Alchemy Jewelry Store — Local services in Portland

So I found this place by googling "jewelry alterations stainless steel". They were the first result. Went to their website to learn more. Set an in-person appointment to see them today. In the meantime, I sent them a text message specifying exactly what I wanted, and a bit later emailed them with even more thorough explanation, AND pictures of what I wanted.

I got a text back and an email confirmation for my appointment. Great. Went to see them today.

First, they open the door and explain it was supposed to be a phone consultation. Well, no, it wasnt... In fact I went back and checked the confirmation email. It very clearly says, in unmistakable bolds, beside the heading "WHERE", that the location will be at your store and provides the address. But never mind, that by itself can be overlooked.

I had already put on my mask, which is an antibacterial / antiviral mask I special ordered online. They start insisting I put on one of their cheap 1 dollar blue disposable masks. I explain the thing Im wearing is far better. They continue insisting. Fine. Im not going to argue. Im already wearing a mask but you want me to wear your mask... Never mind. We can still overlook this.

Next the consultation starts, and its clear they didnt actually read my text messages OR the email. They dont know what I want done, and only say "we cant work with stainless steel"... Well... You did come up on a google search specifically for that... And nothing on your website said steel was offlimits... AND I told you it was stainless steel in the email you didnt read... But you know what? This can still be overlooked!

I explain what I said in my email - that I'd like the necklace remade with some changes (this was surprising to them which tells me again they didnt read it), and it can be done using the cheapest materials, so long as the design stays the way I want. Im told they only use the most expensive materials.

My necklace cost 29 dollars. Cost of getting it remade? 5,000 dollars. Yes, you read that right, FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS to remake a 29 dollar necklace. I told you EXACTLY what I wanted in email and text, along with pictures. If you had read the email, you could have replied back telling me you change such an utterly ridiculous price for a necklace that cost 29 dollars.

This was a total...

Last year I broke a prong and lost a diamond on my wedding ring. I chose Alchemy because I thought they looked trustworthy and professional. I went in not knowing what to expect. My ring isn’t the highest quality or most expensive which doesn’t matter to me but it matters to some people. So, I was really anxious to bring it in. I was happily surprised because the gentleman that helped me was kind, professional and non-judgemental. They replaced the diamond and retipped the prongs for a reasonable price. The quality of work and service was great.

I recently broke another prong and took it back to Alchemy thinking they would fix it as they had before. I received a phone call a few weeks later from Kellie explaining that I had cracked the diamond as well and that the amount of work needed to fix my ring wasn’t something they would do for me. So, I went in to pick up my ring having a sneaking suspicion based off of other comments made that I wasn’t getting the full truth. After further questioning as to why they couldn’t fix it this time it became very apparent to me that it wasn’t a matter of my ring being beyond repair but that they “couldn’t” fix it because my ring and the diamonds didn’t meet their standards. Instead of just replacing the diamond that was cracked and retipping the prongs, which is the service I asked for, they turned me away because they decided my ring needed a lot of unnecessary work to bring it up to the standards of their shop (even though they did not design the ring). As a designer myself, I don’t understand this attitude but would have been far more understanding if they would have been honest and not twist and manipulate the situation to try to get me to buy something custom from them.

I will never go back and I will never recommend them again. It was an extremely disappointing experience.

*Update - I took my ring to another jeweler. They were kind, professional and found nothing wrong with my ring other than the broken prong. They also informed me that the past jeweler hadn't even cleaned it to inspect it. I think it is also important to note that they did not make me feel like less for not having the most...

Highly recommend Alchemy for unique, top quality jewelry. My fiancé and I went engagement ring shopping here about 4 months ago after going to a number of other highly-rated jewelry shops in Portland. Some of the other shops felt like the staff were either were mentally checked-out, were too busy to care about us, or required an appointment. But not this place.

Alchemy was such a nice shop. They let us in without an appointment and while the engagement ring selection was small compared to some of the other stores, the rings they do have are so unique, timeless, and beautiful. I didn't know I was going to fall in love with a starburst-style ring with a gold band but WOW it immediately struck me after seeing so many other rings.

Sander at Alchemy was super nice, helpful, and smart. He knows so much about jewelry and was eager to share his knowledge with us. He was also patient, as we took some time to think about it and then decided to buy the ring. They quickly re-sized it in-shop, made sure it was clean, and we were on our way. When I called the next day worried the ring might be too big for my bony fingers Sander patiently listened to my concerns and gave me great advice! 4 months later I am still absolutely in love with the ring and super happy I didn't try to make the band smaller. Great shop for that...