Jewelry by Design — Local services in San Diego

Let’s be honest here, when you are dedicating a piece of jewelry to mark a once in a lifetime moment, you want that piece of jewelry to be just as special and important as the moment itself. That is what Mark does magnificently. The only specs I started out with were a pear shaped, big center stone, white gold and a cushion. Mark took that and ran with it in the design of my engagement ring. He added so many special details I would have never thought to add. Such as having the center stone raised with such meticulous nature that the bottom of my high clarity morganite microscopically barley touches the casing it is mounted in. So difficult to describe so please refer to photos for a better ‘picture’. With my husband’s ring, I asked Mark to incorporate a center piece of wood into the band. He explained why that wasn’t a good idea (over time the wood can expand and ruin the ring) and then designed something I would have never thought of. He used a white gold band and actually hand drew in wood etchings to make the ring resemble a tree, and not just any tree but Koa wood (longer more continuous wood markings). He then added the black sapphires from one of my mom’s old pieces of jewelry and used that as the wood knots in the ring. The finished product is something everyone is stunned by and most importantly, it perfectly represented what we wanted in the ring as a resemblance of our relationship. Mark is not only a master of his trade in designing timeless pieces of jewelry but he’s also so creative, honest, detailed and fun to talk to. He actually gets excited about his new designs and you can see his enthusiasm in his design process every step of the way. He also provides you with several ‘prototype’ images as he begins his design process and keeps you involved and updated at every step of the way. He’s also so accommodating when it comes to payment options and was even able to take our older pieces of fine jewelry (family heirlooms), melt them down, incorporate the precious metal into our rings AND gave us the most honest price for the remaining goods. Mark is our jewelry guy, the one person I hope continues to make all the pieces of jewelry Tristan & I gift to each other one-of-a-kind unique, special and...

Working with Mark was an absolute joy. I had received some heirloom opal jewelry from my grandmother, and my fiancé and I wanted to use the stones to make a a set of custom, organic, Art Nouveau inspired rings that would serve as both our wedding and engagement rings. We wanted something that we could someday pass down to future generations...something lasting, of beautiful quality, and unique design. That is exactly what we got. I’m an illustrator by trade, so I can be very picky and my tastes tend run on the...complicated and unconventional side. I was very worried I would not be able to find a jeweler up to the task...After talking with Mark the first day, I knew I no longer had any reason to worry! He was definitely up to the task - and even seemed genuinely excited by the challenge. I came to Mark with a few design ideas- some I pulled from the internet and altered to suit my needs, and others I just sketched up myself. Together we work-shopped a set of rings that are more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. He listened intently to what I had in mind, offered his own suggestions, and was very focused on making sure that all the details were consistent with what I was going for. He sent us updates with photos of the rings in progress along the way and was more than fair and upfront with all the payment details. He let us make a payment plan that worked within our time frame, continued to allow us to trade in jewelry our families had donated to offset the cost, and was always friendly and professional. Plus, I was quite impressed with his gem selection and speedy turn around! Honestly I just cannot say enough good things. Everything from start to finish was absolutely perfect...I am just so grateful. Our rings are so beautiful and unique - truly a stunning display of love, craftsmanship,...

I really hate to do this! Several years ago my sweet husband worked with Mark to design my "dream ring". Several years ago and I've probably worn it a total of 4-6 weeks. Mark designed it online, of course. This seems like a good idea in theory. The design was gorgeous on the computer screen! Just what I thought I wanted! Once it was made though, it was uncomfortable from the get go. I ignored it for the sake of my husband. Then, the stones we had chosen from Mark to use started getting dimmer and dimmer. Polishing did nothing. We brought it back and he admitted that the stones had been set incorrectly AND the stones we bought from him, for this ring, were too soft for his design. I also complained about the pain it was causing my hand. The sides of the ring were just too fat! He gave us credit for the ruined stones and set to work out the discomfort issues and place the new PINK SAPPHIRE and BLUE DIAMONDS we bought from Mark, for a hefty price. When we got it back the second time, the discomfort was still there and the new way Mark set the stones made them look like cabochons. Big bummer!!! Over the years he has tried to make it more comfortable, to no avail. At this point, we're just going to sell it privately for what we can get. Mark has been constantly obliging throughout the years and we are grateful. I just think it was an isolated design mistake. Too bad we have to pay the price, though. Chalk it up to experience. Custom jewelry was a rough experience. That's why I love estate jewelry- you already know what...