Jewelry Vendor Snafu

Usually when a purchase is made with a credit card the charge hits the statement almost immediately. My husband had his wedding ring resized at a neighborhood jewelry store a few weeks back. When we went to get an estimate, there was a sign in the door that they were closed due to a medical emergency. Eventually we got both the estimate and repair work done. The funny thing was it that the charge for the work never hit the statement. We checked it for a few days - on both of the cards we use because we didn’t remember which one it was. We called one of the card numbers to see if there was some sort of glitch. Having heard none, I thought it must be a vendor problem. For whatever reason, the charge just didn’t go through - unheard of. I remembered my husband using a specific card and also signing the receipt. So we drove over to the shop and asked if  they could check on this charge. It was then that they called their vendor and realized that they hadn’t received any payments since April 23! Apparently before or when the medical emergency happened the owner didn’t or forgot to make some sort of switch or notation. In a couple of days the transaction finally hit our credit card. The people in the shop were shocked that we came in to let them know that the invoice didn’t go through. I can’t imagine not telling them. 

Wedding Ring Resized

The ring was just too tight. My husband couldn’t get his wedding ring off of his finger. But once he did we didn’t think it would be a good idea to put it back on. So we got these tiny plastic “screws” that could be cut to size and placed around the ring to secure it on his pinky finger. I thought it looked tacky. And, it could easily fall off. So rather than run the risk of losing it, he finally decided it was time to get the ring resized. My husband hates jewelry stores. This ring was in the shop a couple of years ago when the diamond fell out. The gem was miraculously found in the vacuum cleaner! So we went to the local jewelry store and requested an estimate. Since we didn’t hear about the estimate,  we returned to the store and it said they would be closed for a medical emergency. So we checked back several days later and they said they texted, but we never got the message. Anyway, we said to go ahead with the work and we picked the resized ring up today. It looks brand new and shiny. I didn’t want my husband to get used to the idea of not wearing a ring after all these years. Now it’s very loose when worn but still not easy to get past the joint. His hand looks so much better now. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. 

GWHOLE Ring Size Adjuster Set

It’s bound to happen to just about everyone. Your wedding ring seems to shrink so you can’t take it off of your finger. Unfortunately, my husband’s ring finger joint has a bit of arthritis and it has expanded to the point where it was near impossible to remove. The ring really needs to be enlarged but it’s the last thing he wants to do but eventually may be the only solution. He took the ring off and said it felt too strange to keep it that way, and I agreed! So we looked on Amazon to see what solutions there might be - even temporarily. We came across GWHOLE ring adjusters. They are tiny little plastic spiral pieces that are wrapped around the ring to make it tighter. He wanted to put the ring on his pinky finger because it was essentially the only one it could possibly fit. The kit arrived yesterday and we ended up putting a small size spiral layer on first followed by a large size spiral layer to close the gap between the finger space and the ring. The kit also comes with a silver polishing cloth “made in England.” So far the plastic spiral pieces are working ok but I’m hoping we aren’t sorry we tried this route. The last thing we want to do is lose this ring for all the reasons you can imagine. It’s been a part of us for far too long. 

Diamond Ring Treasure Found on Walk

My husband used to find a lot of change whenever he walked on the National Mall. When I was working, he walked me to work at the Library of Congress, then continued on. A few times he found dollar bills, fives, and even a twenty! Then there was also an angel pin he picked up once. The other day we were heading in the usual direction and he saw something shining on the sidewalk by the house office building. He bent down and picked up a small ring, shaped like a heart, and loaded with diamonds! Of course, I knew it wasn’t real - but maybe it was? I put it on my pinky finger, but it was too big. Then I put it on my ring finger. It fit, but it kept getting caught on everything. That to me means that it is more than likely not of high quality! So I wore it for an afternoon and then put it in the junk drawer. The ring actually looks like a kids ring. One of our friends really did find an authentic diamond ring while on vacation somewhere. That one was real and worth quite a bit. I’m not ever in the market for another ring or any jewelry, but wouldn’t mind if we found something worth keeping. I kinda like my simple wedding band the most. And that’s all the gold and diamonds I need. 

Married Again!

Last week my husband realized the diamond fell out of his wedding band. What was most surprising about it all is that he not only noticed it, but actually found the diamond in the house right in front of the refrigerator. I was ready to have the stone of an old earring replace the diamond in his ring. So we found a jeweler in Alexandria to repair it. In the meantime, his finger looked very strange without his wedding band, and I couldn't let him walk around like that! So I found some old Christmas ribbon that shined multicolored, and cut a piece to the right size. He good heartedly wore it the last week - and it even looked quite interesting if you didn't gaze at it too hard. So today we picked up the real thing, and it is all shiny and new. They did a nice job building it up to keep the stone in place. It's so shiny you can see your reflection. We don't have a lot of jewelry in our household. Regardless, this is one piece of jewelry that must be repaired! It means a lot more than just a ring in his finger. 

The Almost Lost Diamond

I don't know how he found it, but when my husband said the other day that he lost the diamond from his wedding band, I was already figuring on having to replace it. But he is very dogged about finding anything when it is lost with usually positive results. The last time was when I lost a very small earring. He managed to find it in the vacuum cleaner. Just the idea that he noticed it when he did - because it could have happened anywhere - was a miracle. So he started looking around the house and there it was, an inch in front of the refrigerator in the kitchen. Well, he couldn't go around with a big hole in his ring, so we had to find a jewelry repair shop outside of Washington, thinking it might be cheaper (?). My husband hates everything about jewelers. And we have saved a lot of money not buying jewelry. The only jewelry I ever wear are two diamond studs with screw backs so they will never fall off, and a simple wedding band like his. So we made our way to Belle View Jewelers after lunch. It will cost about $200 to get the thing repaired, including a shine to boot. It won't be ready until Wednesday, so he will be walking around with a dent in his finger until then. It really looks weird and I don't much like it. Maybe I can think of something to use in the meantime? Any ideas?