The meat and potatoes:…read more
Custom jewelry requires transparency, consent, and integrity. Undisclosed gemstone substitutions, misrepresented diamond clarity, and swapping diamonds without client authorization reflect practices that should concern any consumer. Proceed with extreme caution.
The full kit & kaboodle:
I paid $11,700 to Michel E. Minden Jewelers for a custom engagement ring. What followed was a series of undisclosed substitutions, material discrepancies, and a complete refusal to take responsibility.
The ring was not produced according to the design specifications. When I raised concerns, I was initially brushed off, and then later told it would cost an additional $2,000 to fix their discrepancies.
An independent appraisal revealed that the "teal sapphires" paid for were actually spinels, a lower-value gemstone, which were substituted without my knowledge or consent. More concerning, the diamonds were confirmed to be SI1 clarity, despite being sold and invoiced to us as the superior VS2 clarity. When brought to Michael's attention, he informed me that his gemstone vendor substituted the stones because he couldn't find the color of sapphire (teal) that I wanted. Michael then finally offered to fix the ring "as a favor".
When we asked about the issue of the diamond clarity, Michael was adamant that he sold us VS2 quality, and that he didn't care what the appraisal said. To prove his case, he offered to have the diamonds certified, which would show the VS2 quality. I had assumed he was going to have them GIA certified, but he would only agree to IGI certification, which is a less reliable (and lower cost) certification. We discussed Michael's ability to remake the ring to the original design specifications and Michael offered to reimburse us $1,500 (even though he was going to charge $2000) to contract a new jeweler to correct the work. Three weeks later the diamonds were finally available for pickup, and they were immediately mailed to the new jeweler, as this was the only component he was waiting on to finish setting the ring. Michelle, the store manager, advised that they were giving me 4 grams of raw gold to have my ring remade, so the new jeweler wouldn't run into any issues with melting down my previous ring. This seemed generous at first, except that they later told us that they wouldn't give me back my original ring, because they were giving me the gold instead. At this point, I just wanted to conclude all interactions with this business and move on.
Unfortunately, when my new jeweler received the diamonds, he discovered that they were not the same dimensions as the original stones. I immediately contacted Michelle and only after pressing for answers was I told that Michael had "upgraded" the diamonds without my knowledge or authorization. The substituted diamonds were incompatible with my very specific custom design, rendering the ring impossible to recreate as originally built.
Repeated emails, texts, and attempts to obtain answers were ignored. We went to the store in person after being repeatedly disregarded, at which point Michael refused to come out and later conveyed through staff that he considered the matter "closed." He even went so far as to accuse ME of trying to extort HIM!! All I wanted was my original diamonds back, or for him to take back his crappy diamonds and gold and provide a full refund.
After exhausting every reasonable avenue, I filed an insurance claim and sought legal counsel. He ignored the attorneys as well but thankfully my insurance claim was approved. Without this, I would have been forced to take Michael to court. I have emails, texts, and appraisals to prove everything that happened. I would never recommend soliciting business from this company.