What is Poesy Jewelry

Long before it became popular for brides and grooms to engrave hidden romantic phrases, wedding dates, or monograms on the inside of their wedding bands, couples were doing it way back in the 5th through the 15th centuries in what were commonly known as "poesy rings." 

These romantic rings were often engraved in either French, Latin, or Old English, and many of the quotes used came from the contemporary courtship stories of the time.  It was also common to have rings engraved with religious sayings as well, since religion was such a large part of a person's daily life back then.

In the beginning it was popular for these messages to be engraved on the outside of the ring so it could be visible to all, but when you get closer to the 13th century, it became more popular for the messages to be hidden within the ring band so that only the wearer and the one giving the ring knew it was there. 

To date, personalized jewelry, very much like these poesy rings, is still in demand, because just like many centuries ago when they became popular, a person's desire to have something that no one else has still reigns supreme.    

These romantic poesy rings are the inspiration for my line of secret message lockets.  Just like poesy rings, each locket necklace holds a secret message that only the wearer knows is there because it is hidden unless you open the locket.  And what better way to pay a tribute to these beautifully crafted, sentimental rings, than to use the common sayings they were engraved with back then.