Policies

By purchasing or ordering pre-owned (estate), made-to-order and/or custom jewelry from The Gem Corps --via this site or "offline" (email, direct message, in-person)--you–-the user, customer, buyer, purchaser–-are agreeing to ALL of the terms and conditions described below:

Estate jewelry is pre-owned and encompasses vintage and antique jewelry. Vintage jewelry is 30 to 70 years old and antique jewelry is 100+ years old. These pieces of wearable art can and do out-live us, sometimes by millenia, and the ones that last have been well-made and well-cared for. Evidence of wear commensurate with age is expected and celebrated by those who stan estate jewelry. 

All of the pieces that we curate are in very good to excellent pre-owned condition and are sold *as is.* TGC guarantees that metals are solid, unless otherwise described, and stones are natural, unless otherwise described. Minor scuffs, scratches and patina are not polished out. Any substantial blemishes that do not detract from the beauty or functionality of the piece, will be mentioned in the description. Photos are part of those descriptions. If a ring can be resized by your local jeweler, it is stated in the description. Special care must be taken for antique jewelry, older stones, fragile stones (opal, emerald,etc.), enamel and certain filigree. We always say, ‘DON'T SHOP FOR SIZE.’ Many of these pieces are one-of-a-kind or otherwise rare, so we don’t want you to miss out on something that you love when a simple re-size is possible. At times we are able to offer resizing for an additional cost, though typically not during the winter holidays or leading up to and during the summer months.

Appraisals and gemstone reports (GIA, AIGL, Bay Area Gem Lab, etc.) do not accompany jewelry unless otherwise noted in the description. It is not a common practice of estate jewelry dealers to blanket offer either of these documents unless they have come from the previous owner, are for high carat (diamonds, emeralds, rubies, etc.) stones, jewelry with provenance, high value jewelry, and often a combination of the aforementioned. We can obtain both through our network of gemologists operated labs and accredited appraisers at an additional cost. We do, however, encourage customers to obtain independent appraisals for personal jewelry and use those to insure their investments.

The Gem Corps’ *Modern Heirlooms* include our collection of new, made-for-you jewelry: Sweet CHAIRiot, La Guia Sagrada, CenoTres, Links of Spirits, Chewy De Los Muertos, and Megascops Medowllion. Sometimes pieces are in-stock and ready to ship, but we mostly work on a made-to-order schedule.  If an item is listed as “backordered” this means that it is a made-to-order piece, so please proceed with placing your order. Delivery times range from 4 to 8 weeks. Please add 3-4 weeks during May-August and November-January. Although unexpected delays may occur, often times jewelry is delivered on or ahead of schedule. 

PRICING IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Fine jewelry is made of precious commodities, in particular metals. With the unprecedented, steep and fast rise in gold and other precious metals, we must keep up with the market by adjusting pricing. This is just one reason why pricing may vary. As a point of reference, gold on 2/14/25 was $2,882.41/ oz. At the beginning of 2026 it reached nearly $5,500. As of 5/6/26, gold was $4,690.00/ oz. 

RETURN POLICY

We've had great success with our ALL SALES FINAL - no refunds or exchanges - policy which has attracted a clientele that purchases jewelry with intention and care. TGC takes care to check each piece and to provide thorough descriptions. We make one exception to this policy: IF an item has been mistakenly misrepresented in the item listing. If you've received an item that raises any questions or concerns, you have 2 days from date of delivery to email us at Info@GemCorps.com. We will then assess and determine next steps which, at our discretion, may involve the customer returning the un-used item fully insured and well-packaged, at the customer’s expense and within a time-frame specified by us. Items that are returned without our approval will be sent back to the purchaser/sender. Please take care to ask all of your questions prior to purchasing. If you would like to see additional photos or videos--which are part of the description-- reach out anytime to Info@Gemcorps.com or visit our Instagram @gemcorps or @gemcorps_jewelry. Send us a DM/ message if you have any questions. We’re happy to help!

