Alessandra Ambrosio spent 10 years engaged to businessman Jamie Mazur and never made it down the aisle. They share a daughter, Anja, 17, and a son, Noah, 14, but the wedding never happened.
So, when she quietly said yes to Australian jeweller Buck Palmer and sat on the news for four months before telling anyone, it felt like more than just another celebrity engagement. It felt like a woman choosing to do things differently this time round.
And the ring supports this claim. This wasn't a brand loan or a piece chosen by some celebrity jeweller for a photo opportunity. Palmer crafted it himself and one expert estimates it could be worth millions.
Who Is Buck Palmer? Meet Alessandra Ambrosio's New Fiancé
Before he was designing jewellery, Palmer was actually modelling. That career switch means he's spent time on both sides of the industry Ambrosio has built her life in, walking the runway and now crafting the pieces stars wear off it.
He was previously married to model Ashley Hart, the sister of Victoria's Secret star Jessica Hart, from 2015 to 2017.
Carat, Cut and Estimated Value
Estimates put the diamond between four and six carats, with engagement ring expert Nilesh Rakholia, founder of UK jewellery company Abelini, valuing a top-tier six-carat stone at up to £4 million.
Rakholia points to Palmer's jewellery background as the likely reason behind the stone's brilliance, along with its elegant cut and proportions. His valuation range, assuming a high-quality natural diamond, sits between £2.2 million and £4 million depending on clarity and cut precision.
This puts Ambrosio's ring firmly among the most valuable seen on a supermodel in recent memory.
When Did Alessandra Ambrosio Get Engaged?
Palmer proposed back in April on the beach at Nihi Sumba, a private island resort in Indonesia. The couple kept the news to themselves for four months before finally sharing it on 11 August.
That's a significant amount of time to keep such big news private, especially for someone whose love life has often been very public. There were no leaks or paparazzi catching them off guard; she chose when the world would find out, rather than letting it happen by accident.
Bikini, Beach, and a Custom Ring
Here's the interesting bit. A ring valued at up to £4 million wasn't revealed at a glamorous gala. Instead, it appeared on Instagram, with Ambrosio barefoot in a cream crochet swimsuit, standing beside a heart crafted from rose petals and surrounded by sand.
The images also highlighted matching heart tattoos on their wrists, a small, lasting detail positioned right next to a diamond worth more than most homes. This juxtaposition of a casual setting and an exceptionally high-value item is precisely why it continues to garner so much attention.
A New Era for A-List Proposals
It says something about where celebrity engagements are heading, too. Fewer brand tie-ins, less red-carpet staging, and more rings that actually mean something because the person who made it also happens to be the person who proposed.
Not many couples can put a £4 million price tag on that idea, but the sentiment behind it — choosing meaning over spectacle — is the part other couples might actually take from Ambrosio's engagement.
