My partner and I are getting eloped in Vegas later this week, so we were in a time crunch for…read morewedding bands. Luckily, we found this amazing gem of a store in Oak Park. Jose greeted us immediately and helped us find the perfect ring for my fiancée. I described what I wanted for myself, and he said he would be able to customize one of the available bands to what I had in mind. One hour later, I had exactly what I was looking for. He is a fantastic jeweler! The experience was completely relaxed, and he did not try to upsell us. I was pretty nervous about cost since this is all very last-minute, but we actually came out under budget. We are extremely happy with the rings and will confidently recommend EcoKarat and Jose to our friends and family.

These reviews can be difficult, especially when they're critical. My impression is that EcoKarat is…read moreprimarily a jeweler, and I don't know anything about that part of his business. This review is only about watch repair. Further, different people have different ideas about what constitutes watch repair. Personally, I don't consider replacing a watch strap or bracelet, or replacing a battery on a quartz watch to be "repair". Many of the reviews here seem to be about that type of work, but that's not what this is. My watch was losing a minute a day, and I brought it in hoping the cause could be identified and corrected. EcoKarat does not do that kind of work. They send it to someone else to do the work off site. That's not uncommon, but usually a shop will tell you that's what's happening *before* they take on the watch. I didn't find that out until a couple of days later when I called to ask about the status of the work. Now, I could probably stop there. From a certain way of thinking, this isn't really a review of EcoKarat, but a review of the shop he sent the watch to. But it was EcoKarat that told me they would do the work. And it was EcoKarat that told me they needed to hold onto the watch for a few more days to make sure it was "running perfectly". His words, "perfectly". And it was also EcoKarat that told me the watch was ready. Unfortunately, when I picked it up and brought the watch home is was no longer 60 seconds slow, but about 50 seconds fast. The TLDR at this point is as far as functionality goes, for several reasons I wouldn't recommend taking your watch there. But if you're looking for a little more detail, or maybe you've bought a mechanical watch and you're wondering how to tell who to trust, let's go over some of the red flags I should have noticed while this was going on. 1. Ask if the work is done in house. If they send it to a 3rd party, you're probably paying extra for the process (the middleman). What's more, if anything unexpected comes up, they only know what the 3rd party told them. They won't be able to answer any questions the way the person who did the actual work could. You're also usually taking on a day each way sending the watch to the 3rd party. 2. Magnets are bad for mechanical watches, and we live in a world of magnets. Your computer, phone, microwave, even parts of your car...lots of magnets! If your watch is close to a magnet frequently or for extended periods of time, it can become magnetized and run slow or fast, or even fast one minute and slow the next. Luckily, demagnetizing a watch is simple and easy if you have a demagnetizer. The process takes about 5 minutes, so if someone tells you they need a few days, something's not right. Either the problem is not magnetization, in which case you want to start asking how much the work is going to cost, or someone in the process doesn't know what they're doing. 3. Mechanical watches have a "movement" which is basically the motor of the watch, and it winds from the movement of your arm. Mid-level watches ($1,000-$3,000) promise somewhere between +/- 5 to 15 seconds per day for their movement. Nothing you can wear on your wrist keeps perfect time. Even quartz watches lose or gain a little time. So, if someone tells you your watch is running perfectly, you might want to ask them to explain what "perfectly" means. On the other hand, if someone tells you your watch is performing within its capabilities, but it's well outside the stated accuracy range of the movement, you might want to take your business somewhere else. 4. Checking how a watch is running is typically done with something called a time grapher. You clamp the watch down on a sensor pad and it "listens" to the watch like a stethoscope listens to your heart. Almost immediately a panel tells you how fast or slow the watch is running, the "rate", the "amplitude" (degrees of rotation of the balance wheel), and something called the "Beat Error", which is often described as the difference between the "tick" and the "tock". Getting a reading is almost instant, and time graphs aren't expensive. Watch repairers have them so they aren't just letting the watch go ticking away and comparing it every few hours to another timekeeper like the one on your phone. That takes a lot of time. So, if someone is telling you they need more time to make sure the watch is functioning right, either they are very busy, or possibly they just don't have the tools you'd expect them to have. To be fair, it could be that the watch repairer is "Adjusting" your watch. That can take some time, and you can Google that to understand what a tedious process it is. But even so, they should be explaining that to you if you just thought it was getting demagnetized, and that's definitely not what happened with my watch. Thanks for taking the time to read this. Automatic watches can be fun, but they need some love. Hopefully this can help you identify people you can trust.

Popped in for a simple watch band adjustment. They took care of it immediately and it fits…read moreperfect. They refused any payment. I will be buying my jewelry from these guys in the future.

I saw a slide 14K slide mount on the internet and called James and Williams store to inquire about…read morethe piece. A young girl named Melanie helped me. Their advertisement said it was a 14K yellow-gold bezel. I asked 3 times if it was solid gold or hollow. Melanie said solid. After I received the item I looked for the 14K gold stamp; there was none. After receiving the piece I called Melanie back to again confirm 14K solid yellow gold, she was quite snippy and rude. She reneged stating only the bezel was gold and the cage was not solid gold. Why was it advertised as 14K gold? If the bezel was indeed Stuller I am sure it would have a 14K gold stamp. Not a lot of integrity here! I've worked at a jewelry store. I know what a loop is, most stores have testing equipment to determine gold authenticity. I would never do business here again.

