If there’s one thing that helps jewelry trends travel from high couture to the high street to the home crafter, it’s celebrities being snapped wearing signature pieces. And what’s more signature than an engagement ring?

It’s become a bit of an urban legend that the budget for the engagement ring should be 3 months’ salary – and with some celebrity wage packets that 3 months buys a big chunk of bling. So, let’s take a look at 6 of the most stunning sparklers.

JESSICA CHASTAIN

Star of space epics Interstellar, The Martian and true-life poker drama Molly’s Game, Jessica Chastain’s engagement ring is an ace in every sense of the word. Her full diamond pavé ring features no less than 98 of them, all brilliantly cut. Made by Yves Piaget in their classic rose shape, clusters of 0.9 carat white diamonds surround a 1.5-carat stone as the centerpiece. Her wedding to Italian fashion high roller Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo was a similarly stunning affair, in her groom’s family’s Villa Tiepolo Passi, near Venice.

ELIZABETH TAYLOR

Fun fact: one of the world’s most famous engagement rings wasn’t an engagement ring at all. While Liz Taylor amassed more engagement rings than most, having tied the knot 8 times, the 33-carat Krupp diamond she wore on her left hand and is today known as the ‘Taylor-Burton Diamond’ was given to her by Richard Burton 5 years into their first marriage. While Burton and Taylor famously married twice, less well known is the fact that he didn’t present her with an engagement ring either time.

AMANDA LEATHERMAN

TV host and Instagram influencer Amanda Leatherman first met her beau, poker pro Daniel Negreanu way back in 2011 when she fronted The PokerStars.Net – The Big Game – a show that took Negreanu and fellow pro Phil Hellmuth to the next level in terms of personal branding. Negreanu is one of the greatest poker players we’ve ever seen, and backs up the reputation with an estimated $42 million in live tournament winnings (not including what he’s certainly won online over the years). They became an item at the time, but drifted, with Leatherman pulling back from the Vegas scene, saying the partying was too much for her. This time round, the couple wasted no time, getting engaged on New Year’s Eve 2018 before tying the knot 5 months later in May 2019. We’re not going to speculate how much of a chunk Amanda’s ring took out of Daniel’s prize money, but from the photos on his @dnegspoker Instagram account, she certainly has a winning hand.

MICHAEL TURCHIN

This one’s a slight cheat, as Lance Bass – formerly of NSync – first proposed to partner Michael Turchin in September 2013, and they both took engagement rings at that point. However, Lance, not one to do things by halves, proposed again on the anniversary of his first one in September 2014. This time round, he presented Michael with a stunning gold band inlaid with two rows of ornate black diamonds. It might be fair to say Lance didn’t get his money’s worth from the ring as they were married only 8 weeks later, but Michael now has his work cut out keeping both engagement rings and a wedding ring clean as they welcomed twins Violet and Alexander via surrogacy just two weeks ago.

GABRIELLE UNION

It would be interesting to ask Dwyane Wade (while on his own!) what his biggest moment of 2013 was. Was it Ray Allen’s legendary 3-point shot tying game 6 of the Finals between his Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs? Was it the free throw he took himself that became the final point of the final game for the NBA Championship? Or proposing to his wife, Hollywood actress Gabrielle Union? Her 8.5-carat four-pronged cushion cut diamond rivals the ring awarded to her husband that year for size, and comfortably outclasses it for beauty. Basketball has proven a winning formula for her designer – Jason Of Beverly Hills – who’s also made the Finals winner rings for the Golden State Warriors and 2021 champion Milwaukee Bucks.

CHERYL HINES

While we’re more used to seeing her on TV in various states of despair at her on-screen ex-partner Larry David’s antics, in the real world Cheryl has been married to Robert F Kennedy Jr since 2014. Possibly mindful of the situations she’s subjected to in Curb Your Enthusiasm, Cheryl very much took control of the designing of her engagement ring. Eschewing the traditional signature central stone, she worked with designer Neil Lane on creating a unconventionally wide ring encrusted with diamonds, with Cheryl explaining she frequently works with her hands and wanted something that wouldn’t be obtrusive when doing so.

While we can’t all have access to the almost limitless resources some of these rings undoubtedly took to get made, we can seek inspiration in their designs. With a bit of knowhow, the right tools and an eye for detail in staying on trend, we can achieve stunning results, whatever your budget.