I Created A Magical Elven Ring That Turned My Girlfriend Into My Fiance

Hey, pandas! My name is Dovas, and I’m the editor at Bored Panda. I’d like to tell you the story of how I made an engagement ring to propose to Elena, the love of my life!

I wanted to do something truly special – and something that would provide us with a story to tell to our children and grandchildren. Because I like to sculpt wood and clay, I decided to, in one way or another, create a ring of my own design. Eventually, I found a jeweler who agreed to take anything I’d make out of wax and cast it in gold! Read on to see the ring and how I made it (and how I kept it a secret from her).

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Here’s the piece of wax that I started with:

I kept my tools in a box that I could pack and hide quickly if she came home

We both love the outdoors, so I knew it’d have a nature theme

I’ve never made something so small, so I worked slowly – it took me more than 40 hours!

I had to work with a magnifying glass to see what I was doing

I used a camera lens blower to remove dust and scraps of wax

All finished – time to bring it to the jeweler’s

After casting it in gold and adding a green tourmaline gemstone… It looked like this! Success!

The stone has a deep evergreen color, but burns with a brilliant forest-green when it catches the light

Now for the box… after all, presentation is key

I’ll paint the panels and then add a second layer of wood over them

For my first time painting since elementary school, I don’t think I did too bad!

I covered the inside with paper that I marbled with green, blue, yellow and purple watercolors

I invited Elena out for a walk in the woods near our apartment…

Luckily for me, she said yes!