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What's going on with DanielM?

Hi Ladies - we've discussed a bit about Daniel M's workload and response time in this following thread:

Show me your Daniel M goodies!

Just got this 5 stone from DM. Stones that cant be mentioned here but wanted to say I loved working w him and the process was super smooth.
www.pricescope.com

The consensus is that he used to be really prompt with communications and turnaround (up until beginning of this year), but with his recent explosion of workload (mostly from PS) that he is likely experiencing a lot of growing pain.

We have wait times increasing and varying from a few weeks to a few months. It also sounds like he may be bumping up and knocking out simpler projects. I've definitely seen projects submitted to him way later than mine and already completed where I've been waiting for 6-8 weeks now and still don't have a CAD yet.

Some of us still decide to be patient and work with him given his reasonable price/quality of work ratio. If we take our projects to other jewelers, the charge will likely be quite a bit higher. So you'll have to make that decision for yourself - can you wait or do you need fast turnaround on a project?

Good luck and please keep us all posted. I think it helps to know if other ladies are in similar situation, then we collectively know that he is trying to manage tons of projects and it makes it easier to be patient!
 
Mreader said:
Frustrating and I get it but I am glad that you are at least getting replies to your email! I’m sorry it’s taking longer. At this point I would just like a reply even if it’s to say “this will take awhile” or “I can’t do it” etc.
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Oh yes totally agree with Mreader - I would have preferred to be told that it will take a while rather than told oh CAD is coming soon and then cricket... It's all about managing expectations!
 
But it sounds like he is still engaging in the same undesirable business practices from back in 2014 when this thread originated, perhaps not to the same extreme but still undesirable. The reasons now seem to be different from the reasons back then (workload vs. health issues) but honestly not sure that matters.

I have not done work with him and would not do work with him based upon reading this thread and knowing that he seems to periodically slide back into these patterns of behavior. He is in control of how much work he takes on. He should not take on more work if it results in him:
  • being unresponsive to customer's emails
  • making promises about delivery dates (e.g. I'll email your CADs tomorrow, I'll ship it out tomorrow, etc.) and then repeatedly failing to meet those delivery dates
  • working on new projects to the detriment of existing orders
And at a minimum when he does get backed up the onus is on him to be transparent with his customers, both active and potential future customers, through clear and honest updates about project turnaround times.

It sounds like he generally does wonderful work at a reasonable price. But for me the stress of having to keep following up with him and seeing other people's projects that came later get completed before mine would not make it worth any $$ I might save by working with him.
 
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Are we separating Etsy custom orders versus other avenues of requesting custom work? Is there the same pattern with Etsy orders as to delays, or Etsy is generally faster turnaround? One guess is that with Etsy you can communicate via IM and he gets pinged about those. When I worked with him he would respond like within 20 min each time, no lie. However, mine was also a really easy design and he was done in less than 2 weeks. Also another guess is that you can leave reviews on Etsy within a certain time after making the order, and perhaps that makes those Etsy orders more urgent for him?

In any case, 6-8wks just for a CAD is intolerable. And especially if there’s no communication or explanation in between. I would try to IM him via Etsy...
 
Inbloom said:
Are we separating Etsy custom orders versus other avenues of requesting custom work? Is there the same pattern with Etsy orders as to delays, or Etsy is generally faster turnaround? One guess is that with Etsy you can communicate via IM and he gets pinged about those. When I worked with him he would respond like within 20 min each time, no lie. However, mine was also a really easy design and he was done in less than 2 weeks. Also another guess is that you can leave reviews on Etsy within a certain time after making the order, and perhaps that makes those Etsy orders more urgent for him?

In any case, 6-8wks just for a CAD is intolerable. And especially if there’s no communication or explanation in between. I would try to IM him via Etsy...
Click to expand...

From what I understand, he currently only takes orders via Etsy. He makes a custom listing for 50% deposit upfront (black generic logo image in the listing), and then make another listing of the final item with the remainder payment when done. So if you browse through his past transactions, you can see the deposits vs the completed items. So at least the wait times I have quoted for myself are all via Etsy and Etsy messaging platform.
 
