I’m in a pickle. While getting ready to set a square 4mm opaque raw diamond, the sucker fell out of my hand, bounced off my sweeps tray and dove into the crack between my wall and floor. It is gone. I’ve never had this happen and have ordered replacements. It’s not the great grandmothers heirloom faceted diamond, but a relatively inexpensive one. I’m trying to get up the nerve to make the call. The client probably wouldn’t even notice, but that’s not the point. I know what happened. My plan is to have options for my client to choose from which will arrive on Monday.
Has this ever happened to you and how did you handle the difficult conversation?
Karen Christians
Western Avenue Studio, #506
122 Western Ave.
Lowell, MA 01851
Just face it head on and come up with solutions. It is all you can do and i think you will be surprised at how well people respond to honesty and directness.
All of us have mishaps from time to time. It is never easy to deal with these situations but i have always come out having a better respect for humanity.
I have has a ring disappear into the floor boards. Called the customer, replaced it with something even nicer, told her if I ever found it, it was hers.
She couldn’t have been nicer.
slightly related, but when i was an apprentice, i had toasted a
turquoise, (beginners mistake) i called its owner, a former high
school teacher i was afraid of lol, explained what happened, said i
ordered new turquoise, set it, she was beyond pleased.she never smiled
at school. she did that time.
Aaron
Hello Karen,
Great and graceful way to handle a sticky situation. I chipped a customer’s opal - on the edge at least. I went ahead and set it so that the chip was covered and undetectable. When I delivered it, I told her what had happened and did not charge her. Hey, the stone WAS sentimental and every opal is unique, so replacement was not an option. She understood and gracious about the situation .
Judy in Kansas, where two sub-freezing temps should have eliminated the oak mites. Never heard of the little suckers?? Be grateful. They’re like airborne chiggers and make you just as miserable!!
I would take apart the floor. It isn’t that hard to pry up a few boards. If one of the boards gets messed up, oil paint in stain can be used to color a replacement board (for an exact match.) No matter how difficult, it is less expensive than a new diamond, or a ruined reputation.
I dropped an Oval, 9x7mm, pink-stone midst my indoor short-twist,
carpeting last night…and thought & read about shining a light in the dark
to locate it. I actually used the beam of light from my iphone to locate
it!!! In seconds it was shining happily at me.:>) also ‘found’ some other
little stones as well…Thanks, ‘Ganoksin’ for helping me!
Good news! Contacted the client. He understood. Have four new nicer color diamonds for him to choose. Thanks to Bill Heher who sent these lickity split before he launched for Russia. My fur hat off to my besties on Orchid. Thanks for the good advice and courage to follow my gut.
Karen Christians
Western Avenue Studio, #506
122 Western Ave.
Lowell, MA 01851
I like this idea, I will try it next time.
I dropped an Oval, 9x7mm, pink-stone midst my indoor short-twist,
carpeting last night…and thought & read about shining a light in the dark
to locate it. I actually used the beam of light from my iphone to locate
it!!! In seconds it was shining happily at me.:>) also ‘found’ some other
little stones as well…Thanks, ‘Ganoksin’ for helping me!
Can you not attach a fabric hammock-style “catch” using clips under the work space or your clothing as you work so if anything drops it ends up just below your hands or in your lap?
Well, clouds can have silver linings. I brought the engagement ring with bezel sans stone, and my client LOVED it. Insert smile here. And…one of the diamonds fit the existing bezel like a glove. This was a win win situation. Now, off to set the sucker.
Thanks everyone for all your support and suggestions. Orchid rules.
Karen Christians
Western Avenue Studio, #506
122 Western Ave.
Lowell, MA 01851