Frequently Asked Questions

Mednikow has forged partnerships with many of the best known brands in the world, and we are constantly on searching for up-and-coming designers in order to bring the freshest new designs to our customers. We carry some lines in great depth, and in other cases, we carry only a part of a jewelry line, based on the needs of our customers. If you don’t see the brand you’re interested in, please let us know...perhaps we do carry it and have not listed it here, or perhaps we should consider it for the future and you’ll have done us a great favor by introducing us.

Partial list of watch brands: Patek Philippe, Cartier, Bedat, Ebel, David Yurman

Partial list of jewelry brands: David Yurman, John Hardy, Scott Kay, Mikimoto, Judith Ripka, Michael Bondanza, Elizabeth Rand, Stephen Webster, Marco Bicego, Pomellato, Jude Francis

Every brand invests heavily to build its own website that represents its brand exactly as it wants it presented, and there is no way we could ever do it nearly as well. We encourage you to visit the website of your favorite designer or watch brand. If you see a style you like, let us know...perhaps we have it in stock, and if not, we can certainly get it for you. That said, there are a few examples of styles by our designers on the website...you’ll find them interspersed with our own styles.

As noted, we firmly believe that most jewelry should be purchased in person at a jewelry store, but there are certain jewelry categories that lend themselves very well to online sales. And perhaps we are already your preferred bricks-and-mortar store, and you need a convenient way to purchase a gift that you know you can return to us in person if necessary. We opened our online store as a service to our wonderful customers..,. we want you to have all the advantages of online shopping and still be assured of our century-old tradition of integrity and exceptional customer service.

A great deal of the jewelry in our collections simply does not lend itself to online sales. In most cases, fine jewelry should be tried on by the wearer for proper fit and to ensure that the style is complementary. And certain aspects of fine quality jewelry simply can’t be captured in online images, described with words, or quantified with a grading scale...it has to be demonstrated in person. We encourage you to develop a relationship with your local jeweler for most of your jewelry purchases, and you’ll build a much more appropriate jewelry wardrobe over your lifetime by doing so than you could ever do by purchasing online.

Some types of jewelry can be made in a limitless number of gemstones types and qualities, and it is not possible to stock every combination. The internet allows us to show styles and colors that we don’t actually have in stock but that can be made to order relatively simply. If we don’t have something already made up, then we can’t have it available to sell in our bricks-and-mortar store, but it is still possible to offer it online. We simply stock the components and then build the finished product at the time of the order. In this way, we can provide better prices to our customers than we could in our own store. In other words, we are taking advantage of the strengths of the internet and adding them to the strengths we have as a service-oriented bricks-and-mortar store.

Nearly all colored gemstones are routinely enhanced by processes that are accepted, even expected, by the international gem trade as being a normal part of bringing gems to market. Unless otherwise indicated, you should assume that all colored gemstones sold by any jeweler in the world have been treated in bringing them from mine to market.

The vast majority of sapphires and rubies in jewelry stores today have been heated to improve their color and vaporize certain kinds of imperfections. The improvements from heating are permanent, and the wearer need not be concerned that her gemstone will change in appearance. Heating of sapphires and rubies has been done for hundreds of years.

The vast majority of emeralds in jewelry stores today have been soaked in a clear cedarwood oil to improve durability and mask imperfections. Cedarwood oil treatment is semi-permanent; that is, the treatment will last for many, many years under normal everyday use, but it is possible that after many years, your emerald will benefit from re-oiling, which can be done by most jewelers. Treatment with a cedarwood oil in this manner has been done for thousands of years.

There are some enhancements that are generally unacceptable in the gem trade, such as irradiation, gluing, and impregnating gems with colored oils and resins. There is nothing inherently wrong with these treatments when properly disclosed, but the fact is that they are rarely disclosed, so the gem trade shies away from the potential problems.

In short, (1) friction backs are much easier to use, (2) they are nearly as secure as screw backs (perhaps even more secure in certain ways), and (3) they are more sanitary.  

The first point is clear: it is much easier to put on and take off friction backs than screw backs. The second point is less obvious, but it is true that properly fitting friction backs are very secure...and a screw back can unscrew slowly and fall off without the wearer noticing, whereas a friction back does not come off slowly--it must have force applied, and the wearer will almost always recognize that she has brushed her head against something and applied force. Lastly, and we think most importantly, screws tend to collect microscopic bits of skin and other debris in the grooves, and this can lead to possible infections of the pierced hole. A person who cleans her jewelry regularly is not at risk, but most people don't clean their jewelry as often as they should. All in all, we recommend friction backs. Still, if you want screw backs on any of our earrings, please let us know, and we will provide them at no additional charge.

The traditional diamond pendant has the chain threaded through a bail, and the diamond hangs below.  But at Mednikow, we've found that the pendant is much more attractive if the chain is threaded through the actual basket that holds the diamond.

The diamond sits in a much more attractive position relative to the chain, and it slides and cannot twist, so it always faces outward.  Although this pendant is not what you'd normally expect and it may look unusual to you, we encourage you to choose exactly what the vast majority of our in-store customers choose when they compare our "Paso" pendant to other styles.  Still, if you want the traditional double-loop bail on your pendant, please let us know, and we'll provide it at no additional charge.