custom, part three

Cufflinks designed by Beth Lambrecht. Photo by Mike Olbinski.

Soon after we shared the news of our engagement with family and friends, my sister started plotting a surprise for us, a surprise that came with a story.

When she died, my grandmother, my father’s mother, left behind a really extraordinary collection of jewelry. My parents were tasked with appraising and dividing it among her children and grandchildren, and I sat at the table, rapt, as they unwrapped, laid out, and photographed…