TL;DR

Most fine jewellery in gold, platinum, or silver can be repaired. At Bijouterie Jamil in Montréal, common jobs run $20–$150 CAD and turn around in 3 to 10 business days: chain repairs, clasp swaps, ring resizing, prong tightening, polishing, rhodium plating, and laser welding. Some pieces can't be saved — cast items with hairline cracks, badly corroded costume jewellery, and certain tension settings that cannot be cut without destroying the design. We repair items you didn't buy from us. Walk in or book an appointment.

Table of contents

1. What we repair (and the real prices)
2. Ring resizing: how much smaller or larger we can go
3. Stones, prongs, and lost diamonds
4. Polishing, refinishing, and rhodium plating
5. Laser welding vs traditional soldering
6. What we honestly can't fix
7. How to bring your piece in
8. FAQ

1. What we repair (and the real prices)

Here is the menu we run every week at the bench. These are typical 2026 prices in Canadian dollars for gold and silver pieces in normal condition. Anything unusual gets a written quote before we start.

We give you a firm quote in person before any work starts. No surprises on pickup. If we open something up and find a hidden issue — a stress crack, a worn shank, a loose stone we missed — we stop, call you, and walk you through the options.

[Internal link: see our guide on how to clean and care for fine jewellery at home to extend the life of any repair we do.]

2. Ring resizing: how much smaller or larger we can go

Most rings can be resized up or down by one to two sizes safely. Beyond that, we are no longer stretching or cutting — we are rebuilding part of the shank, and the price climbs accordingly.

• Down 1–2 sizes: $50–$90. We cut a small section out, rejoin the shank, then polish.
• Up 1–2 sizes: $70–$150. We cut the shank and add a piece of matching gold, then planish, file, and polish.
• Up or down 3+ sizes: custom quote. Often more cost-effective to remake the shank entirely.

Eternity bands set with stones all the way around usually cannot be resized by stretching or compressing — the stones get crushed. The honest answer is to either remove and reset stones (expensive) or make a new band. Tension-set rings, where the stone is held only by the spring of the metal, also generally cannot be resized without ruining the setting. We will tell you up front if your ring falls into one of these categories.

For step-by-step measuring at home, see our complete ring sizing guide for Quebec.

3. Stones, prongs, and lost diamonds

Prongs are the four to six tiny metal claws holding your stone in place. They wear down with everyday contact — door handles, kitchen counters, gym bags. We recommend a prong check once a year, especially for engagement rings and tennis bracelets. The check itself is free if you're already in the store.

• Prong tightening: $20–$40 per prong if the metal is still healthy.
• Re-tipping a worn prong: $40–$60 per prong (we add fresh gold to the tip and re-form it).
• Replacing a broken prong: $50–$80 per prong.

If a stone has fallen out, bring in the ring even if you didn't recover the diamond. We can match a replacement using the original setting dimensions. Replacement stone cost depends entirely on the stone — a 0,25 ct natural diamond replacement might run $400–$900 CAD; the same in a lab-grown stone is significantly less. For coloured stones we source from our regular suppliers and quote within a few business days. See our lab-grown vs natural diamonds guide for context on stone pricing.

4. Polishing, refinishing, and rhodium plating

A full polish takes years off a tired piece. We remove the surface scratches with progressively finer wheels, then finish to a high shine or, if you prefer, a brushed/satin texture. Typical cost: $40–$80 CAD, turnaround 3 to 5 business days.

White gold is actually a yellow-gold alloy mixed with white metals (palladium or nickel) and then rhodium plated to achieve that bright silver-white look. Rhodium wears off — usually within 12 to 24 months for a daily-wear ring in Montréal's salt-and-winter climate. Re-plating runs $60–$120 CAD depending on size and detail. We polish the piece first, then plate, so you get a brand-new finish.

Yellow and rose gold do not need plating. Sterling silver tarnishes (a chemical reaction with sulphur in the air) and we can clean and polish it, but plating silver is rarely worth it.

5. Laser welding vs traditional soldering

This is where modern repair has changed everything. A traditional torch and solder works beautifully for many jobs, but it puts heat through the whole piece — bad news for heat-sensitive stones (emeralds, opals, pearls, some treated sapphires) and for thin antique metalwork.

A laser welder delivers a microscopic pulse of energy at the exact joint, with almost no heat spread two millimetres away. We can: - Repair a broken chain link without removing the adjacent stones - Re-tip a prong with a diamond still set in place - Repair eyeglass frames, hollow tube bracelets, and antique pieces that would warp under torch heat - Fix items that solder would discolour (some white-gold alloys, certain platinum work)

Laser welding runs $40–$120 CAD per joint at our bench. For a deeper dive into the technique, see our companion article on laser welding and soldering.

