Emily Ratajkowski has unveiled a pair of dazzling “divorce rings”, two years after splitting from her husband.
The model shared a series of photos of the new diamonds on Instagram, telling Vogue they “represent my own personal evolution” and have been repurposed from her former engagement ring, changing the original sentiment and origin around them.
Ratajkowski divorced film producer Sebastian Bear-McClard – with whom she shares son, Sylvester – in 2022, after four years of marriage.
“I don’t think a woman should be stripped of her diamonds just because she’s losing a man,” the 32-year-old said of the “two separate but complementary” rings.
Ratajkowski collaborated on the new concept with jeweler Alison Chemla, who designed her original engagement ring.
“It was a fun project to work on together amidst a hugely transitional period in my life. The ring became symbolic to me – some kind of token or evidence of my life becoming my own again,” she said, adding that she “loves them so much I haven’t been able to take them off”.
“It’s been a crazy couple of years, and finally I feel a sense of peace within myself and about the life and future I have and will continue to build with my son,” she said.
“Somehow, these rings feel like a reminder that I can make myself happy in ways I never imagined.”
The My Body author and podcast host has made headlines in recent months as she worked to change the narrative around divorce and moving on.
Ratajkowski went viral on TikTok in September when she published a video with the caption: “Personally, I find it chic to be divorced by the age of 30.”
In the clip, she mused on the rise of young divorcees, and offered her congratulations to women who had “tried that married fantasy and (realised) that it’s maybe not all it’s cracked up to be”.
“I do think so many women are divorcing at younger ages, and it’s such a taboo and there’s such a stigma around it,” Ratajkowski told Vogue Australia in November.
“But ultimately, our world has changed so much because women are making, if not the same amount of pay, more money than their partners. And then also carrying the burden of emotional and physical responsibilities, the labor at home.
“Marriage isn’t always as fair of a deal as it used to be, or at least how it was supposed to be. I’m not sure if it was ever a fair deal, so it shouldn’t be shameful for them to walk away from that sh*tty deal. I would like to write about that more.”
Speaking out about her own divorce – and even celebrating it – feels like a rewarding reflection for Ratajkowski, she said.
“What is the danger of glamorising divorce?” she asked.
“I don’t know if it’s a bad thing, particularly when you think about the weight of the taboo of divorce, to say, ‘No, it’s not bad. Actually, maybe it’s cool’.
“Even just sharing parts of my experience with my divorce has been somewhat cathartic and also kind of nice, because I don’t want everybody to think that I’m some perfect person.”