“Give away a diamond, and everybody shows up,” joked Ron Bensimon, addressing the packed room at Crown Metropol’s 28 Sky Bar on Thursday.
The Bensimon Diamonds director was relaxed as he welcomed a crowd of attendees to his company launch, speaking about what he knows best – diamonds.
“Guys have no idea when it comes to buying engagement rings,” he said. “And women don’t always confess it, but there are a lot of women in this room who are wearing an engagement ring that they don’t necessarily love.”
Faced with this ongoing predicament, Bensimon invented a new method of proposal, which precedes the ring-buying stage, leaving less margin for error. He explains, “Giving a diamond in a beautiful box was the perfect solution for me.” “Guys can now propose with just a diamond and together they go and build the ring.”
Bensimon’s “Give a Diamond” concept means there is still a beautiful box to click open while on bended knee at the crucial moment of proposal, but then the couple can design the perfect ring together.
The box itself is creamy white, sleek and multi-faceted, a nod to the traditional princess-cut diamond, which also references the faceted “B” of the Bensimon brand. “We’ve designed it from the ground up, with a great design team,” Bensimon said.
Seesaw Design are the team who worked through the packaging design process, from concept to 3D printing, helping to make what Bensimon called his ”crazy ideas” a reality.
Seesaw Design’s Creative Director, Matt McKenzie, said a lot of work had gone into creating the box, but the end result was beautiful. “It houses the diamond, so it has to be special,” he explained.
This Bensimon attention to detail was also evident in the subtle glow of the evening, as guests sipped on GH Mumm champagne and enjoyed decadent views of the Melbourne skyline.
Among moonlit hues of true-Melburnian black and white were the occasional twinkle of a sequined clutch, a splash of red lace, or a gem-encrusted collar; a nod to the glittering hosts for the evening.
Dazzling in the bottom of each champagne flute was a sparkly rock – most of them imitation gems –but for one lucky attendee that glistening stone turned out to be a $16,000 diamond.
With the room abuzz with speculation, and the diamond shimmering discreetly in her glass, Lisa McInnes had no idea she would be the delighted owner of that 1 carat diamond in just one hour.
“It’s really surreal,” she exclaimed, after finding out Bensimon were awarding her the diamond. “I think it will all set in tomorrow when I wake up…”
Former fashion editor for The Age, Janice Breen Burns, commented on the evening’s success. “It’s all a bit of fun and a great way to launch a brand,” she said.
With so many years in the diamond dealing business, Ron Bensimon has a keen eye for detail and a passion for those precious stones. “I love them,” he says.
“How can you not love diamonds? They sparkle, they’re vibrant, they’re alive, they’re millions of years old… It’s just a passion; you’ve got to love it.”
Images by Wanda Chin for Couturing
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