Lee’s Moonstone & Diamond Reconstruction

Some of my favorite Reconstruction projects begin with jewelry that is deeply meaningful but no longer feels like the person wearing it. That’s exactly where this project with Lee began.

If you’ve been hanging out with CMD on TikTok or Instagram, you may already know Lee, or LeeLee, as @aestheticaleestyled on TikTok and @holisticskin_and_style on Instagram. She’s been part of the CMD community for years, first as a collector and then as one of our most enthusiastic organic advocates.

Lee came to me with two sentimental pieces: a sterling silver ring holding a beautiful 10mm moonstone and a delicate white gold band set with tiny diamonds. She loved what they represented, but she wanted to turn them into something that felt much more like her now.

The result was a mixed-metal, two-ring stack that reused her moonstone and diamonds while completely reimagining how she could wear them.

From Longtime CMD Collector to Reconstruction Client

Lee started collecting CMD during the pandemic and quickly became one of those people who wears my work so naturally that other customers started asking me for “the ring LeeLee wears.” Can you blame them? She wears a stack VERY well.

Over the years, she’s collected pieces from across the CMD world, including our Rings, Bracelets and Earrings. Some of her favorites include the Nova Ring Set, Pipeline Ring, Catalyst Ring and Libra Ring. You’ll also regularly spot the Element Bracelet and Connector Bracelet on her wrist.

By the time we started talking about this project, Lee already knew what she loved about CMD: substantial rings, mixed metals, square shapes and pieces that feel a little unexpected.

She also shared something that became important to the direction of the project. She wasn’t wearing her original wedding set anymore, and over time her CMD rings had essentially become a wedding ring replacement. Rather than letting these other sentimental pieces sit unworn, she wanted to bring their stones forward into a stack that felt connected to the way she dresses and wears jewelry today.

 

Reimagining Her Moonstone

The moonstone became the starting point. Lee wanted it incorporated into a wide square ring that would feel substantial, modern and distinctly CMD.

Moonstone requires some extra consideration because it isn’t as hard or durable as stones like diamonds or sapphires. We ultimately kept hers in sterling silver and moved away from its original four-prong setting in favor of a bezel. I love bezels aesthetically, especially against the geometry of square and rounded-square CMD rings, and the surrounding metal also gives the stone more protection around its edges.

The finished moonstone ring is a 10mm wide, 1.5mm thick sterling silver band with a matte finish. It’s bold, architectural and a completely different expression of a stone Lee had already owned for years.

Giving Her Diamonds a New Home

For the second ring, we turned to the tiny diamonds from Lee’s original white gold band.

We created a 14k yellow gold, 3mm wide square ring with three of her diamonds set into each face. The design is similar in spirit to our Zodiac Ring, but created specifically around Lee’s stones and the proportions of her new stack.

Any diamonds we didn’t use were returned to her. The polished yellow gold gives the stack contrast against the matte sterling silver, while the repeated square shapes make the two rings feel like they belong together.
 

A Modern Heirloom That Feels Like Lee

This is what I love about Reconstruction. The goal isn’t to erase the history of a piece. It’s to figure out what deserves to come forward and give those materials a form that makes sense for the person wearing them now.

Lee’s moonstone is still Lee’s moonstone. Her diamonds still carry whatever meaning they held before they came to my bench. But instead of living in jewelry she wasn’t wearing, they’re now part of a stack that looks unmistakably like her.

She also shared her experience working with me from her side of the process. If you’re considering a project of your own and wondering what it’s actually like to collaborate on a Reconstruction design, you can watch Lee talk about her experience here. It’s a great look at the process from the client’s point of view.

And if you want to see more of how Lee styles her CMD collection, follow her on TikTok and Instagram.

What Could Your Old Jewelry Become?

If you have heirloom stones tucked away, an old wedding set you no longer wear or a beloved piece that means something to you but doesn’t feel like you anymore, this is exactly the kind of project I’d love to talk through with you.

You don’t need to know what the finished piece should look like before we meet. That’s part of my job. We’ll look at what you have, talk about what you actually want to wear and start imagining what those materials could become.

You can book an appointment with me to begin, either in person at The CMD Shop & Studio in Asbury Park or virtually from wherever you are. If you’re still figuring out whether Reconstruction makes sense for your materials, budget or vision, start with my complete guide to Reconstruction and recycling at CMD.

And of course, you can always keep up with what we’re making, wearing and reimagining over on CMD TikTok and Instagram.
 

Here’s to giving the pieces that matter another life.
Colleen

© Colleen Mauer Designs. All rights reserved.
Published: August 12, 2025
Updated: August 22, 2026