The enduring appeal of the It engagement ring — Toi et Moi
It has been two years since Machine Gun Kelly proposed to Megan Fox under a banyan tree in Puerto Rico, when the pair set the hottest engagement ring style in stone. Two stones, to be exact. As per a study published by jewellers Glamira this month, Fox’s ring remains most wanted and continues to generate 17,000 searches each month.
“I know tradition is one ring, but I designed it with Stephen Webster to be two,” Kelly wrote of his choice in 2022 on Instagram. “The emerald (her birthstone) and the diamond (my birthstone) set on two magnetic bands of thorns that draw together as two halves of the same soul forming the obscure heart that is our love.” The stones are pear shaped, predictably bling-heavy, and touch on Fox’s finger.
The style is formally known as “Toi et Moi” (or “you and me” in English): a coil banded, two gemstone ring. Suki Waterhouse was spotted wearing one in December last year, while Ariana Grande was famously proposed to with a pearl and diamond design in 2020 by then fiancé Dalton Gomez.
“The Toi et Moi design has been around since 1796, representing the intimacy and union of two lovers coming together,” says Joanna Hardy, curator of vintage jewellery market place Omnēque. The design shot to fame when Napoleon Bonaparte proposed to Josephine de Beauharnais with one, and it has fluctuated as a staple since.
Another notable poster girl of the double-or-nothing style was Jackie Kennedy, whose own Van Cleef & Arpels Toi et Moi engagement ring saw 2.84-carat emerald meet a 2.88-carat diamond.
“This design coming back as a trend is reflective of what people are feeling and longing for right now which is intimacy,” Hardy says. “The stones represent two people and carry a bigger message than a one stone engagement ring, as it allows you to have different cuts, colours, and even birthstones. The giver is also represented in the ring as well.”
Either customise your own, like Machine Gun Kelly, or head to Messika who make them subtle with asymmetric cut diamonds. Mejuri’s come set in one band, while Lark & Berry offer Fox size stones in the strongest shades.
Here is our pick of the best…
House of Meraki
Lark & Berry
Messika
Mejuri
Boucheron
Aurelia & Pierre
