I questioned the buyer/owner about the personalized rings because I am not selling these rings to the store (technically)- nor will they be advertised for me at the store (unless someone asks them in the store while they are wearing them).  She said that because they are the vendors they get everything at wholesale (even rings they are buying for personal use) 

thank you, chrissy

of course technically those items should have been sold at regular price and be taxed. however, if you and the store owners are going to have a great ongoing relationship I think selling them the items at wholesale is a wise idea. it's only a few items and can go a long way towards goodwill.  

 You are not  being scammed, That's just the way it works even though technically it is not correct.

Strictly speaking  the store should be paying use tax to their state on the goods as they were "withdrawn for personal use."  They bought them under their resale number. so  you are not responsible for the tax.

I thought that too- i'd rather have a good relationship rather than make an extra 40 bucks.

That being said, your wholesale price for customized items should be higher to begin with.  Once your items start to sell, perhaps the store would allow you to promote custom work, meaning that you deal directly with the customer but the store gets a percentage of the sale for the referral.