I have to admit, when I first saw the black-and-white photographs pop up on my feed the other week, I let out one of those involuntary little sighs. You know the ones. The sort that slips out when something quietly lovely cuts through the noise of everyday life. Samuel Chatto, son of Lady Sarah Chatto and grandson of Princess Margaret, had just announced his engagement to fellow artist Eleanor Ekserdjian. Both 29, both living in London, both clearly besotted in that unshowy way that feels increasingly rare.
He proposed with a porcelain ring he made himself. Let that sink in for a moment. Not some flashy rock from a Mayfair jeweller, but something shaped by his own hands in the studio. In the photographs the couple shared on Instagram on 13 July, Eleanor wears it with the sort of gentle pride that makes you smile at your phone like an idiot. One image captures the ring in close detail, another seems to be from their studio, and a third comes from a photobooth in Yerevan, Armenia. Simple, sincere, and rather perfect.
I’m really delighted to say that Ellie and I are engaged. And we couldn’t be happier. I proposed with a porcelain ring which I made.
Samuel said that in the post itself, and you can hear the warmth in every word. He is a ceramic artist who trained in Japan, while Eleanor is an abstract painter drawing inspiration from her Armenian heritage. They both studied at the University of Edinburgh, which makes me wonder what late-night conversations over cheap wine first sparked things between them. They have been together since 2021, quietly building a life together before deciding to make it official with a spring 2027 wedding.
What strikes me most, sitting here with my own lukewarm tea, is how this feels like a small but sturdy thread in the tapestry of family continuity. The Chatto side of the royal family has always carried itself with a certain understated dignity, away from the brighter spotlight that follows other branches. Samuel’s choice to craft the ring himself, Eleanor’s work rooted in her own family story, their shared artistic world. It all speaks of sincerity rather than spectacle.
Both families are thrilled, as you would expect, and King Charles has been told the news and is reported to be delighted too. There is something rather heartening about that. In an age when so much of what passes for connection feels temporary or performed, here is a young couple choosing tradition on their own terms. A handmade ring. A spring wedding. The quiet approval of their wider family, including the monarch himself.
