I have had just the best experience at Ware Designs! I recently inherited some family diamonds that I brought in to Steve and staff-They were all helpful in ideas to re vamp the settings to make them more contemporary. They kept my ideas in mind along with their very modern ideas- so the combination in my "new" bracelet is very beautiful! And this was during their busy holiday season. I trust Steve implicitly, always feeling comfortable leaving my wedding and engagement rings with them to re-size, check settings, clean and polish. A wonderful and fun experience! Stacy S. read more

I brought in a a variety of pieces of jewelry needing different things. Michael and Juliana were most helpful, and Juliana spent a lot of time with me. She is an encyclopedia of knowledge about gems and precious metals, and gave very thoughtful, careful attention to my jewelry assesment/repair/resizing needs. read more

I have been a customer here for many years and it's the only place I trust with my jewelry! The owner, Steve and his amazing staff have always made me feel like family. Not only is there craftsmanship top notch but their customer service is outstanding! I highly recommend them. read more

Received excellent service from Steven at Ware Jewelers today! I went in to get some links removed from a watch. He was very pleasant while he measured my wrist and let me know the process. $15 to take 3 links out, but he also offered to clean my wedding rings for free. read more

Went in there with my wife as we were looking to swap out our rings for new ones. I asked several questions of the owner and was unable to get straight answers. In particular I was interested in appraising our current set before the acquisition of the new set. I got a very funny feeling from the owner. I had been apprised of this store by a friend and informed him of the recommendation, but he didn't seem interested in anything other than getting his mitts on the jewelry. Since answers to my questions were unclear (i.e., turnaround time, accuracy of estimate, etc.) I declined to go through with the appraisal. Seemed like a safer bet than getting her diamond solitaire ring back crammed with a cubic zirconia stone, or worse, not getting the originals back at all. read more

5 big stars here. I walked in, without an appointment and was treated warmly and professionally by the staff. I needed assistance with a broken mental link watch band. Not only did they polish (and compliment) my diamond rings for free, they did not charge me for any repairs. Friendly, skillful, clearly experienced, this is an excellent business and I will return soon. Overwhelmingly positive experience! read more

Awesome! Stephen Ware designed my beautiful wedding ring for my November 2011 nuptials. He was great about staying within our budget and really worked to give me exactly what I wanted. And Stephen was a great guy to work with - very kind and interested in hearing about the details of our wedding. I came in with a photograph of a ring I thought was perfect and he improved the design to make it even better. Now I have a one of a kind ring that I will wear forever. I get compliments on it all the time and I love that no one else in the world has it except me! read more

Two weeks ago I went to Ware to have a watch battery replaced. I paid cash. But the battery went bad last week so today I went back to have it replaced. First the young woman was rude and said that it wasn't the battery that I got the watch wet or something. I said no I didn't then she said she would replace the battery but she would never touch the watch again. I said fine but then to really insult me she requested a receipt so she knew that for sure I got the battery from her. Of course I didn't have it because I paid in cash. I never thought I would get a faulty battery. So let's see I a senior citizen picked Ware Design to defraud out of all of the jewelry stores in Lamorinda where I have lived for 40 years to get a new battery. Really? Very bad customer service. read more

Took my engagement ring in to have a prong fixed. Mr. Ware did not charge me and even offered advice on how to strengthen and/or change the setting. Can't wait to design something with him! read more

When my wife sent me a picture of a ring she saw worn by a woman she had met, I knew she wanted it to replace her wedding ring that was stolen. We had gone to Ware Design for jewelry repair and watch batteries before, and I knew they did custom jewelry. I met with Stephen Ware, provided the picture, and explained my dilemma. He custom designed the ring, picked out exceptional diamonds and I presented the ring to my wife for our 20th anniversary. She was in tears she was so happy. The ring is beautiful; even more beautiful than she could've imagined. Stephen was great to work with and did a fantastic job. I will look to them again in the future. read more

