Diamonds may be a girl's best friend, but Eric Olschwanger is easily that girl's boyfriend/husband's best friend. The first time I walked into Eric's office, I knew absolutely nothing about diamonds. Eric took the time in working with me to explain all the measures used in fine gems and how they all impact the item you are purchasing. He was friendly and welcoming during the entire process. Very professional and an expert in his field. At the end of the day, Olschwanger Designs was able to give me exactly what I wanted. In all, I have purchased three rings as well as an earring/necklace set. Even today, the pieces continue to get compliments. Before you go, please understand to make an appointment and that Olschwanger Designs is just that, a jewelry designer. Although he did have some pre-made pieces on display, you are coming to his office to discuss having something created based on a design that he can help you develop. I have five other friends that have purchased jewelry from Olschwanger Designs and they have all been happy with their pieces. read more

I genuinely think I'm ready to trust Eric with my life! I had been to Mariloff Diamonds for months with no progress on a recreation of a ring for my wife's engagement ring. I came to Eric, we talked through diamonds. How to pick a good one, where the prices drop off compared to the visual appeal etc. He showed me RapNet, the marketplace for jewelers and was very open about his costs and his very small mark-up. I actually showed the GIA report to several other jewelers around the Metroplex who all said they couldn't come within $1500 of that price. Eric is a designer that works with bench jewelers and so he will detail what he is charged and what he charges. I appreciated knowing where the mark-ups come rather than the type of guys who claim that $25k is their cost price on something you could get at Macy's for less. The design we wanted to use wasn't entirely cost-efficient so we worked together on something better. Where he prides himself on his designs, he will be frank if it's something that's not going to be great attached to his name and suggest how to tidy up the rough edges. It's really reassuring that he's open to trying out ideas and will gladly call his jeweler, stone cutter and friends in the industry to bounce ideas on the spot, rather than get back to you at a later time. Olschwanger Designs have their office hours but Eric will give you his cell number and answer emails at any time of the day. He's says he wants repeat business and referrals, that it's preferrable to make $1k ten times than $10k once. I like that attitude and have already approached him about the next project! read more

I normally don't do reviews, heck I don't even have a yelp account but after the amazing experience I had with Olschwanger Designs I knew I had to make one to give credit where it's due. I was looking for a jeweler to custom design an engagement ring for my girlfriend and Olschwanger Designs was recommended to me by a good friend. I tried to do my research regarding diamonds, the 4 C's, band settings and everything you could think of when it comes to engagement rings, but with all the information out there it can seem overwhelming. When it's time to sit down with Eric, you can come with little to no knowledge of diamonds but he will lay out the information you need so that it will be easier to prioritize what kind of characteristics you would want in a diamond. Eric was very knowledgeable and passionate about what he did, it made it very easy to trust his recommendations. What made the experience exceptional was even with all the expertise Eric had, he always had the customer's best interest in mind. He would not steer you to something you and your significant other did not want and did everything he could to bring that design inside your head into reality. When it comes to price, Eric was very transparent. He would break down how much you were paying for and what you were paying for. He sits down with you to select a diamond from certified dealers online and explains to you what to look for so you can be sure you are getting the most for your budget (speaking of, he will work with you to stay within your budget and work hard to save you money). He won't try to make you spend more than you plan. I wont go into detail about the steps of the process as you can find that in the Olschwanger Design website, but what I can tell you was that everything was done in a very timely manner and Eric always either met the deadline or produced earlier. After all is said and done, when I finally got the final product it exceeded my expectations. I followed all his recommendations regarding what characteristics/proportions to have in a diamond and it resulted in an amazing ring. I'd like to give a special thanks to Brian (sorry if I spelled your name wrong), he works in the workshop and along with Eric did an amazing job with the piece. TIPS: You will do yourself a huge favor if you come in knowing your significant other's ring size, preferred diamond shape and budget. read more

Olschwanger Designs is a really top notch company that works with another really top notch jeweler Bill Holman. They are what they are. Award winning jewelers and designers. They do everything to the exact that you want. If you go to there upscale showroom, you will not be disappointed. It's really crazy there is even a bad review for them. I wouldn't trust anyone more than them to work on my jewelry. They are very responsive and want to really make you happy. read more

My Hisband and I worked with Olschwanger Designs on the design of my engagement ring and was not only put off by the whole interaction, but was inevitably unhappy with the end result. I don't remember his first name, but after I would tell him what I wanted he would then tell me 'no'. Even though I wasn't asking for anything unheard of or outlandish. He was rude and was not impressed by the overall experience. We now have to go elsewhere to redo the ring to what I originally asked for. Would NOT recommend. read more

WHAT A FRUSTRATING DISSAPOINTMENT!! I took in 4 rough cut rubies that were precut for mounting and asked that Oschwanger Designs do their magic. We discussed numerous options and settled on one of the more elaborate ones. I agreed to pay $250 for the work and left it at that. Roughly two weeks later they were finished and I went in to pick up their masterpiece. What I got instead was amateurish inelegant crap. If I could download a photo along with this review I would. They simply stuck a couple standard silver hooks on the earrings and strung the two remaining rubies together with a piece of silver wire. Seriously, I've seen superior work at county fairs...for a fraction of the cost. I got this done for my wife's birthday and I know she'll think I obviously didn't put any thought into her present as these pieces of jewelry surly couldn't have cost more than $10. I made sure to express my displeasure but they did nothing other than to try and justify the cost of labor because they spent roughly an hour on making the wire. WTF?!? Any armature jeweler can pick up a spool of the stuff and do what they did in less than 15 min. If I haven't been clear, I would STRONGLY recommend AGAINST use this company as a source for custom work. read more

Eric misrepresented a diamond he sold us, stating that it wasn't certified when it was and appraising the diamond better than the GIA certification. He sold us a diamond in 2004 stating that it was not certified and appraised it as a D in color and VS2 in clarity in 2004. He said at that time that since the diamond was not certified, he would sell us the diamond for a lesser amount than it would be worth if certified. I was recently looking to sell the diamond and was told by a jeweler that he was able to find the GIA certification for the diamond as it was inscribed on the diamond. A second jeweler confirmed the GIA certification, which was issued in 2003. Based on the GIA certification, the diamond is an E in color rather than a D and the clarity is SI rather than VS2. Eric completely misrepresented what he sold us and is now stating that he missed the GIA certification on the diamond. I just filed a BBB complaint as well as I just want to make the public aware of the unethical sales practices at this establishment. read more