A Custom Wedding Ring Built from First Dates, Hockey Rinks, and a Beloved Dog
Everyone collects something. Ticket stubs, handwritten notes, or a necklace you haven’t worn in years but can’t bring yourself to throw away. Most of it ends up in a drawer, holding memories only you understand. To anyone else, it’s clutter. To you, it’s chapters of your story.
Clayton wanted those memories turned into a custom wedding ring. The ring would be crafted from personal keepsakes gathered over the years: movie tickets from early dates, zoo passes, train stubs, the charm from the first piece of jewelry he gave his partner, and even his dog’s baby teeth and fur. At the center, a titanium wedding band built around a hockey skate blade worn down by years on the ice. On the inside, a laser-engraved fingerprint paired with the name of his wife Elizabeth.
None of it made sense together unless you knew the story. That was the point.
Clayton wanted a ring that worked like a scrapbook. Three inlays, each holding a different chapter: the dog and necklace charm, the skate blade, and keepsakes from their journey together, including fabric from their wedding suit and dress. A whole life, wrapped around a finger.
The ring required three separate inlay sections, each with its own challenges. We started with the hardest.
Hockey skate blades are hardened steel, built to hold an edge through years of stops and cuts. That same hardness makes them difficult to machine. To work with it, we annealed the blade, heating it to soften the metal enough to shape. From there, we machined a section to fit the center inlay groove of the titanium ring. The tolerances were delicate. Too loose and the steel wouldn’t sit correctly. If it was too tight, we risked cracking it.
Using laser welding, the skate blade steel was joined to the titanium band without distorting either material. The surface was then finished by hand until the transition felt smooth and uninterrupted.
The first inlay held some of the most personal materials we’ve worked with: baby teeth from Clayton’s dog, a tuft of fur, and pieces of a necklace charm. Each element was arranged by hand, balancing texture and placement before being sealed in resin. The teeth and charm remained visible, while the fur added warmth and depth to the inlay.
"I have gone ring shopping a dozen times, and nothing a jeweler had to offer struck my fancy. A custom ring with the important things from our relationship and my life is so cool." - Clayton
The third inlay told the story of Clayton and Elizabeth’s relationship from dating to marriage. Concert tickets, movie stubs, and paper keepsakes were layered alongside fabric from their wedding suit and dress, then sealed together into a single inlay. The result is a dense, personal mosaic of moments that only Clayton fully understands.
The inside of the band carries a fingerprint engraving, laser-engraved alongside the name “Elizabeth.” This step came last. If anything went wrong here, the entire ring would need to be remade. The fingerprint was carefully scaled and positioned to wrap naturally along the band's curve before the laser was run.
To someone else, this ring is titanium with a few interesting inlays. To Clayton, it’s everything. First dates, a dog who grew up alongside their relationship, years on the ice, their wedding day, and a fingerprint. The whole story is there, but only he can read it.
This is the kind of custom keepsake wedding ring we enjoy building most. Someone brings us a collection of items that matter, and we figure out how to turn them into something durable, wearable, and deeply personal.
If you’ve got a drawer full of keepsakes that tell a story only you know, we can help turn them into something permanent. Reach out and let’s talk about it.
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