The inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor has officially come and gone, and according to the highly-anticipated finale (which aired on November 30), it looks like Theresa Nist, a 70-year-old financial services professional from New Jersey, was the lucky lady!
Losing his wife and high school sweetheart to illness after being married for 43 years, Gerry embarked on his second chance (or maybe his third chance?) at finding love as the lead of the first-ever season of The Golden Bachelor, coining the phrase, “It’s never too late to fall in love again.” After a month of filming, sending wonderful women home week after week, Gerry Turner, a 72-year-old restaurant owner from Indiana, found his perfect match in the one and only Theresa Nist, deeming her to be the woman whom he “cannot live without” during the tear-jerking finale of The Golden Bachelor — how sweet is that?
In addition to offering her the final rose of the season, Gerry got down on one knee and popped the question to Theresa, presenting her with a stunning Neil Lane ring.
What did said ring look like? Keep scrolling to see for yourself…
After sitting down with Neil Lane, the engagement ring designer who helps all of Bachelor Nation find the perfect piece for their proposal, Gerry chose a princess cut diamond ring accented with two baguette cut diamonds, and further set with 128 small, round brilliant cut diamonds for a total weight of 3.15 carats, according to PEOPLE.
Neil Lane himself chimed in, sharing the true complexity of the ring that viewers might not have caught through their television screens.
“The design, the elegance, it’s not simple, but it looks at first very elegantly simple on the top, but then when you hold it to the side you see how complex it gets… The diamonds all sparkle all over. He remarked that’s the way he saw Theresa. Elegant. I wouldn’t say simple, but easy, but then when you get closer, there’s such depth. There’s such warmth. There’s so much in the ring. There’s so much in her life. There was so much detail. I think that’s what he really was attracted to, the amount of detail and attention.”
Aside from being absolutely breathtaking, the Golden Bachelor himself believes that the ring tells a much deeper story, with Gerry Turner sharing the meaning behind the piece in the same interview.
“The symbolism of it is so important… It was just like, the minute she slipped it on, it was like, ‘Oh, my god, this is that joyful happiness that I want to feel, that I want everyone to see.’”
Naturally, Theresa shared her thoughts as well, gushing over and over again about how much she loves her brand new bling.
“It was gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous… I get to wear it, finally. It’s been such a long time. They took this away from me so quickly. It’s beautiful, beyond, beyond, beyond. So gorgeous. I love it.”
To see the ring for yourself, fans of The Bachelor franchise can relive the engagement between Gerry and Theresa by streaming the finale of The Golden Bachelor now via Hulu.