Wow! I went into Ware Designs a few weeks ago, not realizing it was the same jeweler who had been located in The Forge. Back in 2005-ish, I stopped in to Ware Designs in The Forge. I was interested in having a custom ring made out of a pair of earrings I had inherited. At that point, I thought the owner had been having a bad day, or had a bad hangover, or his girlfriend had just dumped him, or maybe he just really, really didn't like the look of my outfit. I don't know, but from the moment I stepped in to his shop, his demeanor made it pretty clear that dealing with me was a pain in the butt. Fast forward to Fall, 2009. I bought some greeting cards at Papyrus, then decided to stop in to the new jeweler's shop in the Trader Joe's/Post Office shopping center. If I had known that it's the same guy from The Forge, I wouldn't have bothered. I'm not sure what the second reviewer is talking about, because this guy appears to be rude all the time. I made a friendly comment about the relocation and asked how he was settling in, and based on the cutting look and terse answer the guy gave, you would think that I had committed some sort of treasonous faux pas. The funny thing is, his jewelry designs aren't anything special, in fact they remind me of the stuff you see people selling on Telegraph. My advice is to patronize a different jeweler in Lafayette. There are a handful of friendlier ones. read more

I visited Ware Designs to get a new watch battery and to have a ring repaired that had gotten smashed. I was greeted and helped right away. I was told that the jeweler would be in shortly and could look at my ring and let me know how much it would be to fix it. When I returned 20 minutes later, my watch battery was replaced and my ring was once again wearable. The jeweler felt my ring wasn't fixed "perfectly," so she did not want to charge me. I think it's perfect, and tried to pay for it, but was denied. I could not have been happier with the service I received. read more

My mother worked with Ware Designs and Mr. Ware personally to design a custom signet ring for my 21st birthday. The customer service was professional and Mr. Ware included both of us in the design process, assuring me and my mother that he would work to produce a final product that we were thrilled with. He was right! When I received my ring on my birthday I was overjoyed with how perfect it was. Thank you Ware Designs for making my day!! read more

I had a bracelet restrung here. The work done was fine and pretty quick. I'm leaving a one star review because the jeweler behind the counter was so rude for no reason. I have never met a more condescending person working in customer service before. I will not be going back. read more

I know this is crazy but in the crush of Christmas shoppers I decided to pop into Ware Designs two days before the 25th clutching my two favorite vintage watches that I had somehow managed to scratch both crystals. I was greeted immediately with a friendly face even though they were busy getting ordered finished. A quick perusal and it looked like they would both need expensive replacements. The jeweler took them for a minute and then handed them back to me magically free of scratches and free of charge! Wow! Now that is service! I highly recommend them for skill, service and maybe a little magic. read more

This jeweler is among the best in the Bay Area. No custom request seemed out of the question and the jewelers on staff were very friendly and knowledgable. They all seem to love what they do and have passion for their craft. I appreciate that they carry local designers and have affordable as well as high end pieces. I would highly suggest stopping in, especially if you are looking for something highly specialized and custom. read more

We went to Ware Designs looking for something special for our wedding rings. We had a few ideas in mind. The owner Steve made it easy for us - he helped explain what would work and not work with our ideas and we worked together to come up with a beautiful set of rings. We get so many compliments on our rings. We are absolutely thrilled. Thank you so much for helping us to create a truly lovely wedding ring for me and my husband. You are amazing. read more

Steve Ware is not merely a jeweler - he is an artist. I've bought a number of pieces of jewelry from Steve over the years. They guy was trained as goldsmith in Florence, Italy as an artist, (not a baby sitter Helen). Artists should be appreciated for their art. I imagine Picasso would not have enjoyed a distracting child in his art studio. If you want a piece of art you that will enjoy for your entire life you owe it to yourself to visit Steve Ware Designs in Lafayette. Folks locally owned and operated business owners work hard for the money and they support our tax base and help employ more firemen and policemen and should be valued for who they are not criticized for who they are not. Steve is one of the nicest guys around - guaranteed. Thank you Steve. read more

If you want the most honest jeweler, one who isn't going to screw you over, then go to Ware Designs. Steve is honest, trustworthy and experienced. His designs are creative and thoughful. He is a local "gem"! read more