I had an excellent experience buying a Victorian bracelet online from this shop. The shop owner…read moreis clearly experienced and knowledgeable about antique jewelry, has fair prices, and is ethical in her business practices. My article was sent insured and nicely protected and packaged. You can buy with confidence from The Gold Hatpin.

My now financee & I went here because we wanted a vintage engagement ring. we made an appointment…read morewith Diane (not necessary but seemed a good idea during COVID), and we were not disappointed. Diane had us come into her booth (the shop is a smaller space inside a larger antique mall) and and briefly remove our masks for the camera (this is a jewelry shop, after all). In COVID times, precautions were in place, followed & reasonable (Masks, plastic screens at counter). Diane was very polite, professional & helpful. We did go to a few other jewelry stores in the western suburbs, all pretty standard. They all had a few vintage rings, but nowhere near the selection of The Gold Hatpin. We had plenty to look at and Diane was great at listening & educating us. This was helpful because my fiancee & I *thought* we knew what we wanted but there were a couple factors we hadn't considered & her input was very helpful. Along those same lines, she was not pushy in the least. Many other "basic" jewelry stores wanted to source rings from other places, construct a "vintage looking" ring, etc & we got the feeling that we were dealing with a used car salesman at times. Diane was none of that & truly a pleasure to work with. We can't recommend Diane and The Gold Hatpin enough.

Disappointed in the quality of the ring setting we got from here. Noticed an issue of unpolished,…read morescratchy prongs underneath the diamond and on the sides of the prongs. We immediately went back and were assured it would be fixed. They told us it would take a few days because they needed to remove the diamond to get in and polish the metal. Seemed odd since we came in with our own stone to be reset and the new setting from here was supposed to be custom made prior to setting our stone, but we let that go despite the confusion on our part. The next day we were told the ring was ready to be picked up and my partner collected it. When he gave it to me, I again noticed the ring was not up to par and the scratches were still visible. I called them to ask why they didn't remove the diamond and polish the prongs, and was met with lies and hostility. Vince told me they "didn't have to do that" and was very disrespectful on the phone telling me I need to "know my place." He seemed disproportionally upset and irate; perhaps he was having an off day. Ultimately, my partner and I decided against dealing with them any further due to their unprofessionalism and will be purchasing elsewhere. (We noticed additional issues including the diamond not being set properly, and I can't imagine Vince dealing with any more criticism!) TLDR- Stay away if you have a high attention to detail and expect great customer service, because they sure don't have those qualities here! Such a shame.

I worked with Vincent and the Arezzo team to find an engagement ring for my partner. Vincent was…read moresuper helpful, patient, and responsive throughout the process. He answered all of my questions and had the ring done in the timeline he committed to. Not only was the customer service excellent, but the ring turned out better than I could have imagined. I'll be going back to Arezzo in the future!

This store has been chosen to be on the Illinois tourism list to visit in the city or state.read more

I love this hidden gem. Fred is the best at custom jewelry design and created magic with an…read moreemerald my mom left me after she passed away. I'm so thankful I found accents by Fred. His wife is also unbelievably talented with all of the handmade cards and accessories. I can't wait until this Covid-19 pandemic is over so I can just give Fred a hug for keeping my mom close to my heart with the custom necklace. Such a special place.

This store never feels welcoming. The staff actively ignores some customers. I have decided to…read morenever shop there again.

This cute little store is hidden in an area I hadn't been before. Granted, I don't get to Oak Park…read moreoften and when I do I'm usually driving down Harlem or along Lake Street. I didn't even know this parking and the additional shops were here. But since we parked here so I could wander a shop nearby, I saw this one as I was wrapping up my stroll. It looked like a home decor/interior decorating sort of store, which I love since I like to look at beautiful things and imagine how lovely my home could be if it wasn't a cluttered mess. It's kind of a hodgepodge of stuff, from gourmet food items to jewelry to photo frames and other decor. I found bailene brand sea salt, so I picked some up since I can't seem to find this brand in stores any longer. They also had a few different brands of fleur de sel, which I considered getting but held off since I'm trying to avoid extra things at the moment as I prepare to pack up a house. They had vinegar de Banyuls, which I like and have purchased before and would have if I could remember what I used it for but again am avoiding unnecessary items to pack. I was welcomed shortly after entering the store but not pressured or anything. As I wandered with both a shopping basket and three month old in my arms, one the employees said she was happy to help me shop since I had my hands full; though I didn't need the help, I appreciated her offer. And something that's kind of cool is that they offer glasses of wine for purchase as you shop! Nice touch in this classy joint. I'd definitely shop here again. They had some really beautiful things (I've filed them away for when I need a photo frame). They carry seasonal items as well, so I would love to visit once Halloween has passed to see what they carry for the winter holidays.

Fabulous selection of beads and jewelry making supplies. Owner is knowledgeable and helpful. If you…read moreneed it, they have it!

Stopped in recently-- bead stores seem to be increasingly rare. This one had a decent selection of…read morethings given its size including higher quality materials like demi-fine findings and some higher quality stone beads. There were some North African artifacts that caught my attention. Run by elderly women with the power to ignore or be nice as they choose (and patronized by the same) One star off for price point, some basic or lower quality things were inappropriately high.