I had an appointment at the Ginza location and after I made a purchase, the SA asked if I wanted my pieces cleaned (was wearing 2 sweet bracelets) so I had it cleaned no problem.
Anyone shop in Japan recently?
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I booked an appt at ginza maison and was looking for sweet earrings. Was offered rg carnelian and turquoise in wg. Was settling for carnelian when both SA and DH urged me to get turquoise instead as it’s very rare. Is that true? I caved in to peer pressure but abit worried for upkeeping of the stone.
Did you try all of them? Which one do you like the most? I think your preference is more important than the rarity of the items.
Yes, it is hard to find turquoise pieces nowadays. I waited for SW WG turquoise earrings for about a year. I love the pop of blue with WG, which is refreshing and crisp to me. I would of prefer vintage size, but only VVIP can possibly be offered turquoise in vintage size. I am not a VIP so I know I will not have a “set” of turquoise. So if you plan to eventually have a set in the future, then maybe RG hammered or carnelian would be better options?
I got perlee turquoise WG pendant to make up my set with the earrings.
Yes, turquoise is delicate compared to hammered gold or carnelian. So put on your make-up and perfume first then your jewelry to prevent contact with chemicals. No swimming with your jewelries. I also prefer to take off all the jewelries when shower and sleep. Even though turquoise is delicate, but its beauty is truly unique. Enjoy it in good health!!
I didnt get to try them as I was in a rush! I have a sweet carnelian necklace and wanted a pair of sweet carnelian earrings to complete the set! And also cost per wear wld be lesser than wg tq lol. I was also looking for sweet hammered RG but the SAs at Ginza six declared no hammered pieces in whole of Japan. Sigh!
I am sorry you don’t have enough time to try on. Sounded like another trip to VCA is needed in the future 😊 Maybe you would be able to try on SW and Vintage sizes next time and pick the ones that win your heart over. So pick SW turquoise earrings is a good choice in retrospect because other stones/sizes combination is relatively easier to find compare to turquoise. I ordered vintage RG hammered and WG guilloche and quoted 2 and 5 months respectively. Never imagined patience is needed to purchase jewelry 😂
Here is SW and Vintage earrings size difference if you wanted to compare sizes side by side.
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Yet another rambling post as usual, I do apologise in advance!
I have been in touch with my Maison Ginza SA throughout the year from my last visit to Tokyo last year. Once I knew my vacation plans had firmed up, she accelerated the search for my wishlist items. I amended it a few times, given that two of the most important ones were fulfilled by my home store in Dubai.
As it got closer to my vacation, she got in touch with me to confirm that one of my wishlist items had been secured, and we made the appointment for Friday, the first day I would arrive in Tokyo.
Of course, my Tokyo TPF bestie came along for the ride, as she did last year!
My SA was on leave on Friday, so she arranged for another SA to assist me during the appointment.
When we arrived, we were welcomed into a private salon at the rear of the ground floor of the boutique, and provided with the usual austere Japanese refreshments of boxed water and chocolates.
Without further ado, she brought out the piece that my SA had put aside for me, which was the Sweet Alhambra pave ring in white gold. It was as beautiful as I expected, and it was a perfect fit. I set that aside, and asked to see some other pieces before I wanted to make my final decision.
I asked the SA about the limited edition Ginza Magic Alhambra pendant in RG and WMOP, as that was the other wishlist item I had been looking for since last year. She was really apologetic and said that they had no stock of it and hadn’t seen one in a long time.
My Tokyo bestie and I tried on a fair few other pieces, including the butterfly BTF ring in lapis and the Rose de Noel Mini pendant in turquoise.
Eventually, I decided to pull the trigger to go for the Sweet Alhambra ring. The second SA helping (mainly being the translator) showed me the tax free price and brought out the choice of packaging. Just as I chose the hard box, the first SA came running back into the salon excitedly.
“Look what just arrived!”
She brought out the perfect Ginza Edition pendant!!! I was gobsmacked, and Tokyo bestie was exclaiming “Oh my God, how are you so lucky?! You need to go buy lottery tickets after this. They usually earmark the pendant for local customers, and it took me a month after you left last year to get mine!”
I was now in a bind, as I was only ever planning to get one item! This big birthday had already gotten out of hand with the number of presents I’ve bought myself. I hemmed and hawed for a good two minutes, with Tokyo bestie egging me on to get both (such an enabler!!!)
I finally decided to let go of the ring and go for the Ginza Edition pendant instead. My rationale was as follows: 1) I could never get the pendant anywhere else in the world, and it would truly be the perfect Tokyo souvenir; b) the yen was getting stronger and it meant that the savings on the pave ring was barely AED 600 even after the tax free price, vs Dubai; 3) the ring seemed like it wouldn’t be too difficult to get hold of in my home store if I was patient enough to just wait for the right size to come into stock, and d) the Ginza Edition pendant was on my wishlist a lot longer than the ring.
So after all that rumination, I told the SA I was going for the pendant! Bonus was that it was cheaper than getting the ring too! LOL!
Of course, I only ever go for the classic packaging!
