Ok so I emailed MC2 about possibly doing a ring for me with when the amora gem comes out. I first sent a very nice email inqiring if they do custom work with customers' personal stones. They replied very nicely that they do not but that they would be able to do any custom ring if they source the keystone. There was a little banter about coming to see them in person and thank you for the compliments, etc. So I sent another very friendly email saying that I am actually interested in using an amora gem as my keystone, and would they consider sourcing one of those for me? I put an informative link about the AG and a few short sentences about its durability in there. All of our emails were conversational and detailed and I was enjoying the interaction, regardless of the outcome. Then I get this email:
(My Name),
Yes, we are aware of the Amora, however, we are traditional enough to only specialize in natural diamonds and gemstones, which hold their value because the supply is finite. To be of lasting value a gemstone needs the qualities of beauty, rarity and durability. Synthetic gems may have two of the three attributes, but by definition, the supply is unlimited. I'm sorry, but we will not work with the Amora or any synthetic.
Best,
(Their Name)

Now I get being traditional, but I can't help but feel the snobby undertones of this email and feel annoyed with it. I mean, I feel like it is basically saying that they don't work with gemstones that aren't what they consider valuable. So the run of the mill sapphires and aquas that I have seen on their site are all that rare and valuable? I personally am not that impressed with their keystone choices but their settings are IMO lovely. I made it clear in my emails that I like the amora gem for its uniqueness and beauty and I never insinuated that I want an amora so I can knock off a diamond. Regardless, it is just irritating to feel like they think that anything that is man made is not of long lasting value. And to be honest, this whole transaction has made me reconsider liking that setting for my upgrade. I mean, I could have gone to another vendor and paid a third of the price for a knock off that is the required 20% different than the original. But I chose to inquire with MC2 bc I think they deserve the business for the beautiful setting they have designed and I really wanted to tell them how much I love it. I don't flatter myself to think that my 10k is going to have any significance on their bottom line but it just makes me like their brand a whole lot less now that I know how close-minded they are.
I know that email wasn't really rude or anything and I am also sure t here are lots of flaws in my logic but I just wanted to put my frustrations out there to like minded people. Thanks for listening!

I think what surprised me was the immediate formal tone of the second email in compared to the first one (when they thought I was talking diamonds). (Btw, I didn't mean to lead them to assume it was a diamond I was considering, I just asked if they set outside stones into their settings. I figured it was a moot point if they don't at all...but then I realized they could "source" the AG if they wanted to. Anyways...)
And I find it annoying that I felt kind of shamed for being cheap in the second email. Again, that is probably just my personal reaction, but I still find I very annoying! Lol

I think this is a fairly normal stance of a lot of jewelers but even Leon Mege works with Ashas and Moissanite!

If you really want one of their settings despite what they said, I would pick a cheap gemstone of the same size and shape that you want for the Amora Gem and then switch it out once it's available.

Yeah I know it isn't that big of a deal. It was just annoying. Lol
And you are totally right about LM! I think I have decided that it isn't worth the headache to me, and I will probably just have another vendor like SK or VC make my ring when I get around to deciding on the setting. But thanks for the suggestion!

Eww. That email was definitely a different tone than conversational. Plus, yeah, it seems like they are insinuating that they only use stones "of worth" or "value." Snarky. Not to mention, I can't disagree more with their logic on what makes something valuable. So, because a diamond is made in a lab isn't much less valuable to them than a mined one? (or any other stone for that matter)

Nope. Bottom line, they are considering themselves "traditional on this matter" because they make a LOT more when people work with "valuable" diamonds, even if they are I3 hunks of carbon ugly.

Thanks Kat! You are totally right!

Show me an everyday, average diamond (i.e. not the krupps diamond or the like, lol) that holds it's value and I'll eat my couch cushion.

They want to source the center stone and they want it to be a diamond for one reason only...$$$$.

Still, no need to be offended...they are in the diamond business. Many jewelers will feed you the same line and most of them actually believe it!!

Yeah, I hate the snobbiness, but you know what, they don't need your money! Find another place to make you the setting, or buy it from them with a super cheap "natural and valuable" gemstone (Amethyst maybe?), then swap it out. They have their business model, and that's fine.

