Keep the ring, lose the man: Are divorce rings the latest statement of self-love?

Following her divorce in 2022, model Emily Ratajkowski has repurposed her former engagement ring

In a bold move that challenges traditional notions of jewellry and personal evolution, model Emily Ratajkowski has unveiled her latest additions to her jewelry collection: divorce rings. Following her 2022 divorce from Sebastian Bear-McClard, with whom she shares a son named Sylvester, Ratajkowski decided to repurpose her former engagement ring into two new ring styles, imbuing them with new meaning and symbolism.

Making the announcement on Instagram, Ratajkowski shared her inspiration and intentions behind the innovative concept. “The rings represent my own personal evolution,” she revealed in an exclusive interview with Vogue. “I don’t think a woman should be stripped of her diamonds just because she’s losing a man.”

The idea to repurpose the rings came to Ratajkowski while reading her friend Stephanie Danler’s essay The Unravelers in The Paris Review. “It includes the story of her grandmother’s snake ring—a ring that is made up of the different stones from her various marriages,” the supermodel explained. “I loved the idea of a ring unabashedly representing the many lives a woman has lived.”

Teaming up with her jeweller friend Alison Chemla, the creative director behind fine-jewellry brand Alison Lou, Ratajkowski embarked on the journey to transform her former engagement ring into divorce rings. “Emily and I spent a lot of time talking about what she wanted and how she wanted to feel when wearing the rings,” Chemla shared.

The result of their collaboration is a stunning pair of rings that give Ratajkowski’s former engagement ring an entirely new feel. “The idea of divorce is a separation, so it was always going to be splitting the ring into two separate but complementary rings,” Chemla explained. Both pieces incorporate the original engagement ring’s existing stones—a pear-shaped diamond and a princess-cut diamond—along with platinum and 18-karat yellow gold settings.

Ratajkowski drew inspiration from Rihanna for the silhouette of the new rings. “I was very inspired by Rihanna’s diamond pinky-toe ring—I liked the idea of my former wedding ring ending up on my pinky,” she expressed. The princess cut presented a challenge, as Ratajkowski sought a design that felt fresh yet timeless. “Alison and I worked together to find something that felt fresh but also timeless,” she added.

Beyond the design process, the rings hold deep significance for Ratajkowski, symbolizing a turning point in her life. “The ring became symbolic to me—some kind of token or evidence of my life becoming my own again,” she reflected. Putting on the rings for the first time, Ratajkowski felt a sense of empowerment, using accessorizing to reshape the narrative around divorce and moving on.

As she looks toward the future, she sees the rings as a reminder of her ability to find happiness and fulfillment independently. “Somehow, these rings feel like a reminder that I can make myself happy in ways I never imagined,” she concluded.