Sacred Red Cedar, White Pine and Juniper wood rings for Katie and Ian

Katie and I began our conversation in November last year shortly after she and Ian were engaged. She told us that they always try to support local businesses and people who are living and working sustainably. We're so happy they chose to work with us. What an awesome couple!


Katie and Ian gathered branch wood with special meaning to them; Western Red Cedar from the Vancouver Island, and White Pine and Juniper root from Georgian Bay in Ontario.


I know I've said this before but it's a little like being a kid on Christmas morning when David makes the first cuts into a special branch and we get a glimpse at the figure and colours of the wood.
Always, with respect and gratitude to the trees whose branches were shared.  
David made suggestions on which woods would be most beautiful and most durable for their rings. They decided on the Juniper root for the primary wood, the Georgian Bay White Pine for the liners and inlays of their Western Red Cedar.

They were married in September and recently sent us some pics of their celebration :) and this lovely email.

"Here's what we said about the rings during our ceremony. We wanted to highlight their symbolism in our vows, and we also had them passed around among our guests in a "ring warming" ceremony so everyone could place a wish on the rings for us before we put them on. 

The white pine and juniper root symbolize our deep roots in Ontario and our love for our families and friends who live there and for the people and landscape that made us who we are.

The western red cedar symbolizes our choice to continue building our life together on the west coast, our friendships made here and our mutual love of adventure in the mountains.

The juniper root reminds us how relationships can sometimes be prickly, but are also resilient.

The white pine, which leans away from the west because of the wind, reminds us to stand tall and proud, and also that sometimes you need to bend and compromise to be successful in your environment.

The western red cedar reminds us to always keep growing and to have a long life of providing for and nurturing those around us.

We're absolutely loving them! Thanks again! I hope the photos and our words help show our appreciation for all of the hard work you both put into making our rings so special. :)

All the best, Katie and Ian"

~ Wedding photos by @braceyphoto ~

Our congratulations and our thanks to Katie and Ian. 

With dearest love ~ as ever.

Touch Wood Rings, Pear and Inner Peace

Touch Wood Rings for Kait and Josh ~ Pear and Hawaiian Koa

 The symbolism associated with pear trees speaks of prosperity, longevity and inner peace.

Fellow Canadians Kait and Josh first contacted us in March. 

They wanted to use pear wood from a tree that has significance to them and were hoping to incorporate the heartwood and the sapwood in their designs.

David and I often say that cutting a branch of wood makes us feel like kids on Christmas morning. It is always a gift to discover the wood inside a branch and this pear wood was a delightful surprise. The heartwood of Josh and Kait's pear branch was beautiful and the sapwood had real character too. Perfect for their designs.

They chose a rich Hawaiian Koa as the primary wood for their rings with spiraled inlays of their pear heartwood and sapwood and interior liners of the lighter pear sapwood to accommodate their inscriptions.  

When we sent final photographs of their rings, Kait wrote: "We are just blown away! The rings are so beautiful! The pear wood looks great with the koa!! I can't believe we have to wait until our wedding in October to wear them!"

It's August now :) so not too much longer to wait ...

We look forward to some photos from your wedding and we hope you have an exciting and happy few months leading up to your Fall celebration.  Remember to breathe!

Much love, as always

Nicola and David

Touch Wood Rings
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Married under a Full Moon

Lindsey and I began our conversations back in October of 2015.  Right from her first email I felt a kinship with Lindsey ~ she's a massage therapist, and her beloved; Jeff is a Chef and a guitar player. As Lindsey explained; their hands are their tools. They are both genuine, warm and positive people. And they have a truck load of beautiful dogs!! :)

In March of this year, David created the rings they designed: Hawaiian Koa Wood, Greyed Maple and Lindsey's ring has an inlay of some of her own special raw opal. Opal being her birthstone.

They were married at Point Reyes, California, surrounded by friends and family ~ and with David and I attending if only in spirit.  :)  We got this lovely email from Lindsey and Jeff just a few weeks after their wedding.

