Mitch K.
Yelp
I take great pride and pleasure in being able to give a real authentic HONEST review for Vanmark Jewelers.
As fate would have it, last April, I was traveling in Peru and went to Machu Picchu. At some point while I was there looking at the ruins, the bracelet fell off of my wrist. I find it ironic and away, that I should lose it in such a sacred spiritual place. And yet the irony is a beautiful one, because I recognize that perhaps some of the gold within that bracelet originated from the Incas and this was Existence offering to return it to its original source. (Well then again maybe I just have a very imaginative mind, but that's a much better story than saying I lost my bracelet Machu Picchu. Lol.)
I did not know how I was going to be able to replace that bracelet because the sentimental value was even more than the actual physical value for me.
And then it occurred to me. I have a father that's 83 years old, and a year ago he gave me two beautiful American eagle 1 ounce solid gold coins as a birthday present. I took these coins and put them in the bank vault for safe keeping. The problem with that though is that I could never really appreciate them as a gift. They were hidden in a box somewhere. Until it occurred to me that I could melt them down and have that gold formed into a bracelet to replace the one that I lost.
At that point I started doing a lot of forensic research to find the perfect master craftsman jeweler that would take on this project. Using the Yelp application I received 10 quotes from higher rated jewelers in the area. I was so discouraged because even though I was providing all the gold material, they still were all quoting me between $2000 and all the way up to $7000 just for the labor of accomplishing this. I wanted an 18 karat 8 1/2 inch Cuban link bracelet around 10 1/2 cm.
As luck would have it, Vanmark happened to be right next to my acupuncturist. And I thought why not go in and just give it a shot before I decided to just give up. So I went in and met Mark the owner. Gave him the story and told him what my intention was, and I immediately knew I was in perfect hands.
First of all what you should know, Mark is an artist and a scholar. Meaning he has that creative artistic energy as well as an intellectual left brain energy. A perfect balance of the two. In addition, he's the most honest and authentic Jeweler I have ever met. He has integrity and respect for his customer. Believe me I'm somewhat jaded after all of those quotes that I got on Yelp from these local Jewelers.
Mark took the time to break down the exact process step-by-step by step. From the beginning to the completed project. And he gave me a great quote for labor, in fact it was A LOT less than the other competitors had quoted me.
In addition, Mark invited me to watch him melt my gold coins and actually let me experience the production of my bracelet. And to top it off, he indulged a weird request that I had, I asked him if it would be OK if while the gold was in the molten liquid state if I could put some fur from my beloved dog. Obviously the fur would just be evaporator by the heat of the liquid gold but in my mind it would have the essence of my beloved pet melded into the bracelet almost like a spiritual alchemy. Mark laughed, looked at me like I was a little weird, but said; " I don't care ...not a problem for me."
He really educated me...I never understood how much was involved in making a gold bracelet before.
Mark stuck to the timeline as promised, had great communication emailing me and calling me and giving me updates. And today I finally was able to pick up the finished product.
He presented it to me in a beautiful mahogany wooden box and it was perfect. I can't even express in words how beautiful this bracelet is. So I'm sharing pictures from the original coins to the process to the finished product so you can see for yourself.
Look putting Ego aside, I've worked very hard in my life to be very successful, I'm a world traveler, and I'm an excellent judge of character. I give Mark and Vanmark jewelers the highest thumbs up, the highest amount of stars you could possibly give to a Merchant!
Trust Mark for any of your jewelry needs. Know that he will take care of you and he will charge you much less than any competitor and give you a by far better quality product. In addition to that most likely you'll end up making a very good friend with a man that has earned and gained my respect and admiration.
It's not just a gold bracelet, it captures the love of my father, the love of my dog, and someday the opportunity for me to pass this forward to one of my family members as a keepsake that will always remind them of me. Thank you Mark for putting your energy into this beautiful bracelet!!!!