Krasner Jewelers — Local services in San Diego

I was a customer in summer 2024. My experience was so-so. I would not recommend Milton for the job I tasked him to do. When I told Milton I wasn’t happy with the quality of his factory’s work, he told me not to bring the ring back to him unless my partner “starts bitching and moaning” about the details of the ring after I reveal it at the engagement proposal. He never met my partner. I cringed at his poor word choice, and more.

Looking back now, I realize that I needed a 5-star bench jeweler, not a 5-star jewelry designer. Why? I didn’t need a custom piece designed from scratch. I brought a round stone and 4-prong setting to Milton. As the final step to prepare this engagement ring, I asked him to set the stone. Milton accepted the job. $225. That seemed like fair market value, which I estimated to be $150-$250 based on my research. In our initial meeting, I told Milton that I chose him because I wanted a jeweler with years of experience who could do this simple job right the first time.

After the 8-day turnaround, the quality of the outcome did not meet my standards. The prongs of the ring were crooked / misaligned / asymmetrical. I noticed this upon my second glance at the ring just after I brought it home. I noticed it from afar with my naked eye. And before that, I didn’t even realize this was something you should have to check for.

I returned to Milton’s office. Milton admitted he was hesitant to have his factory rework the job in case the prongs would get brittle and break during an attempted remedy. And if the prongs were to break, he’d have to charge me “hundreds of dollars”. My interpretation? Milton seemed eager to upsell his custom design process as the only way any piece could be done precisely. Then why would he accept a non-custom job?

Milton noticed the crookedness / misalignment / asymmetry of his factory’s work too. In front of me at his office desk, he started using pliers to apply force and adjust one of the ring’s prongs. Milton’s factory is offsite, where his guy who does his benchwork is. So this was just Milton’s attempted repair while sitting there in his small isolated business office. Sure, that helped with the misalignment. But his pliers now have left a bit of a dent on that prong.

Another observation: In our initial meeting, Milton asked for and recorded more personal info than I think is reasonable. Full name, phone, email. Sure. But birthday, home address, and my partner’s full name too? I asked him why he wanted my birthday, and I recall getting an unsatisfying answer. I regret that I let him record these details when he asked. Why would he need so much of your private info?

If you, like me, are working with jewelers for the first time by preparing an engagement ring, here is the takeaway: Someone might be highly rated and in business for a long time, but are they the right person for the job that YOU need them to do? In retrospect I would’ve chosen one of those jewelers at the mall with a good workbench onsite and more employees milling about. You deserve to be happy with the jewelry that you gift to others, especially to mark a big life milestone. Best of luck in your...

I think in general, most people don't buy a lot of 'good' jewelery, and knowing where to start when you need something special can be extraordinarily intimidating. I think we're all familiar with "-ay's" at the mall. By my count. they've gone 'out of business' at least 6 times in the last 20 years. That is not a jeweler, that is a vendor.

Milton Krasner is a Jeweler. Here's how it works: You call his number and you make an appointment- now granted, you have to do it during regular business hours, not at 8:30 on a Saturday night, but don't you think this kind of purchase should be done with some forethought, not just on a whim?

Milton meets you personally and goes over your needs, wants and budget. He has access to all the stuff you can find from other 'vendors', but what he really, really does best, is getting you EXACTLY what you want at a price you can afford.

Now my personal story. My husband went to Milton and purchased a solitaire engagement ring in platinum- just like I told him I wanted.

Then guess what I did?

I broke it... Not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES!!!

Now, I give Milton tremendous credit for not screaming "What are you, a construction worker?" until after the third break. (Apparently, platinum is not such a good choice for a gal like me that's a little hard on her jewelery.)

Milton took me aside, and said, "Michelle, we need to make a change". Milton then reworked my ring in White Gold- same look, but MUCH sturdier. First problem solved.

But we still needed our bands, and Milton hadn't quit on us yet (thank god). What we wanted to do, was incorporate family stones into the my wedding band, and then attach it to my engagement ring. Milton worked tirelessly on getting a design that was very attractive, and as 'Michelle Proof" as possible. All was well for 8 years.... and then guess what?

I broke a diamond. That's right, the hardest substance in the natural world, and I broke it!

I refused to face Milton in person. I sent my husband.

and Milton managed to make it right- He had to have it completely remade, but it is now the MOST beautiful ring on the planet (at least to me).

You see, a "jeweler' is someone you have a relationship with. Someone you trust. Someone that has a part in some of the most important days of your life. Milton Krasner is our Jeweler, and I recommend him without...

Milton was an integral part of my pre-engagement process, even helping with ideas regarding the proposal. I looked at endless diamonds and settings online, then took my ideas to Milton where he helped to shape them and turned my vision into reality with as the perfect engagement ring for my perfect (now) wife. I can't tell you how much I appreciate Milton's attention to detail in everything from the personality and occupations of my intended (and how these influenced the overall ring design) to the practicality and durability of the final ring. I went back to Milton to create the matching wedding band and the combination turned out to be absolutely stunning.

I highly recommend working with Milton, and will always consider him as part of our wedding story.

• Update 2022 *

Over six years later, one of the six prongs holding my wife’s diamond in place had bent due to hard use - I chose six prong over four because she is an engineer and horsewoman so I knew the ring would see hard use. At short notice and in the few days my wife was in San Diego last week, Milton fixed the mount, polished the diamond, polished the ring and it looks fabulous! I am so happy that I chose to work with Milton on this and could not be happier with my wife’s rings - and...