It’s been a whirlwind year for singer Britney Spears, capped off June 9 by her much anticipated yet completely surprising wedding to Sam Asghari. But one person was aware of the upcoming nuptials: jewelry designer Stephanie Gottlieb.
When Spears married her longtime love at her Los Angeles home, Gottlieb was prepared with wedding jewelry made for the happy couple. On their wedding day, Spears wore 62 carats of diamonds from Gottlieb worth $570,000, she says, including pear-shape drop earrings, a heart-shape diamond tennis necklace, and an oval diamond tennis bracelet.
Gottlieb also created custom wedding bands for Spears and Asghari with the singer selecting a stack of two bands to pair with her engagement ring and the actor selecting two platinum bands, Gottlieb says. The classic dress Spears chose inspired much of Gottlieb’s jewelry design, making a statement while still remaining classic.
Gottlieb spoke to JCK via email about her work with the pop-music icon and her new husband to create the wedding jewelry of their dreams. Here is the edited version of that conversation.
How did you specifically work with the couple—in person, via Zoom, email, or all of the above?
We worked together virtually to make their wedding band selections. They sent us a few options they liked from our website, and we sent additional videos and pictures to help in making their decision. Since they were custom bands, we started production on their order right away! Britney made final selections of her wedding jewelry at her final fitting. We were well prepared with a selection of jewelry she had seen before and approved via photos, so I was confident that we would end up with the perfect jewelry for her big day.
What kind of mood or sentiment did the couple want to create with their wedding jewelry?
For the wedding bands, the goal was to create a stack that could be worn every day without overpowering her beautiful engagement ring, but something that still felt special and unique. For Britney, we built a beautiful stack of two bands to pair with her engagement ring. The first band is a classic round diamond eternity band in a shared-prong setting with diamonds all around. This perfectly complements her round diamond center stone. We also designed a marquise diamond band, set east-west in a bezel- set eternity band. This was a nod to Britney’s playful side and something that sets her stack apart from others. Both bands were created in platinum and feature 2 carats total weight of diamonds per band.
There were two platinum men’s bands for Sam as well. He loved the modern design of a brushed center finish with polished edges, so we created two versions, one with a polished step edge and the other with a polished beveled edge. These are our most popular wedding band styles for a man who wants a small design detail.
In general, Britney wanted simple and classic jewelry that would be a statement, but not take away from any of the other special details of her day. So, we were tasked with creating beautiful and iconic pieces that would add to her overall ensemble, sticking true to what we do with our own designs and styling her in something unique and memorable.
What crazy things occurred during the process? Did you have to jump through any hoops to get this done?
We were working on somewhat of a tight timeline for the wedding bands; we generally like to give ourselves two to three months, and we had only one here, but we made it happen! With the jewelry for her wedding-day look, we pulled together as many options as possible, knowing that she had outfit changes planned, and we wanted to outfit her in bling for every moment!
How did Britney and Sam react when they saw their jewelry?
Britney is an icon, so it was so exciting to work with her and her team for this huge moment in her life. So many people, myself included, are rooting for her success and happiness, and it was such an honor to be a part of this special day for them. Britney was so excited to see the final pieces, especially the wedding bands! This was her vision that came to life!
What else can I share that is helpful to you or doesn’t get mentioned enough?
We gifted Britney one of signature pavé heart necklaces, engraved with her wedding date on the back. We wanted her to have something sentimental that she could wear close to her heart always!
Top: Britney Spears married her longtime love Sam Asghari wearing custom jewelry from designer Stephanie Gottlieb, which required fast work and lots of secrecy to get the job done, the jeweler says (photos courtesy of Stephanie Gottlieb).
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