I'd argue the "supply is unlimited", as the components needed to make lab stones have to be mined as well. *shrugs*

Who is MC2?

mcteigue & mcclelland

http://www.mc2jewels.com/

There's probably more diamonds out there than moissanite!

It's a shame... your ring will be so sparkly that so many people will ask "were did you get your ring from"... It's their loss.

In this climate is pays to be a bit more forward thinking. People are "going off" diamonds for various reasons. I bet one day they'll be dealing with moissanite etc...

Thanks everyone for your replies! Makes me feel better. I wasn't really surprised by them saying they won't work with it, just the frostiness and shortness of the second email. *shrugs*
I do think it is a mistake for a vendor to treat a potential customer like that, but I guess its not my business so I shouldn't care too much! And I totally agree that it pays to roll with the times more!

Wow, what an incredibly bad business practice to be pretentious, especially with jewelry and gem addicts (like us - who definitely don't stop at "just one"). Guess the folks at MC2 don't understand the concept of potential REPEAT customers who will come back if treated well.

I also had an experience like this. I had a setting picked out and asked my jeweler about working with moissanite -- he said he would do it but that I should really just go for a CZ (!!!) because "moissanites are green and CZs are only $10". I politely thanked him for the information and never got back to him again.

I'm glad I did, because I found a setting I like WAY better now, with a jeweler who already uses moissanite as his default white stone.

I think that because they are so new, many jewelers don't know how to feel about them. They should have better sense than to insult a customer, though.

Moissanite is actually not new and the first ones were very green and ugly. I don't think many jewelers have revisited moissanite or seen any Amoras or Forever Brilliant stones either. I was told that moissanite is worse then CZ when I told Robbins Brothers that I planned to switch out my diamond for a larger pink moissanite. The sales lady about had a heart attack over it. lol

Thank you, Morning Glory! Beautifully said, and so true. If only the general public was aware of this little issue...

HAHA, you should go show her your Ginger, and see if she knows what it is and what she thinks before you tell her.

Diamonds aren't rare or more special than CZ or moissanite. It's just carbon atoms pressurized and heated together in a location. The likelihood of that happening is relatively pretty high. The more elements you need to make a gemstone, the exponentially lower the likelihood that you'll be able to find a place where they 1) all exist in the same location, 2) exist in a location that has the right heat and pressure, and 3) are in that heated and pressurized environment for the right amount of time. Such multi-element stones are much more worthy of value and appreciation, compared to a single-element crystal like diamond.

And yes, diamonds don't hold their value. It's an absolute myth that they are worthy investments for one's future. Morning glory, I burst out laughing at what you said. Very well put!

I don't understand why jewelers don't want to work with sims, it doesn't make sense. It should be about their craftsmanship, not the type of stone, unless they have some really good reason (insurance issues/difficult to set etc which I don't see sims as a problem)

How about women with huge diamonds who make replicas of their rings for travel...wonder what these very jewelers would say to their customers! "Yes your business is good enough for me but only if it's diamonds?"

Its not so much that they don't want to work with Sims but that they want to work with, sell and promote diamonds. Come on, would you rather sell a $10,000 diamond and get that mark up/profit/commission or a $100-$1000 sim? Its just business.

And yeah, after they sell the million dollar diamond they will replicate the ring in sim but they've already sold the diamond!!

I can absolutely understand that.

Definitely. Check this out...

Trillions of carats

Hahaha TRILLIONS!!!! Rare my a**!!

They do have lovely settings. Too bad they don't have lovely views on sims.

When I went to work with MC2 for a setting for a family diamond, they would only start work after inspecting the diamond and said that they only allow their settings to be set with diamonds "of substantial quality." The sentimentality of the stone had no meaning to them.

I was unimpressed for the $5000 price tag and moved on.

wow, that's pretty lame of them.

Haaaaaaarsh!

But that article stresses industrial and scientific uses, leading me to believe that it's not a large gem-quality diamond reserve.

I agree AdaBeta. I would pass on those for jewelry.