Yes, I do - want to design my own engagement ring!
In her Viennese studio in the 3rd district, Mascha Lina, her four employees plus office dog manager Wilma are constantly working on new designs. The motivation behind it: luxurious, high-quality jewelry. In addition to what are probably the most exclusive statement earrings in the city, Mascha Lina had the honor of designing a completely individual piece of jewelry for the first time a few months ago: an engagement ring. But this was not at the request of a customer, but for her future fiancé, who got down on his knees last spring on the Cote D'Azur and asked Mascha Lina for her hand in marriage - with probably the most significant ring in his. The answer was, therefore, clearer than ever: YES, YES, YES!
At the age of 20, the Salzburg native founded her jewelry label MASCHALINA. Since then, this not only produces unique jewelry, such as earrings and bracelets but also stands with her name for fairness, regionality, and inclusion, because all jewelry is namely made in regional, social workshops. The jewelry designer attaches great importance to the quality of her designs: "They should not only look high-quality but also really be so." This is precisely why the label works with selected materials - certain semi-precious stones, rose quartz, freshwater, and Swarovski pearls.
Have you always known you wanted to design your own engagement ring?
No, not at all. Last summer, when my fiancé was trying to figure out what kind of ring or stone shape I would like, he realised pretty quickly that with a jewellery designer as a girlfriend, he could only lose when it came to choosing an engagement ring. He asked me what I would think about designing a ring myself. "For me as a jewellery designer, it was the most beautiful and appreciative gift another person has ever given me."
"For me as a jewellery designer, it was the most beautiful and appreciative gift another person has ever given me."
When you decide to design a ring, you have endless possibilities: the colour, the stone, the shape. What were your top 3 criteria when designing your own engagement ring?
On the one hand, I wanted to create a design that symbolised the love between me and my fiancé. Which is why our initalia C and M are integrated into the ring setting. On the other hand, it was enormously important for me to deal with the topic of fair diamonds and transparency. After a long study of the subject, I definitely did not want to buy the blindly most expensive stones, but simply the best value for money for the visually best stone.
What was your approach? Where did you start?
As with the design of my earrings, ideas were first put on paper and then graphic sketches were made. The next step was to make an appointment with a jeweller friend of mine who still had their own goldsmiths in house. Koppenwallner jewellers then used their technology to 3D print the designed ring setting so that I could already visualise it. When buying the stones, I first read up on the subject as described and met dealers through private contacts. But it took some time before I could really see a transparent approach.
How long did it take until you finally held your "heart's project" in your hands?
It took 8 months from the beginning of the sketches to the application. This was actually due to the lack of transparency in the diamond industry. Moreover, at the beginning of this phase I was convinced that a natural diamond would be more authentic, better and more romantic than a laboratory diamond. However, the longer and more detailed we dealt with the topic, the more I became convinced that new mined diamonds coming onto the market today are no longer ethically justifiable and absolutely not up to date.
"I would like to dispel the luxury fairytale of "investment" for eternity and diamonds with a special history."
Designing your own engagement ring is definitely a project with some obstacles and tough decisions. What was the biggest challenge for you during the whole process?
The idea and sketches were actually developed quite quickly. Designing has been my job for almost 10 years and even with such a unique piece as your own engagement ring, the approach is not that different from designing new earring collections. One must not lose sight of the basic idea. Around the basic element of a design, you can of course play around creatively during the process, but in the end you must not lose the sense for simplicity and a harmony of colours and shapes. The biggest challenge, as already mentioned, was the lack of transparency when buying the stones. One dealer had made it known to us that she would only add a 10% brokerage fee to the original price of the stone as a friendship price. After entering the certificate number in a wholesale platform for which I have access as a designer, I immediately found the stone and it turned out that her margin was actually not 10% but 70%. After experiences like this, it was clear to me that I did not want to wear a naturally mined diamond on my hand, or perhaps even blood diamonds in case of doubt. Finally, finding a dealer who met these requirements took quite some time.
Lab Grown Diamonds vs. Natural Diamonds: In your opinion, what are the most important advantages of lab-grown diamonds?
Besides the ethical aspect, there are also many other reasons and positive arguments in favour of lab-grown diamonds. Supply chains are transparent and therefore make the origin 100% traceable. Once you have decided on the budget you want to spend on a piece of jewellery, you can choose a much nicer colour, clarity, brilliance or even size from Labor Diamonds. The look of these stones, in short, is simply better. This consideration makes a lot of sense for a piece of jewellery that you wear every day and for a long time. The current highest colour quality of diamonds is at the letter D, then E, then F and so on. (descending). A high quality diamond should ideally be triple Excellent, (condition: symmetry, cut, polish) rated by GIA and optically white (condition: colour D, E, F). But even here there are other criteria that further define the nature of the diamond and determine its value. All criteria are almost never mentioned or deliberately used for profit by classical jewellers. It is really a science of its own!
According to the Instagram photos, it was an engagement full of joy! How would you describe your engagement ring in three words?
Love, unique, fair!
