Ridgewood Jewelry Repair Shop, Sizing From $35: AJ's Jewelry

In 1988 a 19-year-old named Jordan Eddi rented a corner of a women's clothing store on Myrtle Avenue in Ridgewood and started selling jewelry with $4,000 and, in his words, a dream. A year later he had taken over the whole store. Nearly four decades on, AJ's Jewelry is still on Myrtle Avenue, and its repair workshop is one of the reasons people keep coming back. Rings are sized while you wait behind a glass enclosure, most repairs are finished on site within two days, and the shop publishes its starting prices online.

The About page reads like a neighborhood history. After taking over the store in 1989, Eddi later bought the remaining lease of what he describes as Ridgewood's oldest and most trusted jewelry store, and kept the AJ's name over the door. Myrtle Avenue has changed around it since then, but the shop has stayed a local fixture for engagement rings, gold chains, and the repairs that follow years of wear.

The repair page puts its promise in plain terms. Every repair is done on site by the shop's own craftsmen, and the shop says it never outsources your jewelry. That matters more than it sounds. Many counters send work out to a trade bench, which adds days and means the person who quoted you never sees the piece again.

Ring sizing is the shop's signature job. The sizing page says rings can be sized while you wait, and that you can watch the work through the glass enclosure around the bench. For a plain band, that means walking in with a ring that slides off and walking out with one that fits. Complex resizes that need stones removed and reset, or that involve specialty metals, can take one to two business days.

The rest of the menu covers what most jewelry boxes need eventually. A basic repair starts at $25, prong retipping is $15 and up per prong, shank repair starts at $45 and clasp replacement starts at $15. Complex structural work is priced on assessment. On the chain repair page, a basic chain solder starts at $25, a multi-point repair starts at $50 and platinum chain work starts at $60.

The shop works in yellow, white and rose gold, platinum and sterling silver, and lists prong retipping, shank replacement, clasp and jump ring repair, hinge restoration and broken link replacement among its common jobs. Pearl restringing is offered with single or double knots, and the shop can replace the clasp at the same time. It also does laser engraving, professional cleaning and gemstone replacement.

The difference between single and double knotting is worth asking about. A knot between each pearl keeps them from rubbing against each other and means that if the strand breaks, you lose one pearl rather than the whole necklace. Double knots are larger and fill the drill holes better on pearls with wide holes. Bring the strand in, let the jeweler look at the drill holes, and choose based on what fits the pearls rather than habit.

Watch repair is available too, with one practical note from the shop. Call before you come to make sure the watch repairman is in that day, since that service is not staffed every day.

A quick tip on prongs, since the per-prong price makes it tempting to do just one. If a jeweler finds one worn tip, ask about the others. Prongs on the same ring wear at about the same rate, and retipping all four or six at once is cheaper than paying for a lost diamond later.

The repair page tells you to visit or give the shop a call, and says no appointment is needed for most services. Before any work starts, you get a free assessment of the piece. Same-day service is available for straightforward repairs, and the shop says on its Brooklyn-facing page that repairs are finished within two days or less. That page is for this same Ridgewood store, which sits right on the Brooklyn line, not a separate branch.

A repair errand here is a good excuse to see one of the city's best-preserved neighborhoods. Walk west along Myrtle Avenue to the Ridgewood Theatre, a 1916 movie palace by architect Thomas Lamb with a glazed terra-cotta facade, designated a city landmark in 2010. Turn up a side street and you reach Gottscheer Hall, a community hall and tavern that has served the local Gottscheer community since 1924 and still pours beer in its wood-paneled bar.

The surrounding blocks are lined with yellow brick row houses built in the early twentieth century, many of them inside a historic district. Fresh Pond Road and the Myrtle Avenue shopping strip have bakeries, delis and Polish and Balkan grocers worth a look.

The closest subway is Forest Avenue on the M line, a few minutes' walk north of the shop. The Q55 bus runs along Myrtle Avenue and stops near the door.

Address: AJ's Jewelry, at 57-44 Myrtle Ave, Ridgewood, NY 11385, in Queens. Hours: Monday to Friday 11 am to 6:45 pm, Saturday 11 am to 6 pm, closed Sunday. No appointment is needed for most services, and assessments are free. Prices start at $35 for standard ring sizing, $25 for a basic repair or chain solder, and $15 per prong for retipping. Most repairs are done on site within two days.

Bring loose stones in a sealed bag and call ahead for watch work. If you are waiting on a sizing, the Karpo APP can suggest a bakery or a coffee spot along Myrtle Avenue.