We're rewriting the old narrative that said your partner had to buy your fine jewelry. We believe wholeheartedly in the empowerment that comes from buying your own jewels - to celebrate a milestone, symbolize a meaningful moment, or just because you love it! Keep reading for some of our own stories of self-gifting and what those pieces mean to us.
Alyssa, Marketing Manager
I had this ring made by Maria at the North Way Studio. It was my first custom piece. Before this ring, all my jewelry had been mainstream, mass-produced, and store bought. It was exciting to have input into the design - I pulled inspiration from her in-stock and custom pieces along with other vintage pieces I loved.
When I went down to pick up the finished ring, Maria was doing a pop-up with Catherine and I finally got to meet her (and see the GB rings) in person after following her for a long time. This was even before I dreamed of working for her.
I named this ring Rose Whiskey – it’s a 1.93 imperial pink zircon (not to be confused with cubic zirconia) set in rose gold. The basket sits high in a cathedral setting, there’s little diamonds in a hidden halo, and hand-carved leaves creeping up the sides. It was the epitome of everything I loved at the time.
This ring was my 25th birthday present to myself. Turning 25 felt monumental (a quarter century) so I wanted to do something extra special to commemorate it. I had my birthday engraved on the inside so that when I pass it down to my children it has extra meaning. If my kids ever get rid of it, I love the idea of a stranger finding this mysterious engraving inside.
This was my divorce ring – I hawked the engagement ring from my first marriage and used the funds to make this one. It’s a teal radiant cut sapphire with trapezoid side diamonds in peach gold. I feel like Cat is the queen of the three-stone ring – it feels almost as signature as our Stella or Mirella.
I love jewelry to have a story – each piece is a reminder of my life at that time. I like to imagine myself later in life explaining to my kids (hopefully they like jewelry too) the story of how I hawked my first wedding ring to make this one!
I have the original flat Equinox band in peach gold of course – that’s one of the coolest aspects of working with Cat, most people don’t have their own custom gold color. The design for Equinox was my idea – an ode to my astrology obsession. I am the quintessential Pisces - every piece of Piscean content always hits for me.
My Equinox band is hand-engraved with constellations, crescent moons, and secret imagery that’s a nod my partner and I. I have the same engraving on my engagement ring band but it's a touch more custom with our own unique constellations.
This ring was another birthday present to myself – it’s a 5 or 7 carat aquamarine (my birthstone) in white gold. I’d been following this New Orleans jewelry store on Instagram for a while, so when I went there for a work trip, I had to visit. When I saw the stone, I fell in love. I always envisioned myself resetting it because I didn’t love the setting, but now it’s grown on me because I feel like someone created it that way for a reason.
I bought this the summer before I started at Gem Breakfast.
Catherine, Founder
I used to live near this gorgeous little jewelry store in SF. The woman who worked there would humor me while I tried on everything in the store. I bought my first real piece from her, a little diamond band.
Culturally we’ve been taught that your partner should buy fine jewelry for you - it feels really special and empowering to make that purchase yourself and not wait for somebody else to pick it out for you.
The bling on this ring is everything - I had to have it. I love a five stone band but this one is next level - the massive high-quality diamonds and four prongs on every stone, I couldn't resist. I wear this with my redesigned engagement ring and sometimes I squeeze a couple other bands in there. More is more, always ;)
I love our Bamboo band – I think it’s very underrated. It’s hand-engraved, and has a vintage, organic feel to it. This is the ring to add interest and texture to any stack. Bamboo is also very symbolic, it’s strong yet flexible and can grow almost anywhere – all traits I value in my life and my business.
I love the French pavé setting on these stones – it’s stunning from the top and the intricate side-view never gets old. I love looking down at my rings and appreciating the details from every angle.
I tried to resist these rings but I couldn't - I mean look at it! The thick gold band, hand-engraved evil eyes, and those pink sapphires (we all know I love pink) - it's bomb. Evil eyes are talismans of protection - warding off negativity and bringing luck to the wearer. As if the design wasn't enough to hook me in, the symbolism pushed it over the edge for me.
This one's very special to me - our Bae band hand-engraved with my son’s name. I wear it every day in my wedding stack and it makes me happy whenever I look down.
I love the way we do hand-engraving – you can really see the texture and depth to it.
Sara, Fine Jewelry Specialist
This was the first ring I ever bought for myself (and my first custom piece). It was a commemoration of graduating from college, becoming an adult, and entering a career. It’s made by an Australian designer who I’d been following for a long time.
The custom experience is so special. The same way I love creating custom pieces for our customers, I also love going through the process with other designers. This ring is half smokey quartz and half citrine with some crazy inclusions. It kind of looks like a cigarette so I asked them to make the ring look like a cigarette that’s burning.
I made this ring myself while living alone for the first time in L.A. It was my first time making a ring in this setting style and I wear it almost every day.
It’s clear quartz with a yellow petroleum inclusion (a moving bubble of gasoline) that glows under UV light. I’m very stone driven and that’s why I love the work I do with Cat and for our clients.
This was the first ring I ever fabricated. It’s an 18kt flat band that I rolled out the gold for and soldered. There’s something very sentimental about making jewelry by hand - taking an idea and bringing it to life.
I love wearing a high-karat plain band every day because it’s so durable.
Courtney, Blog Writer
When my mom went back to work after my parents split up, she used her first paycheck to buy herself a diamond ring. I think it was a symbol of independance and empowerment for her (also it was stunning and my mom was all about the glamour). This ring felt like that for me - I bought it as a celebration of my third year in business. It was my first Gem Breakfast ring and I wear it every day - stacked with straight bands, other tiara bands, and solitaires. I love it just as much today.
I bought this ring just because I loved it and I wanted a ring for my pointer finger. Once you give yourself permission to buy the things you love, there's no going back! I love the combination of the milgrain and the sleek gold - it's classic with a touch of texture.
It's funny, when I bought this ring I thought it was a crown. When I got it home, I realized it was a row of hearts and I was wearing it upside down! I still mostly wear it upside down (I'm a Leo so I can obviously never resist a crown). I love that it's sparkly, textured, and minimal all at the same. I wear it alone on my middle finger or stacked with a few other bands on my ring finger. That's another thing - let's buy our own jewelry AND wear non-engagement rings on our ring finger if we feel like it!
