I was a little disappointed in my dealings with Christopher's and I'll explain why. The store is really fascinating, with lots of beautiful and unique jewelry. The staff seem well informed and are very helpful, too. I went there looking for an engraved locket for my mother and while they didn't have anything in stock that fit what I needed, they told me they could easily order it in and engrave the locket in store but the whole process would take two weeks tops from beginning to end. They called while I was there and confirmed their supplier had the item I wanted and would ship it to Christopher's right away. I actually live in Los Angeles but my in-laws live in Champaign, so I paid in full for the locket and engraving and agreed that my mother in law would collect the order when it was ready and send it to me. Fine. Except it took over 10 days longer than the completion date they gave me and I ended up having to bug them about it. When I finally got the locket, the last letter on the engraving looked like an M instead of an N but I didn't bother to call them. I was just disappointed with the experience overall, and hope it may have been different if I'd ordered a custom item instead. read more

I was afraid that we would not be able to use the store that I have used over the years since we live in the DC area now but the Distance Design video meetings are a great option. The first meeting we had no idea what we wanted and some great questions got us on the right path, the designs Chris Jupp came up with were not quite what we wanted so we kept looking - a few months later after looking all over DC we came back with a better idea and he was able to blend what we liked from half a dozen different rings to create the prefect ring. So very pleased and we will be back over the years for more. read more

Christopher's Fine Jewelry Design - Custom wedding ring - Jewelry Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

the original name was "the dragon's hoard". stunning designs by master jeweler & metalsmith Chris Jupp. he made my engagement ring - rose-gold with a large sapphire - and our wedding rings - 23 years ago and they're still lookin' good! there are also loose gemstones, & ready-made jewelry in the shop. they do gemstone roundtables, too. chris has done a number of pieces for me over the years - like a beautiful opal ring with nautilis shells around it. ruby earrings set in gold. a silver hammered cuff bracelet. a silver quarter moon to wear on a chain. a vial of opal chips in water in its naturlal matrix fitted with silver bales at either end to wear vertically or horizontally on a chain (see photo). this is a fabulous shop to browse. and if you're lookiing for a special gift - even a small one - this is well worth checking out. the website is awesome and will give you an idea of chris's creative genius - and you don't have to live in c-u to take advantage of his designs. check it out! read more

Christopher's Fine Jewelry Design - design by Chris Jupp - Jewelry Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

While the shop is beautiful and they have unique pieces, Mr. Christopher doesn't want to listen to your wishes. I brought a green opal in to have a setting made so I could have a necklace. I wanted a very basic setting and not a lot of hoopla....this is where I should have gone someplace else and saved myself the INSULT! Christopher doesn't do simple. Period. In fact, when I took Cinda's advice, and informed him that what he proposed to me was beautiful but not what I wanted, he looked me up and down and informed me, "Well, your a big girl and you need big girl jewelry. A small piece would get lost on your chest." (Ok, I have to admit, I'm not sure he meant 'big girl' as in overweight or 'big girl' I was 22 at the time!) I was so offended that I 'agreed' with him and made some lame excuese to get out of the store. I stated that I would return later that week to pay for 'his' design. I made sure I took my opal with me and I have never been back. In fact, I called later that week and told his associate to take me off their mailing list because I would NEVER financially support him again with my business. It's unfortunate really. I love his opals! read more

I went here to get a nice piece of costume jewelry for my mother for her birthday. They had a bunch of fairly classy stuff and the helpful clerk that assisted me was trained to ask the right questions to narrow down my search. I went here first, then ventured to other DT Champaign stores to examine the alternative possibilities. They were all closed. This is the only jewelry store in DT Champaign open past 5:00pm (although Spritz's say they're open till 5:15, they closed and locked the door early that day). So I went with the nice piece from Christopher's, which they wrapped up nice with a bow and a biz card from the artist and my mom loved it. read more

I just purchased a great birthday gift for my VERY PICKY AUNT and she totally loved it! Two of my very good friends are getting married, I suggested they visit Chris to talk about him designing a special one-of-a-kind engagement ring....AND BOY DID HE! YOW-ZA! Absolutely beautiful. The staff is fun, friendly and knowledgeable. First class jeweler. First class experience. read more