Purranha said:
From what I understand, he currently only takes orders via Etsy. He makes a custom listing for 50% deposit upfront (black generic logo image in the listing), and then make another listing of the final item with the remainder payment when done. So if you browse through his past transactions, you can see the deposits vs the completed items. So at least the wait times I have quoted for myself are all via Etsy and Etsy messaging platform.
Click to expand...

Yes that is how it works. Everything is through Etsy even if you write him on IG or the email address. He creates a listing for you through Etsy (which I would actually not prefer lol since Etsy charges tax).

ETA @Purranha I didn't see that earlier post about waiting 8 weeks for a CAD. Whoa. And is he emailing back? See I had him do some projects for me and it took about one month start to finish and he was responsive. This was just last week I got my rings in the mail. So I wanted to do something else and this is where I am getting no reply. By that math, he took on my project and started and finished my things and you haven't even gotten a CAD. The other PSer @teddycake mentioned that she is getting responses yet no CAD. Does he have your stones (or is he sourcing them?). Because once he has the stones is when he drafts the CADS if you're using your own. Very strange indeed.
 
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Mreader said:
Yes that is how it works. Everything is through Etsy even if you write him on IG or the email address. He creates a listing for you through Etsy (which I would actually not prefer lol since Etsy charges tax).

ETA @Purranha I didn't see that earlier post about waiting 8 weeks for a CAD. Whoa. And is he emailing back? See I had him do some projects for me and it took about one month start to finish and he was responsive. This was just last week I got my rings in the mail. So I wanted to do something else and this is where I am getting no reply. By that math, he took on my project and started and finished my things and you haven't even gotten a CAD. The other PSer @teddycake mentioned that she is getting responses yet no CAD. Does he have your stones (or is he sourcing them?). Because once he has the stones is when he drafts the CADS if you're using your own. Very strange indeed.
Click to expand...

I sent in 2 stones end of Jan beginning of Feb. he completed a simple halo ring for me timely (end of Feb/beginning of March). And that’s when he was supposed to start on my second project. So yes he has the stones and after a few follow ups he said he would have the CAD for me shortly and that’s 3/25 lol. And after that no response to follow ups as of 4/9 (the last follow up message I sent).
 
Purranha said:
I sent in 2 stones end of Jan beginning of Feb. he completed a simple halo ring for me timely (end of Feb/beginning of March). And that’s when he was supposed to start on my second project. So yes he has the stones and after a few follow ups he said he would have the CAD for me shortly and that’s 3/25 lol. And after that no response to follow ups as of 4/9 (the last follow up message I sent).
Click to expand...

Ugh so sorry you are going through that; I hope that you hear from him!
 
Purranha said:
I sent in 2 stones end of Jan beginning of Feb. he completed a simple halo ring for me timely (end of Feb/beginning of March). And that’s when he was supposed to start on my second project. So yes he has the stones and after a few follow ups he said he would have the CAD for me shortly and that’s 3/25 lol. And after that no response to follow ups as of 4/9 (the last follow up message I sent).
Click to expand...

These follow up messages are through Etsy IM? Then he’s definitely seeing them but not responding...That’s pretty annoying and I would be on him every other day until I get update, haha.

For the projects he’s working on for you, they don’t require him to source any other melee or side stones or anything? I just can’t see a another reason why he’s so slow on some and so quick with others. So strange.
 
Mreader said:
Ugh so sorry you are going through that; I hope that you hear from him!
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Thank you! In all fairness, I wanted to set a cheap opal (but omg I love that stone) in argentium silver. Our other beloved jewelers would have cost me 5x more because they don't work with silver. I'm being patient here because if it wasn't for DM, the setting would have been cost prohibitive for me (relatively to how cheap the center stone is)! So yup fingers crossed and hopefully it will at least be done in 2021 lolol!
 
Inbloom said:
These follow up messages are through Etsy IM? Then he’s definitely seeing them but not responding...That’s pretty annoying and I would be on him every other day until I get update, haha.

For the projects he’s working on for you, they don’t require him to source any other melee or side stones or anything? I just can’t see a another reason why he’s so slow on some and so quick with others. So strange.
Click to expand...

