Signatures Around a Story: A Ruby Anniversary Commission

Some commissions begin with a simple request and become something rather more thoughtful during the design process.

This commission was created as a ruby wedding anniversary gift for a couple celebrating forty years together. The brief was straightforward: engrave a pair of cocktail coupes featuring the initials D&A, the words 40 Years, and the signatures of their children arranged around each glass.

The signatures supplied ranged from flowing adult handwriting to the careful block capitals of a younger family member. Each carried its own character, and preserving that individuality became an important part of the design.

Choosing the Glass

The original enquiry explored several possibilities, including customer-supplied glasses and alternative stemware.

After reviewing the options, a deep cocktail coupe was selected. Although new to the studio, its generous bowl offered an ideal engraving surface, providing enough space for both the central inscription and the surrounding signatures.

Before proceeding, specification sheets were prepared so the proportions and engraving possibilities could be considered against the shape of the glass.

Developing the Artwork

The request specified:

D&A 40 Years

as the central element.

Rather than treating this as a simple line of text, the lettering was developed into a more cohesive composition, allowing the anniversary wording to become part of the design rather than an addition beneath it.

The signatures were then arranged around the circumference of each glass.

Because no two signatures shared the same scale, weight, or style, each one had to be positioned individually. The objective was not perfect uniformity but balance, ensuring every signature remained recognisable while contributing to the overall composition.

Particular care was taken to preserve the character of the original handwriting, from confident adult signatures through to the simpler marks of younger family members.

From Paper to Glass

Once approved, the artwork was prepared for sandblasting and engraved by hand in our Fife studio.

The finished coupes carry the anniversary inscription at the front, with the family signatures wrapping around the bowl. Viewed together, they form a record not only of forty years of marriage, but of the family surrounding that milestone.

Sometimes a signature is more than a name. It captures a person at a particular moment in time. Preserved in glass, those marks become part of the story long after the occasion itself has passed.