How Taylor Swift's Engagement Ring Is Changing the Diamond Game

"Last fall, the jewelry designer Kindred Lubeck took an elevator up six floors to a high-end showroom in New York's diamond district. She was buzzed inside a fluorescent-lit vestibule, then waited; the front door had to lock securely behind her before a second could open. On the other side, a man in a gray suit named Chirag Mehta greeted her."

"Mehta is the president of Sim Gems USA, a diamond dealer that sources investment-worthy stones for discerning billionaires; his customers include Nita Ambani, the wife of the richest man in Asia. Mehta had only recently learned of Lubeck's work. In August, she was revealed as the designer of Taylor Swift's engagement ring-an old-mine brilliant cut set in a yellow-gold band that Lubeck engraved by hand."

Kindred Lubeck has popularized old-mine-cut diamonds and antique-inspired, hand-engraved settings through social media, auctions, and a high-profile engagement ring commission. Lubeck learned metalsmithing from her father, developed an antique aesthetic during the pandemic, and launched Artifex Fine before moving to New York in 2024. Dealers and auction houses responded quickly, with Sim Gems USA and Sotheby's handling investment-worthy stones and closed-bid auctions. High-net-worth collectors, including billionaires, have shown interest in old-mine-cut stones that emphasize unique cutters' characteristics rather than modern symmetry, leading to renewed demand for these vintage-style gems.

Read at The New Yorker