Debbie Sinclair, Partner at Sinclairs in Inverurie, Scotland, talks about an 18ct gold diamond ring that was a gift from her dad. 

My Perfect Piece is an 18ct gold white and gold dress ring inlaid with five rows of diamonds. It has a beautiful crossover design, with four of the diamond rows set in a white gold claw setting and the central row of diamonds set in a rose gold rub over setting. 

The ring itself is pretty broad and people often mistake it for two or three separate rings rather than one piece. 

I first saw the ring at the IJL trade show in London and it was love at first sight. I bought it as stock for my dad’s shop and tried it on every day for six weeks, until it was eventually purchased by a customer. We talked briefly about reordering it as it had sold so quickly but I refused to entertain the idea – the only way it was coming back into store was if it was for me! I was joking of course, but in the end we never reordered it and I eventually stopped thinking about it. 

It was over a year later when Dad surprised me with it totally out of the blue. I was going through a difficult period at the time and it is a moment I have never forgotten. 

I have been wearing it ever since and could never imagine replacing it. I feel so lucky to own such a special piece and I have had so many people comment on how beautiful it is. 

It will always remind me of my dad but one day, hopefully many years from now, I will pass it on to my daughter Sophie. She is only nine at the moment, however, so she will have to wait a long time before she gets it to look after.

Even to this day a lot of people comment on my ring and quite often ask to try it on. Hopefully they think I’m lucky to own such a special piece of jewellery. Some people probably think I’m spoilt but I can live with that!

The Perfect Piece is a series of stories from CMJ members and staff about the pieces that mean the most to them.