Who knows, maybe I’ll get myself the ring as a Christmas present next. One has to have goals, right?
We also popped into the VCA in Ginza Six to check out their pieces, but I was truly satisfied with my acquisition in the Maison Ginza!
I am so grateful to the SAs that assisted me that day. Even though neither of them weren’t my usual SA, they went above and beyond to ensure that my Van Cleef dreams came true! A fitting way to end my trip with a bang!
I have been in touch with my Maison Ginza SA throughout the year from my last visit to Tokyo last year. Once I knew my vacation plans had firmed up, she accelerated the search for my wishlist items. I amended it a few times, given that two of the most important ones were fulfilled by my home store in Dubai.
As it got closer to my vacation, she got in touch with me to confirm that one of my wishlist items had been secured, and we made the appointment for Friday, the first day I would arrive in Tokyo.
Of course, my Tokyo TPF bestie came along for the ride, as she did last year!
My SA was on leave on Friday, so she arranged for another SA to assist me during the appointment.
When we arrived, we were welcomed into a private salon at the rear of the ground floor of the boutique, and provided with the usual austere Japanese refreshments of boxed water and chocolates.
Without further ado, she brought out the piece that my SA had put aside for me, which was the Sweet Alhambra pave ring in white gold. It was as beautiful as I expected, and it was a perfect fit. I set that aside, and asked to see some other pieces before I wanted to make my final decision.
I asked the SA about the limited edition Ginza Magic Alhambra pendant in RG and WMOP, as that was the other wishlist item I had been looking for since last year. She was really apologetic and said that they had no stock of it and hadn’t seen one in a long time.
My Tokyo bestie and I tried on a fair few other pieces, including the butterfly BTF ring in lapis and the Rose de Noel Mini pendant in turquoise.
Eventually, I decided to pull the trigger to go for the Sweet Alhambra ring. The second SA helping (mainly being the translator) showed me the tax free price and brought out the choice of packaging. Just as I chose the hard box, the first SA came running back into the salon excitedly.
“Look what just arrived!”
She brought out the perfect Ginza Edition pendant!!! I was gobsmacked, and Tokyo bestie was exclaiming “Oh my God, how are you so lucky?! You need to go buy lottery tickets after this. They usually earmark the pendant for local customers, and it took me a month after you left last year to get mine!”
I was now in a bind, as I was only ever planning to get one item! This big birthday had already gotten out of hand with the number of presents I’ve bought myself. I hemmed and hawed for a good two minutes, with Tokyo bestie egging me on to get both (such an enabler!!!)
I finally decided to let go of the ring and go for the Ginza Edition pendant instead. My rationale was as follows: 1) I could never get the pendant anywhere else in the world, and it would truly be the perfect Tokyo souvenir; b) the yen was getting stronger and it meant that the savings on the pave ring was barely AED 600 even after the tax free price, vs Dubai; 3) the ring seemed like it wouldn’t be too difficult to get hold of in my home store if I was patient enough to just wait for the right size to come into stock, and d) the Ginza Edition pendant was on my wishlist a lot longer than the ring.
So after all that rumination, I told the SA I was going for the pendant! Bonus was that it was cheaper than getting the ring too! LOL!
Of course, I only ever go for the classic packaging!
Who knows, maybe I’ll get myself the ring as a Christmas present next. One has to have goals, right?
We also popped into the VCA in Ginza Six to check out their pieces, but I was truly satisfied with my acquisition in the Maison Ginza!
I am so grateful to the SAs that assisted me that day. Even though neither of them weren’t my usual SA, they went above and beyond to ensure that my Van Cleef dreams came true! A fitting way to end my trip with a bang!
We love a success story!! Happy (belated) birthday and congratulations on your beautiful new piece!
Thank you so much! The birthday hasn’t even happened yet (not for another month at that!), and I’m already spending as if it’s going out of fashion!We love a success story!! Happy (belated) birthday and congratulations on your beautiful new piece!
That's the way to go!! Make it birthday quarter (3 months) hahahaha.
Congratulations on your shopping success in Tokyo! CoastalCouture birthday pointer, if it's a big one and ends with a zero, you get to celebrate all year. My own birthday is in June. The year I turned 50, I started celebrating in January, and when the next January rolled around, I thought it only fair to continue celebrating until June when I turned 51. It's a question of perspective and making your own rules. You're the boss of your own birthday after all.
Wow, the timing is uncanny! My mom also bought a Ginza pendant the day after you (4/13). She didn't even ask for it, it was offered to her and the SA told her they had a few in stock. The next day she went back and got another one for me! Hahaha. Seems like they must've received a number of them. We're so lucky!!
Omg, congrats! They have no more now 😂😭 really wanted one to continue my collection of LE magic pendants.
The SA also told me that the Ginza Maison location would be closing at the end of June, and that means the future of the design is a question mark. She said she heard it will be reopened as a Flagship, not a Maison, which means no more special limited edition design.
Enjoy your pieces! It's so nice that you can twin with your mom on it!
Noooo, I have wanted the special edition. My friend is living in Tokyo and hasn’t had any luck yet.
