I had visited some big chain stores and found them shady, pushy and making promises that I had no way to know they could keep.
Speaking with Tamara was 100% different. She is honest, and isn't afraid to be honest even if it isn't what people want to hear. After speaking through email and discussing what I wanted and looking at pictures, Tamara told me that she was sorry but didn't think that she was the right person to make my engagement ring. I still wanted to meet in person, and after more discussion, I found that my price expectations were unreasonable for what I wanted. She showed me many examples, and wasn't pushy with anything, even pointing out when she could see that I wasn't enthused about what she'd shown me so far. Eventually, we found the one, and at our next meeting she showed me lab-created sapphires (which I wanted) and I placed the order.
When we were in there, she stopped to speak to another couple who wanted to have silver wedding bands made. She told them that she could do the bands for them and it would cost $300-$400 (since they were custom) but at the end of the day they would still have silver wedding bands which would get dinged and tarnished and not look very nice a month down the road. She said that for the same product they would be better off sending $40 at St. Lawrence Market or someplace similar, because just because they're custom, doesn't make them better quality, because silver is a soft metal. They weren't exactly happy to hear this, but it was great for me because it was further evidence of her honesty. She could have said "Yeah, for sure let's do it" and not told them about the cheaper option for the same product.
Tamara knows so much about jewelry, everything about gems and different metal types, design, and how things go together. Since she would be designing the ring, I knew that what she said is what I would get; there would be no instances of saying one thing, and finding out later that the manufacturers say it isn't possible, or that it would cost more than what was quoted.
She was also really great with my now fiancé. We told her that I didn't want to know when the ring was ready so he could surprise me with the proposal. After that she played right along and wouldn't deal with me for details or payment at all. My email and phone number were not even in the system connected with the order, only his. It was amazing.
I received my beautiful custom engagement ring, and heard about how her communication and status updates along the way were excellent. We paid more than we were anticipating, but for the service and getting exactly what I wanted, it was completely worth it. I will never go to a chain jewelry store for custom work again. Getting to speak directly with the person who is going to physically make your ring, and who is honest, is worth any price.
Thank you, Tamara! We'll be back for our wedding bands!
Also, they do gold trade-in for credit, which was great for me since I had a bunch of gold jewelry received as gifts over the years which I would never wear. She appraised it, told me what weight we had, estimated the value at "at least $400", sold it to people who would melt it down and applied the credit to our purchase. It was just over $500, which was more than I was expecting. read more