FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Custom Jewelry

Banner Image

THINKING OF HAVING A PIECE OF JEWELRY CUSTOM MADE AT BENA JEWELRY?

You'll find below the detailed steps of custom jewelry, as well as important information related to each of them.

Please note that we reserve the right to refuse projects, especially when our order calendar is full.

First meeting

We are happy to receive you at Ruby Mardi, located in Montreal's Little Italy.

If you are outside of Montreal, we can talk by phone or videoconference. The whole custom jewelry process can be carried out remotely, thanks to high-resolution photography, videography and 3D prints that can be sent by mail.

Are you looking for something simple with one central stone, or something more elaborate? You can prepare inspiration pictures to help us understand what you have in mind and/or browse our website to find inspiration.

The range of jewelry prices is endless. We need to know your budget so we can tailor our offer to meet your needs.

The price of a bespoke creation includes the cost of the metal and gemstones, as well as the cost of our creative work and the hand-crafting of your jewel.

The overall price will depend not only on the quantity/type of metal and choice of gemstones, but also on the technical complexity of the jewel and the creative research involved.

We cannot provide a quote without first meeting you, but we can normally adapt our offer to your budget.

Please note that the first consultation is free of charge, and will last 30 minutes. You can book it here.

The Raw Materials

If you wish to reuse gemstones, we will be happy to give you our opinion on their condition and the apparent possibility of reusing them in a new piece of jewelry.

It is important to note that in such a case, we will not be able to guarantee the gems. Unseting and reseting a stone always involves a certain amount of risk, and unfortunately if the gemstone is damaged in the process, you will not be compensated.

We work with teams of experienced craftsmen who do their utmost to ensure that such a scenario does not occur.

If you wish to reuse family gold in a new piece of jewelry, we will offer to buy this gold at today's market price and deduct the price from the total amount. We cannot guarantee that this very gold will be used in your new jewel, as some alloys that are too old prove to be brittle and do not offer a stable, long-lasting result when re-worked.

If this gold is of emotional value and you wish to re-use it anyhow, we cannot guarantee how this remelted gold will react over time. The risks are: porosity in the metal, small spots on a smooth surface, weaknesses in the claws, breakage.

We have a wide selection of gemstones to offer you for your creations, and if we don't have the stone of your dreams, we offer a brokerage service that will enable us, thanks to our local and international suppliers, to get our hands on the object of your desires.

We work with natural color gemstones, natural diamonds and lab grown diamonds.

As a matter of course, we know where our gemstones come from, and do our utmost to ensure that our stones are not only of exceptional quality, but also conflict-free.

We only work with diamonds of exceptional quality and brilliance. The arrival of laboratory diamonds is a revolution that democratizes diamonds and allows you to use larger gems for your creations. We love these diamonds, but we don't shun natural diamonds.

We can meet almost any request you may have regarding diamonds. We can also unearth superb specialty diamonds such as salt-and-pepper and colored diamonds.

3D Jewelry Design

Once the choice of stones has been made and the desired style of jewelry has been discussed, we get to work on bringing your vision to life.

The jewelry is designed to the exact measurements of the stones, on computer. Depending on previous discussions, we may present you with more than one option at this stage. You will of course be asked to give your opinion on the design(s).

At Bena Jewelry, we see your projects as real opportunities for artistic exploration and are happy to give you our opinion and advice on aesthetic and technical issues.

This is a collaboration, and you have direct access to your jewelry designer.

Once the jewel's design has been determined, it will be modeled in 3D so that you can see it clearly from all angles. We also offer a 3D printing service before final production, so that you can validate your design and its volumes.

Production

Once the design and 3D printing have been validated, our teams of experienced jewellers begin the production process, which includes:


- Fine-tuning the 3D design
- 3D printing of the prototype to be cast
- Metal casting of the prototype
- Jewel finishing
- Stone setting
- Final finishing of the jewel

Each step is crucial and must be carried out to perfection.

Between 10 days and 3 weeks after validation of the 3D print.

As you've just seen, many people and steps are implied in the production, making it impossible to give you an exact time frame.

Please also allow time for gem research and creative explorations. The time required is hard to determine, since it will vary according to the complexity of the design, the rarity of the stones sought, your own availability to work on the project, etc.


We'll be in a better position to give you an approximation of this part of the job once we've met you, since every project is unique.

Requesting to have your jewelry produced urgently may not be possible and is not desirable, since the process involves several steps and the work of several craftsmen.

When having a piece of jewelry custom made, you need to take into account:
- Time to find the perfect gems
- Time for creative research
- Production time (see the steps above)
- Any unforeseen circumstances that may arise during production
- Time for any adjustments, such as finger size adjustments

The work involved is meticulous and delicate, and we prefer not to put pressure on the craftsmen, in order to guarantee you a jewel of the highest standard.

If your deadline is tight, please let us know so that we can assess the situation, and we reserve the right to charge additional fees.

Delivery & Payment

Once you've chosen your gemstones, we'll ask for full payment of the gems + the design fees before we start working on your jewelry design.

The balance (metal and manufacture) will be requested on delivery of the ring.

We'll make sure the jewel meets all the criteria, and above all that you're instantly in love with it!

We'll be happy to provide you with an elegant box in which to give and keep the jewel.

Guarantee & commitment

We will be happy to offer you a size adjustment within 3 months of delivery of your ring in our boutique. If delivery charges are involved, we may ask you to share the cost.

We also offer free in-store ultrasonic cleaning, if your gems are suitable for this type of cleaning (diamonds, sapphires, and more).

We guarantee our jewelry to be of the highest standard, and therefore guarantee to repair it for up to one year after the sale in the case of a manufacture problem. This includes the possible breakage of a claw and the loss of a stone.

Production defects are usually visible within the first three months.

Keep in mind that jewelry is not fragile, but still delicate. Although we will deliver jewelry made to last, it is important to take care of your jewelry and avoid subjecting it to certain situations.

Actions to avoid:
- Lifting heavy weights while wearing your rings: risk of deforming the ring and weakening the claws supporting the gemstones.

- Playing high-impact sports (tennis, golf) with your rings: risk of deforming the ring and losing stones.

- Putting your fingers on the gems to put on your rings: grease deposits on the stones (taking away their shine) and pressure on the prongs.

- Subjecting jewelry to dust, sand or extreme temperature variations (gardening, renovation, not wearing gloves in the cold): risk of scratching gemstones, removing brilliance and creating weaknesses in the stones.

Please also note that certain precious stones are fragile and can fracture following impact (opals, quartz, etc.). We cannot be held responsible in such a case.

Although we cannot guarantee that we will repair your jewelry if it becomes broken or distorted due to mishandling, please contact us with the facts and we will be happy to see how we can help.

Still have a question?

Our team will be happy to assist you. Just let us know what we can help you with.

Ready to start this journey?

Design your dream jewel with us

Start your journey NOW

Banner Image