Mimi So

Mimi captures elegance. Her jewelry is modern and classic at the same time. I always get scores of compliments when I wear her pieces! Love, love, love it.

The 4 C’s are diamond color, clarity, cut, and carats — I have no idea how «cost» didn’t make the ‘cut’.
I had the privilege of dealing directly with Mimi So — I had an engagement ring designed and ready a week after our first consultation. Her showroom is located near the diamond district and is in a private office building. Privacy and discretion are ideal when shopping for a diamond (other diamond district jewelry stores are far from private or discreet). Before going in for a consultation, definitely:
— Do your homework (so you understand the 4 C’s, diamond shape, and settings)
— Check out your girlfriend’s Pinterest page (she might have ‘ring suggestions’ there)
— Cash helps negate the seller’s credit card fees
— Have the ring shipped to NJ to save on sales tax (8.875%)

My fiancée and I had a Friday off so we decided to Wedding Band shopping. First stop — Mimi So! We chose them because while shopping for an Engagement Ring, we called several jewelry stores in the city and they were all closed on the weekends, but Mimi So was kind enough to offer to come in on a Saturday to accommodate us. We had another jewelry connection so we never made it to Mimi So but the good impression stuck in our heads.
We arrived at 550 and did not see any sign for «Mimi So» but we say a lot of other diamond stores so we asked the guard. He asked who we were here to see. We said «Mimi So». Anyone in particular? No… He called upstairs, we waited a good 5 minutes. Then he let us up. We were intimidated, for sure.
We went up the elevator and the door opened up to a Mimi So sign, finally! But this did not look like a traditional jewelry store. Again, we were scared — was this a wholesaler? Because that’s what it looked like. It was a nice lobby behind 2 glass walls and locked doors. No display cases anywhere.
We rang the bell and were let in, one door at a time. They offered us water and we met with Adrienne. She led us into this glass room. There was a table in the center of the room with jewelry on it. I thought to myself, I don’t want to go into that room, it looks so… as if you were a high roller and going to be making a big purchase, if you know what I mean…
But Adrienne was so sweet, kind and helpful. We were instantly put at ease. In fact, I wanted to buy it all! The rings were just so unique and gorgeous, you can find something for anyone there! And its not like they are all totally original (although some really are!) it’s that they each have a spin on some existing traditional ring, just Gorgeous! We left there feeling very satisfied and very excited!
Note: The reason they do not look like a traditional jewelry store is because they wanted to move away from that, they used to be on the ground level with all the cases but wanted to give customers a more personal and comfortable experience. I didn’t know what they meant until we visited a few stores afterwards and stood by a case, tried on rings with someone staring over your shoulder and then put the ring back in the case. Not very fun.
… AND they let you take pictures… because they know you’ll fall in love and come back