Joel Schiffman did his homework when it came to getting the perfect engagement ring for Hoda Kotb.
Hoda spoke with People about the story behind her beautiful ring, which she flashed on TODAY Monday after making the surprise announcement that she and her boyfriend of six years got engaged over the weekend.
Joel reached out to Hoda's friend Jennifer Miller, a jeweler who helped him create the diamond and sapphire ring.
"What touched me so much about this ring is that he thought about it,'' Hoda said. "And he thought about what I might like. He went to (Miller) and they were sharing things back and forth unbeknownst to me. He was giving her ideas."
While Hoda was ecstatic after he gave her the ring during their tropical vacation, she admittedly is no ring expert.
"He put it on and I was blown away by his choice, but I have to tell you I know so little about rings,'' she said. "I just don’t. I have worn the same bracelet and earrings for a year. If someone were to quiz me on what rings are which, I would be in last place. I wouldn’t know anything.
"The diamond part is square and around it, it looks like a stop sign. And it’s blue on the edge. Sapphires? I don’t know. But I love it."
Joel, 61, proposed during a romantic dinner, leaving Hoda, 55, in shock.
"We ended up having a little dinner on the beach," she said on TODAY Monday. "And he was like, 'I have something else I would like to say,' and he said some beautiful things, and then he got down on one knee. Then he said, 'Would you be my wife?'
"I was totally shocked. He had a good poker face."
Joel has been with Hoda during a transformative period in her life that includes adopting two children together, daughters Haley Joy, 2, and Hope Catherine, the latter of whom joined their growing family in April.
Hoda appreciates her sparkling new ring, but the sentiment behind it and the care Joel took in having it made is what has touched her heart the most.
"It’s a beautiful ring, don’t get me wrong,'' she told People. "If it was anything I would have been 1,000 percent equally as happy — but the fact that he cared over the course of months to try to figure it out — I just assumed if it ever were to happen that he would have gone to a store and bought one. It’s beautiful."
"He knows I don’t care. He really does know that. But he said it was important for him to choose. And he did."