Seelenbacher Jewelers

I live in Oakland, found this shop on Unilocal.We went into this shop for the first time today. I had several minor projects that have been piling up, and some important things to do before my wedding:
— Increase the size of my great-grandmother’s wedding band by ½ size
— Fix a ring that I accidentally bent out of shape, and then paid somebody $ 25 to only sort of make a circle again
— Clean a sterling silver Tiffany’s bracelet
— Inquire about re-​stringing a very important 3-​string pearl necklace
— Decrease the size of my engagement band by ½ size
He did the first 3 things within the first 15 minutes there, and returned them to me on the spot, with no charge. YES. SOLD. THAT is amazing customer service. I may not have a ton of valuable jewelry, but *someday* I hope to, and this is absolutely 100% the way to earn my business.
He gave us tons of information about stringing pearls, choosing a new clasp, and advice on my future husband’s band. I was honestly SO impressed.
Now, he still has my engagement ring (the most important piece!), so I would like to reserve the right to update this review as needed. But I honestly expect nothing less than 5 stars from him. Thank you!!!

I originally wasn’t going to write this review because I really liked the owner, Chris. Unfortunately, I just found out that two stones I gave him to try to make earrings with last year were chipped to the point that they are too damaged to ever use again. So here’s what happened. Last year, I brought Chris two trillion cut topaz stones that I’d bought from Pave in Oakland many years ago. Pave had done a drawing of a pair of earrings that I asked Chris to make a ‘model’ of to see if they’d work, which he did so that I could see what they’d look like before he made the final pair and set the stones. When I saw the prototype, the width of the frame overwhelmed the stones, so I brought in another pair of earrings I had that had the perfect loops and frame, and asked him to re-​create that style. A few weeks later, I got a call from Chris saying that the earrings were ready, and that he’d made a slightly different design that he liked so much that he went ahead and completed the earrings before I got to OK the design. When I saw them, they were not what I’d asked for. Which I told him. At that point, we both agreed that maybe it was better not to try a third time, and Chris told me that he’d have the stones removed so that I could pick them up later. When I did get them back, and I looked at them at home, I could see without having to use a loupe that both stones were chipped on the edges in several places. Because I felt badly about the time he’d put into the earrings (and without making a final sale), I decided to let it go. Until this week. I took the stones to another jeweler up in Healdsburg to give these earrings one more try, thinking that maybe she could put enough of a gold frame around the stones that you couldn’t see the chips. She sent them out to another jeweler to see what they could do, then called me last week to tell me that not only were the stones chipped, but that one of the chips had been glued back into the stone, and because of that, they were too fragile to try to set. So now, if I wanted to have the earrings made, I’d have to buy completely new stones.
What gets me about this is that Chris knew the stones had been chipped, and gave them back to me without telling me. I’m giving him 3 stars because he is a very likeable guy, and obviously has done a great job for most of his clients. However, his not telling me what had happened to the stones was definitely not cool. Again, they were so damaged that I could see the chips on both stones with my bare eyes.

The owner is amazing. I took a watch missing its pins and he found the right replacement materials in no time.
It’s important to note that he greeted me while I walked in and he was busy working with another client. He takes customer service seriously and he needs to get this five star review for me!
And of course, he gives me the pins for free.
THANK YOU! I recommend this Jewelry shop to anyone.

Super friendly and fast service. Had my wedding rings maintained and polished and they look like new again. Prices are very reasonable as well.

Last time I was here, he fixed my clasp just in time for my wedding. This time, I brought in a new G-​shock MT-​G, I drove all the way up from Fremont and got there 5 mins before closing, there are plenty of Jewelry stores in between Fremont and Alameda, but I had to specifically go here simply because I wouldn’t trust anyone else with a high-​end watch. Suffice to say, I had the watch resized within minutes, and it was at such a reasonable price!
Also, while I was waiting, I browsed through the incredible selection of watches and jewelry as well.

Chris is awesome! Received excellent customer service for years… above & beyond!!!

A great family owned business. They made my wife’s wedding ring and she can’t stop staring at it. She loves it! Thanks to Chris for the great service and warm welcome. Unlike the big jewelry stores you’re not paying their rent or overhead, at Seelenbacher you’re paying for quality at a much fairer price. Choose quality over catchy commercials or shiny department size stores. Choose Seelenbacher.

What a lovely East Bay company. They helped me restore and preserve my engagement ring that was my great grandmother’s diamond ring. Their customer service was fast, responsive, thorough and professional. They did a beautiful job at a very reasonable price… All with a smile. Thank you so much!

Got my platinum wedding ring here and some gold earrings for me and my daughter… I’m very happy with everything they have for me! Thank u!