Oh that is a good point... I do need some additional side stones from him (blue topaz marquise and some orange/green garnet melees). But when we first started the project, I have no clue if he would have to source them or already have some supplies on hand cuz he hasn't communicated anything to me lol!
 
adlgel said:
But it sounds like he is still engaging in the same undesirable business practices from back in 2014 when this thread originated, perhaps not to the same extreme but still undesirable. The reasons now seem to be different from the reasons back then (workload vs. health issues) but honestly not sure that matters.

I have not done work with him and would not do work with him based upon reading this thread and knowing that he seems to periodically slide back into these patterns of behavior. He is in control of how much work he takes on. He should not take on more work if it results in him:
  • being unresponsive to customer's emails
  • making promises about delivery dates (e.g. I'll email your CADs tomorrow, I'll ship it out tomorrow, etc.) and then repeatedly failing to meet those delivery dates
  • working on new projects to the detriment of existing orders
And at a minimum when he does get backed up the onus is on him to be transparent with his customers, both active and potential future customers, through clear and honest updates about project turnaround times.

It sounds like he generally does wonderful work at a reasonable price. But for me the stress of having to keep following up with him and seeing other people's projects that came later get completed before mine would not make it worth any $$ I might save by working with him.
Click to expand...

This exactly. I’m nervous because of his history demonstrated in this thread, which I didn’t fully read until after he missed his own deadlines and I found this thread. I’m totally fine with things taking “a while”, but as a long time business owner you should be setting proper expectations and communicating realistic timelines. This isn’t just for small businesses, it’s for anyone who work a job, or 2-3 jobs for that matter. I’m not going to keep telling my workmates that “hey, I’ll have this for you tomorrow” and then miss it 3x. As someone who’s been working for a decade, I should say, “I’m swamped, I can’t realistically get to this project until next week/month.” For example, working with AV before he’d say, “this is going to take 4-6 weeks” so I won’t bother him in the meantime.

I’m growing nervous with Dan because I’m noticing some of the same behaviors as what was mentioned in the history of this thread. 3-4x of “I’ll have this by tomorrow” then nothing, which sound like stall tactics again. Maybe I’m just paranoid and maybe I’m more hesitant to give the benefit of the doubt because of this thread.

Under the best scenario it’s lack of proper time or expectations management, and I get it, some people aren’t really sticklers on time. They hope for the best and all timelines are approximates. Under the worse scenario, something weird like 2014 is happening again.
 
Purranha said:
I sent in 2 stones end of Jan beginning of Feb. he completed a simple halo ring for me timely (end of Feb/beginning of March). And that’s when he was supposed to start on my second project. So yes he has the stones and after a few follow ups he said he would have the CAD for me shortly and that’s 3/25 lol. And after that no response to follow ups as of 4/9 (the last follow up message I sent).
Click to expand...

I’m also waiting for a CAD and I follow up as soon as a timeline is missed. Like if he says “I’ll have this for you tomorrow” and if there’s nothing by end of day tomorrow I follow up the next day LOL. Not that it really matters because he just gives me a new date that he misses.
 
Ugh! I just sent him a diamond ring to create a new setting for. Had I known he was having issues again I wouldn’t have. Guess I’ll plan for it to take 6 months or more.
 
Jax172 said:
Ugh! I just sent him a diamond ring to create a new setting for. Had I known he was having issues again I wouldn’t have. Guess I’ll plan for it to take 6 months or more.
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aww don't freak out too much! Seems like even if turnaround time is varying, there hasn't been cases where he completely disappears.

I followed up again and got a response back - he acknowledged and apologized that he was overly optimistic about getting back on track after his last batch of bad castings. He assured me that project will get done. And that for me is fine. I'm not in a hurry so as long as I hear back and get updates!
 
Purranha said:
aww don't freak out too much! Seems like even if turnaround time is varying, there hasn't been cases where he completely disappears.

I followed up again and got a response back - he acknowledged and apologized that he was overly optimistic about getting back on track after his last batch of bad castings. He assured me that project will get done. And that for me is fine. I'm not in a hurry so as long as I hear back and get updates!
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Can you tell us more about "his last batch of bad castings"? What's happened there?