"Our wedding was the most beautiful and memorable event of our lives. Everything was perfect beyond our wildest dreams! All of our friends and family were gathered and beautiful Point Reyes, California for a wonderful weekend. The weather had been threatening all week. Right up until right before the ceremony the clouds were thick. As the bridal procession began, the clouds parted and the sun came shining through. It remained beautiful all day and into the night, so that the full moon shone brightly over us. The ceremony began at 4 pm and the festivities continued until 2 am. The food was amazing and nearly 20 musicians (mostly friends) performed throughout the day and night.

The ceremony was really very beautiful and moving. A lot of laughter, a lot of tears, and mostly a lot of joy. During the ring ceremony our officiant spoke specifically about the rings and about their meaning. Everyone loves them, especially us.

Thank you for your support, kind words, and extraordinary artistry. The rings are perfect for us! We will continue to follow you and your work through Facebook and wish you both the very best!"

Thanks so much Jeff and Lindsey. David and I wish you both tremendous happiness in the days and years to come and we will give the last pic to your pups who will be delighted to have you home again after your much anticipated honeymoon to Cuba!!  :)   

Raphi and Erin's Wedding Day at Two Pony Gardens

 

It's almost exactly a year since we began our conversation with Erin and Raphi.  At the time, Raphi was teaching in St. Petersburg, Russia while Erin was back and forth between visits to Russia and life at home in the US.  It's been a busy year for these two :)   Travelling, working  overseas, planning their wedding, packing up their home and moving across the country ... and now : ) settling in to their new home and Raphi's new teaching position in San Diego.

David and I so enjoyed working with Erin and Raphi. Kind, gentle souls and they are pretty cool too :) They biked 30 miles to their wedding location the day of the ceremony!! I just love that!!!  What a way to go.

We received an email from the newlyweds just recently and they have kindly allowed us to share it along with these lovely photos of their wedding celebration. The photos were taken by Mackenzie Orth, their photographer.  There are hundreds of beautiful photos to choose from ~ I'd like to post them all.  David and I feel so honoured to be invited in to wander through their day in photographs and share in so many beautiful moments ...

From Erin and Raphi  We can't thank you enough for the gorgeous rings that you crafted for us! They are absolutely magical and are so special in their representation of us as individuals and a couple. We had a friend of ours talk about our rings and their design during our ceremony - they have been a conversation topic ever since.

We had our celebration at Two Pony Gardens - a pizza farm just outside of the Twin Cities. There was a dahlia garden, an outdoor pizza oven with freshly-made pizzas, an upbeat Ukrainian band, and most of all our beloved friends and family. The weather was perfect. That morning Raphi and I biked the 30 miles to the farm together, worked with friends and family to get everything set up, took a horse-drawn carriage ride through the woods together, had a wonderful celebration of our love with pizza and dancing, and spent the night in a yurt in the woods. It was magic.  I wanted to send you some photos from our wedding - our lovely photographer Mackenzie Orth did a great job of capturing our special day and celebration.
It was such a pleasure to work with you on designing our rings. Thanks again for being a part of our special day - the part that will stay with us for years to come! Erin and Raphi

Hawaiian Koa, with spiraled Birch and Andean Opal inlays

We are so happy for you both!  Sending dearest love and warmest wishes for your happiness ~ and our sincere thanks for coming to us to help you create your wedding rings.  What a pleasure it's been!  Much love, as ever, Nicola and David.

Wooden Wedding Rings in Costa Rica

"I cannot express to you the absolute joy you brought to us with the rings you made only for us, with the woods that emulated our love. Your handcrafted rings were a vital part of our sacred ceremony in Costa Rica.
I have attached photos to convey how amazing this day was for us, and your part in it.
After we returned, we found the rings to be such a bind between us, knowing that we shared the same trees, the same meaning, and the same spirit that created our rings.
Thank you again for brightening our lives."

An alternative to traditional wedding rings

When Brenda first wrote she thanked us for having this alternative to the traditional wedding ring. She said she'd known she wanted wood wedding rings for a long time. These beautiful blackwood and blue spruce rings will be winding their way to Jamaica in a few months.

She wrote "We love our rings... Everyone we've shown is very impressed as well. Not only by the beauty, but also by the idea of a wooden ring instead of metal. We'll keep in touch and send pictures of the wedding! My expectations have far been exceeded!
Thank you both so much!"

And you are both so welcome Brenda. It's been our pleasure!