Ginette NY

Suffice it to say, I’m no jewelry whore. I adore simplicity in jewelry favoring striking, standalone pieces that go with everything (rather than having to coordinate accessories around a certain outfit). That said, Ginette NY is perfect for me (and you too, if you hate the idea of costume jewelry as much as I do, and maybe — just maybe — you’re growing tired of Elsa Peretti).
Well at the pinnacle of my disgust at the current jewelry options offered around town, I saw the perfect necklace in this year’s February issue of Vogue — an 18K gold monogrammed disc that comes in your choice of white, rose or yellow gold. The necklace is handmade and monogrammed with your initials. Rose gold is the best one, btw. Note: you might be tempted to purchase this necklace through
, but don’t. Call the store directly as the price is a bit cheaper. Kat (the saleswoman) was smart, efficient, and gave me an accurate timeline to when the necklace would ship (the designer was running about a month behind due to all the orders). She emailed me a receipt, I got UPS tracking confirmation, and low and behold, it arrived exactly when Kat mentioned.
Overall, they do sell some Ginette NY pieces at places like Fred Segal & Lisa Kline up in LA, but it’s a crying shame there’s no full fledged boutique out here. Until then, buy directly from the NYC boutique over the phone. Check out their website and prepare to be mesmerized for a good 15 minutes.

I have to preface this with the statement that I never go out of my way to write reviews. I love every single one of their pieces, but have never had such a bad retail experience. I went in there with a friend to pick out a gift for my boyfriend to get me and from the moment we walked in the salesgirl (I think her name is Anike) was so incredibly rude. Since I didn’t have anything in particular in mind that I wanted, I asked to try on several different pieces. After making a stink about only being allowed to see one piece at a time, she started rolling her eyes that I wanted to try on so many items. She snapped at me «why don’t you tell me what you’re looking for as to not waste time». This is after I patiently waited for her to finish with another customer. I finally picked two pieces and asked if she could write down the model #s for me. She said they don’t do that and would only tell me the names of the pieces. She told me the «petite diamond» and the «the oval».
When my boyfriend went back a few days later he also got to experience her charm. He asked for the «little diamond» and she told him they don’t have anything like that. She really couldn’t figure out that little diamond meant petite diamond? Not only that, it later turns out that it was actually called «tiny diamond» and she gave me the wrong price of the oval necklace. He ended up getting both pieces, but I’m not sure if I’ll browse there for a present again.

I really love the delicate pieces that this designer makes. I had a good experience and the salesgirl was helpful and courteous. She was also courteous to the person who was waiting for her to finish with me, who seemed a little irritated she had to wait. When I needed an adjustment to a bracelet I was interested in, the salesgirl called out one of the jewelry workers from the back for advice. I wanted to think about it, so she gave me their card and wrote down the name of the piece. I called a week later and she remembered me and was just as helpful on the phone as she was in the store. I would shop here again.