Bring Your Own Stone Guide

Our Bring Your Own Stone (BYOS) service allows you to send us your own diamond or gemstone for setting in our designs without incurring the expenses typically associated with custom jewelry.

Whether you’re resetting an heirloom, repurposing a stone from an old piece, or simply found the perfect stone somewhere else, we’re happy to work with it.

How It Works

1. Choose Your Setting

Browse our BYOS available settings here. If you would like your stone set in a design that is not available on our site, please reach out to start a custom order.

Fill out all applicable information in the listing, including:

Stone type
Shape
Carat weight
Measurements

2. Send Us Your Stone

After your order is placed, you’ll receive instructions for sending your stone to us.

Customers are responsible for all costs associated with shipping their stone to us.

We strongly recommend using a tracked, insured, signature-required shipping method and insuring the package for the full replacement value of your stone.

We are not responsible for stones or packages that are lost, stolen, damaged, or misdelivered.

Please do not mail a stone to us without first placing an order or receiving shipping instructions.

3. We Inspect Your Stone

Once your stone arrives, we’ll inspect it to confirm its measurements, general condition, and suitability for the selected design.

Please understand that our inspection is not a laboratory grading or appraisal service.

Some stones may not be suitable for a particular setting due to their dimensions, condition, cut, durability, inclusions, prior damage, or other characteristics.

If we determine that your stone cannot safely or reasonably be used for the design you selected, we’ll contact you before proceeding.

Design Preview & Approval

Before your piece moves into final production, you’ll receive a design preview, rendering, CAD, photograph, or other appropriate representation of the proposed design for your review.

You will have an opportunity to confirm important design details before we proceed.

Production will not begin until we receive your approval where approval is required.

Please review your preview carefully. Once you approve the design, you are confirming that the proportions, stone orientation, layout, and other visible design elements are acceptable.

Minor differences may exist between digital renderings and finished jewelry due to polishing, stone setting, manufacturing tolerances, lighting, screen display, and the handmade finishing process.

Working With Customer-Supplied Stones

Setting any stone involves some degree of risk.

This is especially true for:

Antique or heirloom stones
Previously set stones
Chipped or abraded stones
Stones with surface-reaching inclusions
Fracture-filled or clarity-enhanced stones
Soft or brittle gemstones
Stones with unknown treatment histories
Stones that have previously been repaired or recut

By submitting a stone through our BYOS service, you acknowledge that stones can chip, fracture, break, scratch, cleave, or otherwise become damaged during handling, setting, removal, tightening, cleaning, repair, or manufacturing.

While we take reasonable care when handling customer-supplied stones, First Person Studios cannot guarantee against stone damage and is not responsible for the replacement value of a customer-supplied stone if it is damaged during the jewelry-making or setting process.

If we notice an obvious condition that makes a stone unusually risky to set, we may contact you before proceeding or decline to work with the stone.

We reserve the right to refuse any stone that we believe cannot be safely incorporated into the requested piece.

Stone Identification & Value

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, First Person Studios does not independently verify:

Whether a stone is natural, lab-grown, synthetic, or imitation
Geographic origin
Treatment status
Carat weight stated by the customer
Color or clarity grade
Market value
Authenticity of third-party paperwork

We will treat the stone as the item represented and submitted by the customer.

If the identity or value of a stone is important for insurance purposes, we recommend obtaining an independent appraisal or laboratory report before shipping it to us.

Changes After Approval

Please request any changes before approving your design.

Changes requested after CAD/design approval or after production has begun may require an additional fee and may extend your production timeline.

Significant changes may require a new CAD, new components, or complete remanufacturing of the piece.

Cancellations & Refunds

Because BYOS orders involve custom planning and handling of customer-owned property, our standard cancellation policy is more limited.

Before You Send Your Stone

If you cancel before your stone has been shipped to or received by us, we may issue a refund for any portion of the order that has not yet been completed, ordered, designed, or otherwise incurred on your behalf.

Any non-refundable design, CAD, customization, sourcing, or processing fees already incurred may be deducted from the refund.

After We Receive Your Stone

Once your stone has arrived at our studio, a $50 stone return and handling fee will be deducted from any approved refund.

Shipping your stone back to you may also be charged separately where applicable.

After the Custom Process Has Started

Once design work, CAD work, fabrication, casting, stone-setting preparation, material ordering, or other custom production has begun, the order is non-refundable.

Your payment covers not only the finished jewelry but also the custom design work, labor, materials, and production time committed specifically to your piece.

Once you approve your final design and production begins, cancellations and refunds are no longer available.

Returning Your Stone

If we are unable to complete your project or you cancel while your order is still eligible for cancellation, your stone will be returned to the shipping address associated with your order unless another arrangement is made in writing.

Customers are responsible for applicable return shipping and insurance costs.

We will not knowingly ship a valuable stone uninsured at a customer’s request if we believe doing so creates an unreasonable risk.

Please make sure your shipping information is accurate. We are not responsible for delays or additional costs caused by incorrect or outdated addresses supplied by the customer.

Production Timeline

BYOS pieces are custom projects, and production time begins after:

Your stone has been received and inspected;
Any necessary measurements have been taken;
The design has been finalized;
You have provided any required approval; and
Any outstanding balance has been paid.

The time your stone spends in transit to us is not included in the quoted production timeline.

If changes are required after inspection, your timeline may be extended.

Finished-Piece Fit

We design your setting around the measurements of the stone we actually receive whenever possible.

However, gemstones are not perfectly standardized. Two stones described as the same carat weight and shape can have very different proportions.

For this reason, measurements provided before we physically receive the stone are considered preliminary.

Your final setting may require small changes from the original listing images, CAD, or example piece in order to safely accommodate your specific stone.

Heirloom & Sentimental Stones

Please tell us before shipping if your stone has exceptional sentimental or irreplaceable value.

We understand that the emotional value of an heirloom may far exceed its monetary value. However, no jewelry-making process can completely eliminate the possibility of accidental damage.

If a stone is truly irreplaceable and you would not be comfortable accepting any risk of damage to it, we recommend not resetting it.

By Using Our BYOS Service

By sending us your stone, you confirm that:

You own the stone or have authorization from its owner to have it altered and set.
The information you have provided about the stone is accurate to the best of your knowledge.
You understand that jewelry manufacturing and stone setting involve inherent risks.
You accept the BYOS shipping, cancellation, return, design approval, and stone-damage policies described above.
You authorize us to handle and work on the stone as reasonably necessary to complete your order.

Questions Before Sending Your Stone?

If you’re unsure whether your stone will work with a particular setting, contact us before ordering.

Send us clear photos along with the stone’s shape and measurements if available, and we can help determine whether your project is a good candidate for BYOS.