Chris was amazing from beginning until the end! I dropped my solitaire on the 4^th of Feb and he made my dreams come true and completed my custom setting in platinum before Valentine’s Day! Chris really is an artist and listened to my needs … He asked me to send him a few photos of settings that I was drawn to … And he compiled a beautiful setting that was exactly what I wanted! I trusted his judgement and I am so happy I agreed to the platinum metal! He sized my finger and suggested a smaller ring size so the huge stone would not turn and he was right… The ring fits snug and sits always in the middle of the finger at all times. Chris is wonderful and I cannot wait to have him make my wedding rings in the near future! He will take any old jewelry that you no longer need/​use and deduct it from your total sale. Chris is fair and honest — I will always deal with him in the future and support small local business that are personable and genuine.
Thank you Chris for making this experience soooo wonderful!!!

Long overdue review!
Searching for the right engagement ring seemed scary until I came across this Unilocal page and decided to check this place out. I lived in Alameda for so long and had no clue about this place.
Chris made everything so simple and he was never pushy about anything. His knowledge about jewelery, his methods of explaining what to look for in a quality diamond, and his very relaxed attitude made the whole experience perfect. He was able to customize the ring perfectly how my wife wanted it. 2 years later and the diamonds, especially the center piece, still shine and sparkle like new!

My first experience with this jeweler was last year. I needed a watch battery, which he replaced and it works perfectly. After that, my husband brought in a pendant which needed engraving and I was very happy with the job Chris did. Recently, I brought in a 18K gold turquoise pendant which needed improvement. There was an issue on my piece when I picked it up, however Chris rectified the problem by correcting what I was unhappy with. I’m satisfied with the outcome and I’m totally happy with my pendant. I would recommend Chris as a professional and can say I would bring in anything else that needed attention or repair.

The owner Chris is super nice and very helpful. He’s done everything from replacing watch batteries to giving my wife’s wedding ring a make over for our ten year anniversary. There’s a great selection of watches, necklaces and rings and more. Just pop in there and you’ll see what I mean. Chris just isn’t a great jeweler, he’s a really nice guy.

A friendly and talented company. They resized a platinum engagement ring and appraised it for me in short time at a very good price. Thankful for great local businesses and helping me avoid the franchises.

I recently got engaged! I brought my ring in to get sized and also got my great grandmothers ring appraised! I have never had such a positive experience! He sized my engagement ring (twice because I have ridiculously small fingers) and he noticed my grandmothers diamond was loose so he fixed the prongs! Everything was done timely and with a smile! Such a great experience! We will for sure be buying our wedding rings here and anything for the future!!! I guess you know you’re a grown up when you can say you have a jeweler :)

Every interaction we had with Chris and his staff was amazing and we’re thrilled with how the ring came out. They were very patient with us as we visited to check out options twice before ordering. When we finally figured out what we wanted, they even treated me to a cleaning for my engagement ring on the house.
It was especially nice that we weren’t asked to pay a thing until the ring was ready for us. We love it, and I love the box we were sent home with almost as much!
We will definitely be coming back whenever repairs are needed!

I tried on the wedding ring of my dreams at an antique store, but ring itself wasn’t structurally made for everyday use and had some flaws. Not willing to give up, I read reviews about Chris’ custom work and emailed him a photo and my budget, asking if he could recreate it. He was very upfront with me about costs, timing, and details of the ring itself (considering its complexity, I wanted to make sure it was done just right). He really does fantastic work and is capable of making exquisite pieces beyond your everyday solitaire band. He was also able to get me recycled diamonds that matched the style of the period at a lower cost than brand-​new ones (economical and ethical!). I am so incredibly happy with my ring and I would recommend Chris to anyone!

I seriously can’t say enough good things about Chris and his staff. He’s by far the most helpful and kind business owner I’ve ever had the pleasure of doing business with.
As a guy who doesn’t EVER wear jewelry, I was more than a little stressed out by the process of picking out a wedding band. Chris couldn’t have made it any easier, nor been more helpful.
Short of us moving out of the area, we’ll be lifelong customers. I only wish more businesses were half as decent as this one. If you’re in the market for some new bling, or just need something repaired, don’t give it a second thought and let Chris help you out.

I’m so happy I randomly ended up here ! I’ve had a lonely pearl for the longest time and I was looking for someone to make a ring for me. Someone did and the pearl fell off that ring within two weeks. I randomly searched for a jeweler near my house and ended up talking to Chris. We brainstormed ideas and I got sized. A design was drawn but he needed to think of how to attach it etc he asked me to give him two weeks. It has not been two weeks and he called — I went right away because I cherish my pearl and I wanna wear it. I’m happily wearing it now and I love it ! Thank you so much Chris

These folks did a beautiful job restringing/​knotting my freshwater pearl strand of 125 pearls. The price seemed reasonable and they are nice and tight. Thanks!