Jane Seymour, 75, has opened up about the vintage engagement ring her fiancé John Zambetti chose for her, revealing the antique piece carries deep personal symbolism about their late-in-life love.
The “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” star said Style that Zambetti spotted the Victorian-era sparkler at a vintage stall during an art show and immediately knew it was meant for her. “He had seen it, I think, in a vintage stall somewhere at an art show. And it spoke to him, and he went, ‘That’s what I want to give Jane when the time’s right,'” Seymour recounted. She added with a laugh, “Who knew I’d find love at this time in my life?”
The ring is a “toi et moi” style, a design with historical pedigree that Seymour only learned about after receiving it. “It’s called a ‘toi et moi’ ring, and apparently Napoleon presented one to Josephine back in the day. I had no idea!” she said. The two-stone setting represents the couple themselves, positioned side by side rather than stacked or overlapping.
Seymour broke down the meaning she finds in its architecture. “We are together, we’re connected, we’re not on top of one another, we’re equally side by side, we are aligned,” she explained. The smaller diamonds tracing the band carry significance too, standing for “his past and my past.”
The Emmy winner sees the ring as proof that meaningful connection can arrive unexpectedly. “I think the sentiment behind it as well was that … you connect with someone, and you’ve had a life. You bring whatever you call it, baggage or experience or the spirit of your journey in life. And it’s never too late,” she shared.
That philosophy of connection has now been translated into her professional work. Seymour channeled the ring’s two-stone concept into her latest Jane Seymour Designs collection for QVC, naming the line Soul to Soul. The range includes rings, necklaces, bracelets and earrings built around paired stones, though she deliberately avoided making them exclusively romantic.
“I called it Soul to Soul because I think more than anything, we want to connect right now. And that’s what’s missing in today’s society and especially amongst young people, with the texts and the Instagrams and social media,” Seymour said.
She expanded on her intention to broaden the collection’s appeal beyond couples. “Connection is incredibly important, and I wanted it to be something that wasn’t specifically about engagement or marriage or anything like that. This is about being connected to another human being because you have something in common; you have a bond. The best way I could say it is a soul-to-soul feeling,” she continued.
The Soul to Soul pieces join two other recent launches under her brand. Her Open Heart collection incorporates the interlocking, open-ended heart motif she originally painted as a tribute to her mother, who survived World War II and believed in reaching out to others despite personal hardship. “My mother had said, having survived World War II, that everyone in life has challenges. And when they do, they close up their heart. And if they could open their heart, reach out to help someone else, there will always be someone worse off than them, and they’ll have purpose. So this represents an enormous amount,” Seymour said.
The third range, Jane’s Treasures, draws on her longtime fascination with butterflies and what they represent about personal transformation. “The reason I personally am obsessed with butterflies is that it took me a very long time to come out of my chrysalis. I always tried to be a people-pleaser,” she said Style. “And there came a point where I just broke free. I freed myself up, not just as a human being, but also as an artist and as an actress. You spread your wings and become the full person that you can be and that you deserve to be, and give yourself permission for that.”
Seymour and Zambetti, a musician, announced their engagement this summer. The couple celebrates their anniversary monthly, an unconventional tradition Seymour has spoken about in previous interviews.