JADE BANGLES: Fit is important when it comes to jade bangles, since they cannot be sized. The bangle will have a tag on it which can’t be removed until it’s determined that it’s a keeper.   On the day that it’s delivered, please try it on sitting down over a soft surface. Take a photo and send it to info@gemcorps.com. If it fits—congratulations! Now you may remove the tag.  If the bangle does not fit, please reach out that same day. The bangle will have to be repackaged the same way and shipped back fully insured (2-day or faster) at the buyer's expense.  Once the bangle has been received and inspected, the buyer will be notified. If it’s ready for resale (no damage, tag is still on) the buyer will be refunded, less 5% of the sale price. You also have the option of a store credit that will expire 6 months from the initial date of purchase.

Special offers such as discounts and sales cannot be applied after purchase. Please join our email list to be the first to know about Corps Gems-only sale events and special promotions.

Taxes are calculated and applied for shipments within the state of California or as the law requires. 

CUSTOM DESIGN & MADE-TO-ORDER

We love this work and take a lot of pride in clear communications, resulting in gorgeous pieces to be treasured for generations to come. Please email Info@GemCorps.com to tell us about your project with the subject line "TGC Custom." The consultation fee for custom design starts at $250.00 for one hour which includes the initial video conference and follow-up emails/texts. This fee is deducted from the balance of your TGC custom order.

Please note that once production is underway, changes cannot be made, nor can an order be cancelled. The Gem Corps accepts layaway/ deposits for custom and made-to-order pieces and the general layaway terms (see below) apply. Your order will be shipped once the item has been paid in full. Due to the recent and unprecedented spikes in gold , the pricing quoted at the time of the customer's order or pre-order is a very close estimate based on gold spot at the time of the order. Please reach out to us at Info@GemCorps.com if you have any questions. Moving forward with a custom or made-to-order piece is your agreement to these terms.

HIGH VALUE ORDERS

Proof of ID is required before shipment of items or orders over $2,000.00. After your order is placed, we will reach out to request an ID that matches the payment method used. 

LAYAWAY

Layaway is available on items that are $500 +. A 30% (for estate jewelry) to 50% non-refundable deposit is required. ALL deposits/ payments are non-refundable and non-transferable; cannot be put towards another item. Pieces bought on layaway are subject to our ALL SALES FINAL policy. Please reach out to Info@GemCorps.com with "Layaway" in the subject and include the link to the piece(s). Unless otherwise noted, for items under $3,500, a 30-day layaway is offered at the "paid in full" price; 31-45 days incurs an additional 5% to the "paid in full price;" 45-60 days incurs 10%. Items $3,500+ are not subject to layaway fees up to 60 days. It is up to the customer to keep up with their payments.  TGC does NOT send reminders. However, if a payment is 1 day past due and we have not heard word, we reserve the right to terminate the layaway or charge $25/day late fees.  We're a small jewelry business and while we love offering layaway, we simply do not have the bandwidth to manage the "bad actors."  Moving forward with layaway is your agreement to these terms.

SHIPPING

Items are generally shipped within 7 business days of your order being placed, Monday through Wednesday. The Gem Corps cannot be responsible for incorrectly entered shipping addresses made by the customer at the time of checkout. Please triple check that you are entering the correct address. Any packages that are returned will be reshipped at the expense of the customer.

Once shipped, tracking will be sent to the email entered by the purchaser. We ask that you send a quick note letting us know that your package arrived safely. TGC is not responsible for the package after it has been shipped. We may assist with an insurance claim on your behalf for any packages that become lost, stolen or damaged in transit. 

DOMESTIC: We ship USPS Priority or UPS 2-Day and insure each package for the full amount. Orders that are $500+ will require a signature. Orders that exceed $5,000 will be shipped via FedEx or UPS 2-day or Next Day and will require a signature.

INTERNATIONAL: Please contact us for a quote prior to placing your order. It’s the customer’s responsibility to assume any and all associated tariffs, customs, duties, and/or taxes or other fees related to import. We ask that you complete your own research prior to placing an order. Insurance amounts are limited to $2,500 to most locations. The buyer is responsible for any gaps in insurance in the event of loss, damage theft. For example, if $5,000 was the amount paid for the item and it is lost, damaged or stolen, then we can only file a claim for the amount that the item(s) was insured for due to these international limits.