BeWARE...not ethical. Brought in a watch for a new battery and was told that the watch did not work with the replacement. It needed to be sent to the watchmaker. A week later I returned not feeling comfortable about what I had heard and wanted my watch back. I was then told that actually the battery strap had flown off duriing the replacement, but Steve the owner had tested it with pressure and in fact it still did not work and needed to be seen by the watchmaker. Steve later called to tell me he would order the lost part and call me when it came in...you guessed it, no call. I left with my watch and just returned from SF Movado repair. He told me my watch was fine and easily replaced the battery strap for $40, The watch is working perfectly, and I am out $40. read more

I was referred to Ware designs by a friend and I'm so glad, I've never looked back to other jewelers I used in the past. I love coming here, especially with the new staff, both young women I dealt with are very professional, well trained and helpful. Steve has always been fantastic and a master at his craft. His advise is practical and honest. The shop is so clean well organized. It is easy to come in for custom jobs, highly recommended for bridal and engagement sets if you have specific and unique ideas. read more

Our family jeweler for over a decade Steve goes beyond watch and jewelry repair. Not only are his designs spectacular, he strives to create good value, often making suggestions on ways to save money. You know you've made an impression when royal family members admire your jewelry! read more

I have been a consistent customer of Ware jewelry for many months now. I inherited a lot of jewelry that required repair or redesign. I have worked with Steve with new designs, with loose stones, with appraisal and with repair, and in all cases he was completely professional. When it came to jewelry design he was very artistic and worked with me within my budget and did his best to reuse stones that I already had. He also gave me credit for any gold/metal that was removed from old pieces and any settings that were removed, and he did so at a very fair price. I cannot say I had a referral from anyone who knew him, I walked in off the street while I was shopping at Trader Joe's and had a nice conversation which led me to believe that he understood what I needed and would be a good fit. Subsequently, I brought in quite a few pieces (some valuable, and some just sentimental) and we have been working together over at least six months. His prices are fair and if he orders something for me, and I don't like it when it arrives he returns it at no cost to me. He cleaned and appraised a piece of jewelry for me and made several small repairs at no cost just because he felt it would make the jewelry safer. When redesigning, if I was unsure of how the design would look he has made a wax model for me, and has always had excellent suggestions. I have always felt comfortable saying that something was over my budget, and he has worked with me to make sure that I was happy and that all pieces were finished in a timely fashion. He has also dealt with delays on my part due to indecision or to lack of current budget. He has always done so graciously never rushing me and never encouraging me to proceed if I wasn't ready. It didn't take me very long to figure out that if he said something wasn't going to work or look right he was usually right. But even so, if I asked him to do it a different way he always did. I have nothing but excellent things to say about the business and about Stephen Ware. read more

I had them make me a ring for my wedding ring diamond after my husband died. I wanted it to look like a calla lily, because its my favorite flower and was the flower I had in my wedding. They did a beautiful job. read more

This sounds like a great place to have something designed or for engaged couples. Let me just say to all those engaged couples, don't come here when you have children! When I first brought my husband's watch in for repair, I had my four-year old with me. Being a typical four-year old, he was interested in all the pretty things in the glass cases. He was putting his face and fingers where they would rather not have prints, I will grant them that. However, my son was literally barked at by the proprietor, I assume, two times about not touching the glass and the woman behind the counter once. This store is in a very family friendly shopping center, practically right next to Trader Joe's. There are lots of people shopping with children in all these stores, and this was the first time in the 8 years that I've had children, that I was ever made to feel uncomfortable in a Lafayette shop. As you might imagine, I was trying to conclude my business quickly since I could tell my four-year old was becoming increasingly distressed and did not notice they did not write the repair quote on the claim tag. I was told that the cost would be $40 to fix my watch. Lo and behold, when I picked up my watch today, the charge was $50. The woman behind the counter had no explanation for me. And as I had two of my children with me this time, I was in no place to argue about the discrepancy. I will never, never use this store again, no matter how convenient. read more