See the 'Vintage-Inspired' Engagement Ring Bachelor Gerry Turner Gave to Theresa Nist (Exclusive)

On Thursday’s “The Golden Bachelor” finale, Turner proposed to Nist with a handmade princess-cut ring designed by the franchise’s go-to jeweler, Neil Lane.

<p>John Fleenor/Disney via Getty; Neil Lane Couture</p>
<p>” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/1C9M62crzurejcAIWBhIWA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MA–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/people_218/00060567bd2c7ea1f31d97c5 ff4a1f16″/><img alt= — John Fleenor/Disney via Getty; Neil Lane Couture

Golden Single Gerry Turner chose an engagement ring for Theresa Nist that fit their fairytale love story.

The first of the franchise Golden Single On Sept. 22, Turner proposed to the second great love of his life during Thursday’s Season 2 finale, and Nist, 70, said an emphatic “yes” to the 72-year-old widower. As Turner got down on one knee, he presented his fiancée with a stunning Neil Lane ring that reflected the incredible journey they took to find love again after both losing their spouses.

“The symbolism of it is so important,” Turner tells PEOPLE exclusively. “As soon as she put it on, she was like, ‘Oh my God, this is this joyful happiness that I want to feel, that I want everyone to see.’”

Related: Gerry Turner Engages in The Golden Bachelor Finale — and leaves his fellow finalist feeling “caught off guard”

Turner chose a princess-cut diamond ring accented with two baguette-cut diamonds and set with 128 smaller round brilliant-cut diamonds for a total carat weight of 3.15 carats. The ring was handcrafted and hand-signed by Lane, who revealed to PEOPLE why the design of this ring was so different from the engagement rings he has designed in the past. Bachelor national winners.

<p>Couture Neil Lane</p>
<p>” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/LkWCvyzfjmTpTEKGnMxSHg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/people_218/ff65ecdbdaa79f47e59034120 9f44ee0″/><img alt=

The famous jeweler noted that The Golden Bachelor “brought a lot of people together” through its honest portrayal of finding a second chance at love later in life. For Lane, that made making Nist’s ring all the more special.

“I think maybe we lost sight of the importance of a ring for a while, and now we have two people who really have… the importance of the ring, even though it’s a small piece of jewelry, it embodies their affection, their future, their life together,” he says. “It’s deeper in a way… it’s maybe a different depth.”

<p>Couture Neil Lane</p>
<p>” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gOQLjALVUJVhQBj4VVEcMg–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/people_218/eca2b641d654cdbf7efba8c0 e40e58bc”/><img alt=

Choosing a princess-cut ring with its square stone and intricate layers seemed particularly fitting for Turner and Nist’s relationship.

According to Lane, the “sparkle” of the “vintage-inspired” ring attracted Turner because it reminded him of Nist.

<p>Couture Neil Lane</p>
<p>” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/.3QmwPDvnjLUFBausm3GnQ–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/people_218/40b22356e0827b77861088 89d317137d”/><img alt=

“The design, the elegance, it’s not simple, but at first glance it looks very elegant and simple from above. But when you hold it on its side, you see how complex it becomes,” Lane tells PEOPLE.

He continues: “The diamonds are sparkling everywhere. He (Turner) remarked that that’s how he saw Theresa. Elegant. I wouldn’t say simple, but easy. But 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 really attracted him, the amount of detail and attention.”

Luckily, Nist is in love with her engagement ring and incredibly happy to finally be able to wear it now that America knows she got the final rose.

“It was beautiful, absolutely beautiful,” she said of her ring. “I can finally wear it. It’s been so long. They took it away so quickly. It’s beyond beautiful. Beyond, beyond. So beautiful. I love it.”

Related: Bachelor Gerry Turner Reflects on Some ‘Failures’ While Trying to Date After Wife’s Death (Exclusive)

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For Nist, this ring is particularly special because it is her first diamond ring. When she married her childhood sweetheart, Billy, in 1972, she was given a simple gold wedding band as her husband prepared to leave for the Vietnam War.

She adds: “There was no diamond ring. There was a gold wedding band, which I have. So yeah, there was no diamond ring. So it’s brand new and amazing.”

<p>John Fleenor/DISNEY via Getty</p>
<p>” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/_T4cr3Zk2QKCT9TGgvgUCA–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MQ–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/people_218/eb4a6941ab92a1c48bc165db 37cfd471″/><img alt= — John Fleenor/DISNEY via Getty

In the finale, Turner had to choose between Nist and Leslie Fhima. However, he already knew that the financial services professional had his heart. While he says he meant it when he told Fhima and Faith Martin that he loved them the moment he said it, he also knew that there was only one woman he couldn’t live without after telling Nist that he loved her for the first time in the fantasy suite.

“The first time I seriously told her I loved her, it was almost a declaration of excitement,” he says. “I said it three times in a row: ‘Theresa, I love you. I love you, I love you.’ And I said, ‘And I’m going to ask you to marry me. I don’t know if you’re going to say yes, but I’m going to ask you.’ So for me, when I got to the finale and the engagement was about to happen, I was very sure that she was my person, 100 percent sure.”

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