I actually heard back from him as well and finally got the CAD.
 
teddycake said:
Can you tell us more about "his last batch of bad castings"? What's happened there?

I actually heard back from him as well and finally got the CAD.
Click to expand...

To be honest the only info I know is that there were issues with the last batch of casting produced by his caster, so he had to have them remade. I also saw other members mentioning the same thing. But I don't know what the issues were specifically.

I take that as a plus - the projects might take longer with him, but he didn't move forward with subpar casting just to make deadlines!
 
I'm just going to say it; I don't know how y'all do business with this dude considering his history. I won't, and never will.
 
I’m sorry to hear about all your troubles with him. I’ve only dealt with him once and I have nothing but good things to say about my experience. Yes, there was a delay but only about a week and he was prompt in letting me know when I asked for an update. He said the caster took longer than expected to complete their part and apologized. Hope all works out for everyone.
 
So many (hundreds!) of talented, professional, and honest designers out there—reward them with your business instead?
 
I Have worked with Dan a number of times and work/response etc has always been great. However I have tried to work with him on. Small project recently and he has not been consistent with follow through. I wondered what was going on.
 
westofhere said:
So many (hundreds!) of talented, professional, and honest designers out there—reward them with your business instead?
Click to expand...

He was great and again I didn't see this thread until it was bumped by @teddycake. He did good work for me and his quotes were far more reasonable than some others I had received for the same project. The fact that he works in silver is also a plus for some who are setting semi-precious stones. So that is why many continue to work with him. I am dismayed that this seems to be happening again. Transparency is important. For example Dolly (of xothebijouxbox) has said she cannot accept custom work at this time as she is so backed up.
 
Purranha said:
Omg please share if you know any that’s in the same bracket as Daniel M!
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I second this request! I’ve used DK before, who is wonderful of course and quite reasonable given his beautiful work but my budget doesn’t always allow for it and some projects simply don’t need that meticulous level of precision. Anyone have other benches to recommend?
 
winnietucker said:
The guy is cheap lol. This is the reason why (for me anyway). But there’s a vendor I refuse to do business with so to each their own.
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There's cheap good, and cheap not so good. Given history on this one..... and I'm afraid that history can repeat itself on this one...again.

And lets not forget Enchanted Diamonds. They took the money and ran. I don't doubt they'll show up a few years from now and people will be like "oh but they're cheap"

Cheap isn't good if integrity doesn't come along with it.

The old saying that "if someone shows you who they are, believe them", applies here.

But hey also there's not so cheap (don't say that name three times...lol) who I also wouldn't do business with because of some rather shoddy customer service issues.

I will save my pennies to get not so cheap but great integrity, but thats just me.
 
Honestly some people (*ahem* myself included) don't have huge jewelry budgets like some of the wonderful frequenters of the this forum. David Klass is wonderful and far superior to Daniel M in both service and products, but I don't have the money to use him for everything, as much as I'd like to.

I'd bet many of us would not be using Daniel M if it was not for his extremely competitive prices. And of course, like many things, you get what you pay for. There just aren't many options at such a low price point and I could never afford to set many of the things I have if I didn't consider him.

If anyone has a better recommendation in the same price point, I am all ears and I am sure many of the ladies on this thread would be too.
 
I have recommended Quincy of QCustom Jewelry a few times. It is worth asking him for a project quote.

I have two pairs huggies from him with diamonds and ruby, plus a ring. His work is very nice. Here is the ring. It's very nicely done.

802232
802233
 
elizat said:
I have recommended Quincy of QCustom Jewelry a few times. It is worth asking him for a project quote.

I have two pairs huggies from him with diamonds and ruby, plus a ring. His work is very nice. Here is the ring. It's very nicely done.

IMG_20200908_102627.jpg
IMG_20200908_102618.jpg
Click to expand...

Oh beautiful ring! Thank you!
 
elizat said:
I have recommended Quincy of QCustom Jewelry a few times. It is worth asking him for a project quote.

I have two pairs huggies from him with diamonds and ruby, plus a ring. His work is very nice. Here is the ring. It's very nicely done.

802232
802233
Click to expand...

Very pretty! I shot off a message. Thank you for the recommendation!
 
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