My sister's now husband had an engagement ring designed her for her, with the help of me and my family. The ring turned out BEAUTIFULLY, and she can rest assured that no one else out there has the same ring. He created it using the diamonds that my grandmother left my sister, and he took great care of them and produced a gorgeous piece that my sister loved. I have also had a pearl bracelet restrung there and was pleased with the friendly staff. They also have some really cute and sweet in store cats that are fun to play with when you are there. They have a great price range for items, so you can find a gift no matter what you can afford to spend! read more

Christopher designed an outstanding wedding band that fit my Fiancee's engagement ring perfectly. Christopher and the entire staff were great to work with and took care of us! read more

My boyfriend and I talked to Christopher about custom designed engagement rings. He very quickly understood what I was looking for and came up with something that would look gorgeous. I don't have the ring yet, so I'll update on it later! I looked throughout the store after the appointment and liked a lot of what I saw. There's a varied selection of high quality, beautiful items. Another staff member let me try on some other items just for fun and advised us about them. I'm giving 4 stars because it's hard to say it's as good as it gets when you haven't shopped around much, but I'm sure it's the best around for custom designs. It was much better than the experience at Tiffany's, which doesn't seem to offer anything unique. read more

A beautiful shop, friendly staff, very unique designs. Chris spends a lot of time with you designing your ring. Just don't be shy about telling him if you'd like to see something else. read more

This is the place to go when your tired of the mall. With jewelers at the store you can be assured your jewelry will not be shipped off for work. Each staff member has a great knowledge, and can guide you to the item your looking for. Christopher is an amazing jeweler, and one meeting with him will leave you feeling like a kid on Christmass eve. I will be going to purchase my jewelry from Christopher and his staff for a long time. read more

Christopher's worked with my fiancé to custom-design my engagement ring, and we also went back for his wedding band. The craftsmanship that Christopher's offers is IMPECCABLE! The quality is far beyond chain jewelry stores and I was able to get more bang for my buck by going here. The service was wonderful as well. I would recommend Christopher's without reservation! read more

My grandmother's antique filigree engagement ring was always a piece of jewelry that I loved. When she passed away and the ring was left to me, I quickly realized that after 72 years on her finger, there was quite a bit of damage to the structure of the ring. It was also far too small for me. I took the ring to a jewelry store in Virginia and was told that the ring was so delicate and the damage to its undercarriage so extensive, that the repair work would cost between seven and eight thousand dollars! It couldn't even be just resized for risk of causing further damage. I was heart broken. As much as the ring meant to me, and as much as I wanted to wear it on my upcoming wedding day, I just didn't have that kind of money. I put the ring away and 2 months later decided to get another opinion at Christopher's. Christopher examined the ring with me, explained in detail with drawings exactly what the damage was and how he planned to fix it, reconstruct the worn away metal, and resize it without compromising the remaining integrity of the ring. I left the ring in his hands and a few weeks later, it was like new. He worked magic with a very old, very well loved piece of jewelry. I not only was able to wear it on my wedding day, but am able to wear it on a regular basis because the work done on it was so solid. I am forever grateful to Christopher and his knowledgable and courteous staff for repairing this sentimental jewelry for me at a fraction of the cost that I had been quoted elsewhere. My only experience with them is for repair work, but I would highly recommend them to anyone who needs their services! read more

My fiancé and I went shopping for wedding rings. He had already given me an engagement ring (primarily as a vehicle for a beautiful diamond) and had already assumed that it would be best to allow me to choose the wedding set. We found a Valina set in the store that we ordered that day. I then looked at the Valina website...just to see enlarged photos of the rings the next day. I was very disappointed to see that their suggested price was hundreds of dollars less than the price I had been quoted (and paid a deposit). In lodging a complaint with the store, they agreed to reduce the cost because they were about to lose my business entirely. I had already called another retailer of Valina's products (nearby city) and they quoted the price from Valina's website (MSRP). Christopher's said it is because they provide free re-sizing and other services. However, if you charge me hundreds in advance...it isn't free and you're charging me for services I may never need/use. read more