJECT 5

Platinum 6mm fancy comfort fit men's band with 5 (2.3 x 2.3mm) G/H VS princess cut diamonds (approx .40 ctw)

Platinum 3mm full eternity bead set band featuring 2.8mm F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature melee

Thanks Lesley, They look beautiful. The rings look amazing in person. Steven

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

© 2011, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

In August Layla started speaking with us about creating a diamond band for her. She was initially interested in a version of Lesley’s new rose gold and platinum diamond band but decided that she wanted to incorporate some certified Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds. She sent us several inspiration pictures from different websites to illustrate what she envisioned.

The project was put on hold temporarily and 3 weeks ago she called in that she was ready to get started. She worked with Brian to select 5 x 0.31 to 0.32 ct G SI1 Brian Gavin Signature Hearts and Arrows diamonds which would be set together with 8 x .10 ct F/G VS Brian Gavin Signature melee. We e-mailed her the first CAD rendition, and after she requested feedback on Pricescope, we made some subtle changes, e-mailed her the second CAD for approval and then milled the wax.

Layla had requested that in addition to the usual Glamor Shots that are included with every Brian Gavin piece, we provide her with pictures of the wax and empty casting, which we built into the final price.

WOW. It looks so delicate and beautiful. It turned out amazing. And that's WITHOUT the jaw dropping diamonds! I can't wait to open that box!

Needless to say, the finished piece was a masterpiece. The diamonds were all set with fine prongs and the underside of the shank was hand milgrained to provide the finishing touch. Layla named her diamond band after Aurora, the Roman Goddess of the Dawn

I ADORE IT. I absolutely adore it. And there is nothing understated about it. It is just amazing.

Enjoy the video and pictures in the gallery below:

© 2010, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.

A very loyal customer recently sent her diamond engagement ring in for a reset and we just received this wonderful e-mail from her:

Hi Lesley, I received my rings last week right before Thanksgiving weekend. Perfect timing! I love the reset into the new setting w/ wedding band. I think the way the fishtail pave looks itself gives all the melees even more sparkle. And the craftsmanship is AMAZING. Not a single prong on my full eternity wedding band or engagement ring snags any of my clothing. And thank you so much for the new blankee. I almost want to use it myself instead of letting my son use it. It really is quality material.

The business you run and the service is like none other. I'd follow you to the moon if that's where you went. I have tried to apply your same energy, attitude, and warmth to my clients in my business. I am in the financial industry and help clients with financial planning and insurance needs. I talk to clients day in and day out since 1997. But not until I encountered you and your service over the last few years have I really given some serious thought to why people on the forum love you and are so loyal to you and your company.

I find myself sometimes just getting into the daily grind of things and forget that extraordinary customer service is what keeps clients and the referrals coming. In other words, why you are so successful. And even though you and Brian started over with BGD (when any others would have thought it seems so difficult to start from scratch again), because of that special element you have that is so personable, there's no other way but to really take off with flying colors.

I have a lot to learn, and its funny how one learns the lesson in odd little places. Some things I love about BGD:

1. You, Lesley Harris.
2. You & how you remember little personal details I mention throughout the years. It doesn't matter whether you remember by memory or you jotted it down in the memo, but it's special.
3. The thought you put into everything, not limited to but including the polka dot baby blanket I received for my precious son, which started the BGD Signature Blankee.
4. The picture of Brian saying "THANKS for the support" that comes along with the package.
5. How it's stated so honestly on social networking that you want us to help spread the word of BGD, so in return we may win a BGD signature Tit. rose pin. Love it! Because I won one!
6. The amazing detail that goes into each piece created. Where one can tell detail was a priority.
7. All the little extras, like the white gloves, high quality ring/jewelry box.

Thank you all for making this experience such a pleasurable one. May each and everyone at BGD have a wonderful holiday season! Lots of good wishes sent your way, Ying

© 2010, Brian Gavin. All rights reserved. Including all photographs, written word and video, but not limited to unless noted.