Love Stories: Casey and Jon
For our first Jewelry Love Story, we’d like to introduce you to Jon and Casey. Casey is a music coordinator who hails from Colorado and Jon is an artist from Oahu, Hawaii (check him out! www.jonchingart.com). The couple lives in the Inner Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco.
Share a little bit about your love story with us. What gives you butterflies?
We met in college when, with a mutual friend, we headed down to Coachella music festival together. We bonded quickly and became close friends, but nothing more for two years. Then one day, while watching Jon surf, it hit me like a freight train – I was in love with him. I worked up the nerve to tell him, while we were walking across the Golden Gate Bridge (cheesy, I know). Turns out Jon had felt that way all along! We are both passionate about music, art, food, and traveling and we have had a lot of incredible trips together.
You just got married. What is your next big adventure?
We are gearing up to embark on a 5-month travel adventure to Indonesia, Thailand, and India! We have both always wanted to explore that part of the world, and kicking off our marriage and the next chapter of our lives together with a big trip seemed perfect. So we’re quitting our jobs, subletting our apartment, and hopping on a plane to Bali this August!
We believe love is best seen in the everyday things. What are your favorite daily or weekly rituals as a couple?
Eating together is important to us, and Jon is an amazing cook, so we always enjoy dinner together at the end of the day. On the weekends, we often take advantage of our neighborhood by picking up a dim sum breakfast, and enjoying it in Golden Gate Park. Oh, and we really love watching Ru Paul’s Drag Race.
Tell us your drink of choice.
I love a good Tom Collins, and Jon is an Old Fashioned man.
What advice would you give to couples just starting to plan their wedding? What part was the most fun?
Give yourself time to enjoy the engagement and the planning process – don’t rush. But also, don’t overthink it. It’s easy to get caught up in all the details (I’ve fallen down many Pinterest wormholes), but just remember that the real purpose of your wedding is to celebrate your love, and the exciting and meaningful commitment you’re making. Always try to bring the focus back to that. Finally, don’t feel like the planning has to default to the bride (unless that’s what you both want). Our favorite part of the planning process was working together to make every element of the wedding reflect us as individuals and as a couple.
We hope you love your new rings. Can you tell us why?
In continuing that sentiment I just mentioned, we each worked with a jeweler to design a ring for the another, keeping it a surprise until it was finished. As a result, we ended up with two gorgeous, original, and badass rings that complement each other while having unique styles – just like us! I worked with Kendra Renee to design Jon’s custom ring – a faceted gold band with a vibrant rectangular sapphire. I came to Kendra with my rough ideas, and with her knowledge and experience she was able to not only craft a stunning ring, but make the process feel fun, collaborative, and exciting. Jon and I couldn’t be happier and are both excited to enjoy the ring for life!
Congratulations, Jon and Casey! We’re wishing you luck, love and many adventures. Thank you for letting us be a part of your love story.
