FLUX and STONE JEWELRY -Gov St — Local services in Victoria

BUYER BEWARE! GET APPRAISAL!! BE SUSPICIOUS OF THE OWNER!

We purchased a $2500 engagement ring, supposedly a "sapphire". I noticed that the stone was CHIPPING AND SCRATCHING QUITE EASILY (like other reviews have complained about) so I took it to Francis Jewlers' to be appraised (these guys are amazing, btw). And lo and behold the stone is most likely some sort of synthetic material. The appraisers could not say what, exactly. But needless to say the jewellers were horrified. I talked to a few different jewellers about the situation and they were all aghast. The only person who didn't act like this was a big deal was the owner of Flux and Stone!! We approached her with the fake ring, and she just calmly asked if "we would like a replacement stone", I stated that we would like a refund. She states that she "does not do refunds". I became angry demanding a refund (I might point out that I did not use any sort of aggressive language). She said that I shouldn't be angry and I shouldn't be rude, it's not her fault. At this point she is still smiling, she has not apologized, she is still acting like this is not a big deal. We went in circles many times where she continued to try to tell me it's not her fault, she's not a bad person, and I shouldn't be angry. I ultimately had to state that I will sue her for the refund, before she was willing to give one.

Edit: A response for the owner.

1. You state the price was for a tourmaline. Which is interesting, because you had sold my partner on the ring by saying that it was on sale! You said the ring was originally $3100 but you would sell for $2500. The receipt is clearly for a sapphire. And there's no diamonds in the ring... so I'm not sure how you think that price is justified for a supposed "tourmaline" (btw did you have the stone retested, because the appraisal I received was that it is "likely synthetic" )?
2. I understand your need to save face, however, in terms of Jewellers, you have no idea who I spoke to so I'm not sure how you cleared the air with them? But, I can assure you that any true professional in their field would be appalled and deeply apologetic for making such an embarrassing mistake like the one you made. You were not apologetic nor embarrassed. So it leaves one to question your integrity, ethics, and professionalism.
3. You feeling "uncomfortable" is a result of your lack of accountability. Imagine how we felt when we thought we bought our forever ring, find out it's fake, and then are expected to just be fine with it? We trusted you to hold yourself and your products to a high standard. When it was evident that you did not care, I did not want anything more to do with Flux and Stone. Which, I'm sure, feels...

The jewelry they sell is dazzling, which I suspect I allowed myself to be blinded by.

Lots of beautiful pieces, however, the quality just isn’t there. I’ve purchased several pieces of jewelry from them, a few for myself, and others as gifts, and they have all broken. Some after a year, some during the first wear. They fix their items for free, which…they should be doing anyway, especially if their jewelry is so fragile. I must also add that I treat my jewelry well, so it’s not through any fault of this wearer that their jewelry breaks.

Had an earring suddenly break while I was sitting down, reading (this was my first time wearing them, and haven’t worn them since because I’m afraid they’ll break when I’m not at home). Have had a necklace repaired 6 times, and is currently broken (it broke 4 months after the last repair!). Broke while I was at work, while literally standing and talking to someone. [Those two items, the earrings and necklace, are going to be brought to an entirely different jeweller in hopes of having them permanently fixed]

My last straw was when I purchased myself a ring. A beautiful stone in a prong setting. Once I got my ring, the stone became loose - I could hear it rattling type of loose. Had it reset. It seemed okay, though still not fully enclosed, but then the rattling came back. The stone was loose, once again. I called the store several times, left a message, no response, ever. Physically went in, explained my situation, and they pointedly told me that a stone in a prong setting is always going to be loose (excuse me?!). I ended up getting a full refund, which I was thankful for, but after spending good money on something only to have it be lacking in quality does not inspire confidence.

Hopefully they address their quality issues, but I’ve been fooled too many times to have any faith in returning for...

I got a custom made engagement ring from Flux with the help from Stephanie.

The process was SO smooth and I had so much support from day one when I walked in with a slight idea, all the way until the day I proposed to my partner.

The ring is a multi toned green/blue Sapphire stone, emerald cut, on a 10k gold ring. When designing the ring Stephanie had AMAZING suggestions, and some of those suggestions are what elevated the ring to turn out so beautifully.

The quote on the ring was SO reasonably priced, and I felt like I was able to get a perfect ring as I stayed within my budget.

Stephanie’s first question to me was “what is your life style?” Honestly the perfect question… we are very outdoorsy so we made sure that the ring would actually fit in terms of durability… I could not be happier with my experience, and the ring… she is obsessed with it!!!

Thank you to Stephanie and the rest of you at Flux who...