6. What we honestly can't fix

We will not take a job we don't believe in. Here is when we say no:

• Cast pieces with hairline cracks through the structure. Once a crack runs through a cast band, the metal's grain is compromised. We can patch it cosmetically but it will fail again. Better to remake the piece.
• Badly damaged costume jewellery. Plated base metals can't be re-plated cleanly, and the underlying alloy often won't take solder or laser. We'll tell you straight: it's not worth the labour.
• Tension-set rings that need resizing. The whole point of a tension setting is the spring of the metal. Cut it and you destroy the design.
• Eternity bands that need significant resizing without removing every stone.
• Pieces with extensive corrosion from chemical exposure (chlorine, mercury, certain perfumes). Sometimes the metal itself is no longer structurally sound.
• Repairs that would cost more than a remake. If the labour to save a piece exceeds the cost of fabricating a new one, we say so. We'd rather lose the repair than charge you for a temporary fix.

That honesty is part of why second- and third-generation Montréal customers still walk through our door.

7. How to bring your piece in

You don't need an appointment for repair drop-off. Walk in any time during store hours at our Montréal location and one of us will look at your piece on the spot, give you a verbal estimate, and write up a repair ticket. If you'd rather book a quiet 15-minute slot, our visit Bijouterie Jamil page has the appointment link.

What we'll need from you: - The piece itself (clean it gently with warm soapy water if you can, but don't scrub) - A description of what's wrong, when it started, and what you've already tried - Your name, phone, and email - Photos help if you've already noticed something specific

What happens next: 1. We give you a written quote and a target pickup date. 2. You approve in person, or by phone/email if we need to source a stone. 3. We do the work at our in-house bench. Most jobs never leave the building. 4. We text or call when the piece is ready. You pay on pickup.

Yes — we repair items you didn't buy from Bijouterie Jamil. This question comes up every single day. Bring it in. Whether it's an heirloom from your grandmother, a piece from a chain store that closed, or a ring you bought online and never thought you'd need to service, we treat it the same as our own work. No judgment, no upcharge for being a "non-store item."

FAQ

How do I get a jewellery repair quote in Montréal?

Walk into Bijouterie Jamil during store hours. We look at the piece, give you a verbal estimate on the spot, and write up a ticket with the firm price before we start any work. You can also email us a photo for a rough range, but the final quote needs the piece in hand.

Can you repair jewellery I didn't buy from Bijouterie Jamil?

Yes. We repair items from any source — heirlooms, chain stores, online purchases, gifts. There's no surcharge for being a non-store item and no judgment about where it came from.

How much does ring resizing cost?

Resizing a gold ring up or down by one to two sizes typically costs $50–$150 CAD at our Montréal bench, with a 5 to 7 business day turnaround. Eternity bands and tension-set rings often can't be resized — we'll tell you in person.

How much is it to fix a broken chain?

A standard broken chain repair runs $30–$80 CAD depending on the chain weight and the type of link. We use laser welding for thin or stone-set chains so nothing else gets heat-damaged. Turnaround is 3 to 5 business days.

How often should I have my engagement ring's prongs checked?

Once a year, minimum. Prong tightening is $20–$40 CAD per prong if the metal is still healthy. The check itself is free when you're already in the store. Catching a worn prong early is the difference between a $30 fix and a $900 lost-diamond replacement.

What is rhodium plating and how much does it cost?

Rhodium plating is a thin layer of bright white metal applied over white gold to give it that silver-white finish. It wears off in 12 to 24 months on daily-wear pieces. Re-plating at Bijouterie Jamil runs $60–$120 CAD with a polish included, 5 to 7 business days.

What jewellery can't be repaired?

Cast pieces with structural hairline cracks, badly corroded costume jewellery, tension-set rings that need resizing, and full eternity bands that can't be sized without removing every stone. We tell you up front if a repair isn't worth the cost.

Is laser welding better than soldering?

For modern repairs on heat-sensitive stones (emeralds, opals, pearls), thin antique metalwork, and any job where you can't safely heat the whole piece — yes, laser welding is the better option. For sturdy gold work without delicate stones, traditional soldering is still excellent and often cheaper.

Visit us

Have a piece that needs a second opinion? Walk into Bijouterie Jamil in Montréal during store hours, or book a 15-minute repair consultation. We'll look at it on the spot, give you a real number, and tell you honestly whether it's worth fixing.

About the author Nader Khazzoum is Owner & Master Craftsman at Bijouterie Jamil, a family-run Montréal jewellery house in business for over 60 years. He specializes in custom fabrication, stone setting, and laser welding, and personally handles bench repairs at the store.