A quiet workshop on Main Street where engagement rings are drawn by hand, heirlooms are restored grain by grain, and timepieces are returned to the steady tick they were born to keep.
From a first engagement ring to a great-grandmother's brooch brought back from a drawer, every piece that arrives at our bench is examined under the loupe, photographed, and discussed with you before any tool is lifted. Below, the four practices that define a visit to Shamrock Jewelers.
For the ring, pendant or band that must be exactly right. We sketch, model in wax, and cast in the metal of your choice — platinum, 18k yellow, rose, or warm white gold. GIA-graded center stones sourced to your specification, set by hand under the same bench lamp that has lit our work for decades.
A curated selection of finished pieces — solitaires, three-stone rings, diamond studs, tennis bracelets, and signature pendants — drawn from designers we have worked with for years. Every item is inspected, sized, and presented with full documentation.
Sizing, stone tightening, prong re-tipping, broken clasps, snapped chains, and the careful restoration of pieces that have been worn daily for fifty years. Most repairs are completed in our own workshop; only the most specialized casting is sent to a partner we trust personally.
Battery replacement, band sizing, and full mechanical service for automatic and manual-wind timepieces. Crystal replacement, stem and crown repair, and pressure testing for water resistance — completed on-site whenever possible, with honest timelines and written estimates before any work begins.
Working with a jeweler should feel unhurried. Here is how a typical commission or repair moves through our bench.
You tell us the story behind the piece — an engagement, an anniversary, a grandmother's brooch that deserves a second life. We listen, ask questions, and take notes. There is never a charge for this first meeting.
30 minutes · No obligationYour piece is examined under 10x magnification, weighed, and photographed. For repairs, we provide a written estimate. For custom work, we share sketches, stone options, and a complete cost breakdown before any metal is touched.
Transparent · Written quoteWork begins in our Main Street workshop. You are welcome to stop in and see progress — many clients do. We send a brief note at each meaningful milestone: stone set, casting complete, polish finished.
Most repairs · 1 to 2 weeksYou return to a clean bench, a finished piece, and a small box containing a polishing cloth, care instructions, and — for custom work — the original sketches and a written description of every stone and metal used. We are here for the lifetime of the piece.
Lifetime care · No appointment needed
Shamrock Jewelers has worked from the same block of Main Street for decades — long enough to have sized the rings of three generations in some families. The bench you would visit today is the same craft, the same hand tools, the same patient attention to a prong that sits a hair too high.
We are a small workshop by choice. Every piece that leaves the case has been examined, set, or polished by someone whose name you will know. We carry the work because we still believe a ring should be made the way it always was — slowly, and with someone watching.
The bench at ShamrockMain Street · Dubuque, IowaSix quiet promises that govern every piece that passes across our workbench. None of them are remarkable on their own — together, they are why our clients return, and bring their children.
The majority of repairs and all custom commissions are completed in our own workshop. We do not ship your heirloom across the country.
Every repair and custom project begins with a written estimate. You will know the cost before any work begins, and we will call if anything changes.
Every diamond and colored stone we set is accompanied by its GIA or AGL report. We source through suppliers we have worked with for years.
The first conversation is free. Bring photographs, an old piece, or just an idea. There is never an obligation to commission, and never a hard sell.
We will clean, inspect, and tighten the prongs of any ring we make for as long as you wear it. Stop in any weekday — no appointment needed.
Four decades of the same craft, the same tools, and the same standards. We do not chase trends; we make pieces meant to outlast them.
Most custom commissions take between six and ten weeks from the first sketch to the finished ring. The exact timeline depends on the complexity of the design and the sourcing of the center stone — a readily available GIA-graded diamond will move faster than a particularly unusual sapphire. We share a realistic timeline during the consultation and keep you updated at each milestone.
We work on jewelry regardless of where it was made or purchased. A meaningful share of our bench time is spent restoring, sizing, and resetting heirloom pieces — many of which were originally crafted elsewhere. Bring the piece in and we will examine it under magnification and discuss what is possible.
Simple repairs such as a ring sizing, a clasp replacement, or a basic battery swap are usually completed within a few days. More involved work — prong re-tipping, stone setting, full restoration of an heirloom — typically takes one to two weeks. We provide a written estimate before any work begins and will always call if the scope changes. Costs vary widely by piece and material; we are happy to give a ballpark over the phone for straightforward work.
Yes. We work directly with a small group of suppliers we have known for years, and can source GIA-graded diamonds in any shape, size, and quality you specify. For colored stones — sapphires, rubies, emeralds, and the more unusual tourmalines or spinels — we lean on established dealers and will present you with a curated selection rather than a list.
Yes. Battery replacement, band sizing, and crystal replacement for most quartz watches are completed at the bench while you wait or the same day. Mechanical timepieces — automatic and manual-wind movements — are serviced in-house by appointment and may take several weeks depending on the caliber. We provide written estimates before any mechanical service begins.
Written appraisals for insurance purposes are completed for a flat fee and include full documentation of each stone, the metal, and current market valuations. We are happy to discuss the process and timing before you bring the piece in.
Whether you are ready to commission a ring, bring in a piece for repair, or simply want a quiet conversation about an idea you have been carrying around, the form beside this note reaches our bench directly. We answer every inquiry personally, usually within one business day.