Kate Middleton altered Princess Dianas £400k engagement ring to avoid worst nightmare
Kate Middleton shows off engagement ring in 2010 interview
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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge married in 2011 in Westminster Abbey, and Kate is still seen wearing Princess Diana’s former blue sapphire engagement ring. The ring features a 12-carat oval blue sapphire surrounded by fourteen solitaire diamonds. However, Kate needed to make some changes to the ring when William first proposed.
After Prince William popped the question and presented Kate with the dazzling sapphire from his late mother’s collection, they realised that the ring would need to be resized.
It is reported that the Duchess had to have the special ring adjusted because it was a little too big.
Kate and William went to jeweller G. Collins and Sons to resize the ring.
They did this by adding small platinum beads inside the band to reduce its diameter.
This meant they did not have to break and resolder the band itself.
A source told The Sun at the time that Kate ‘adores’ the ring, but found it was too big.
The source added: “A bride’s worst nightmare is looking down and seeing her ring has fallen off.
“One can only imagine how this is magnified when you are marrying the future King of England.”
Great care would have been taken not to affect the striking Sapphire stone and surrounding diamond halo, the two elements which made this dazzling ring so memorable.
As this ring previously belonged to Prince William’s late mother, he would have taken drastic care not to damage its original form, as would the Duchess of Cambridge.
Princess Diana originally selected this ring herself, and reportedly, it reminded her of her mother’s engagement ring, and also matched her eyes.
According to The Court Jeweller, it would have cost approximately £28,500 at the time in 1981. However, since becoming part of Kate’s collection, the value has been reported between £350,000 and £400,000.
Kate now wears the ring alongside her beautiful wedding ring, which is made from Welsh gold.
Her engagement ring is an iconic style that now many brides try to emulate, and Beaverbrooks have an impressive dupe that looks very similar to the real thing, for £3,750.
However, according to the programme ‘The Diana Story’, Kate nearly did not get her late mother-in-law’s ring.
That is because the gorgeous piece of jewellery previously belonged to Prince Harry.
In the programme, Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell told how Harry “selflessly” gave up the ring, so William could give it to his fiancée when he proposed.
Kate is not the only royal bride who has altered her engagement ring though, as Meghan Markle also changed the ring she received from Prince Harry.
Back in June 2019, it became clear the Duchess had redesigned her gorgeous engagement ring. The ring’s gold band was replaced by a delicate diamond-studded band, completely changing its look.
The glowing band perfectly complemented her large Botswana diamond and the two on either side from Princess Diana’s collection.
A third addition was then added to Meghan’s collection, which was an eternity ring from Prince Harry to celebrate their first wedding anniversary on 19 May 2019.
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