This is a delayed and extremely long review.
We got engaged on 6/24/17 and my now husband got both my engagement ring and matching wedding band from Leon Mege. The backstory is before we got engaged, while we were discussing rings, I fell in love with "claw prongs". My dream ring was a round brilliant solitaire on a thin pave band with 6 claw prongs. My husband just starts googling and researching claw prongs. Since they are somewhat of a specialty, he narrowed it down to 3 reputable jewelers: David in California, Brian in Texas and Leon in NY. Since I'm originally from NY, he went with Leon to make it a little more special and he had felt it was more authentic going with Leon. He had read reviews and checked pricescope and ran the numbers before he contacted Leon. He was extremely pleased with his entire experience - both with Leon and his assistant (I am so sorry, I don't remember her name)! Despite some so-so reviews, Leon was extremely courteous, responsive and helpful. It's important to note that my husband had found the exact ring on Leon's website so he didn't request any modifications or changes to the design. It was just a matter of picking a center stone and letting Leon work his magic. It was an extremely easy transaction from what I hear. Again, there were no special requests and he was sourcing the stone via Leon. Once the ring & stone were all bought & paid for, there was little conversation or updates on the ring. No micromanaging on my husband's part, no CADS or anything. The ring took approximately 3-4 weeks from initial contact to delivery. I love everything about the ring, it's absolutely gorgeous. And ironically, I had bookmarked Leon's website on my phone but never showed it to anyone and it was the exact ring my husband gave me :)
Now, once we were engaged, my husband suggested getting a matching wedding band from Leon since I was so happy with the engagement ring. I was a simple, wanted a matching pave band - nothing over the top. Since we were going to be in NYC, my husband made an appointment with Leon to discuss wedding bands. Although it could have easily been done over email. Leon and his team are so courteous and nice! I was a little bit of a star stuck because I've followed him on Instagram and read a lot about his designs. He offered 2 options for the wedding band, one was a little more "safe" but didn't match exactly, and then the matching band. He was really nice about letting me choose the matching band, even though technically it might be more prone to damage after years of wear. He took time to educate us about the rings (the good & bad of thin pave) and he even gave us recommendations on some wedding jewelry/earrings, which looked absolutely lovely! Unfortunately not in our budget but certainly reasonable. Not only is he an amazing designer but an excellent salesman as well. We received the wedding band a few weeks later, which is exactly when he promised it and it matches the ring perfectly.
As for Leon's office location, I found absolutely nothing dirty or unsafe about the street his office is on. I actually was impressed with it, it was very secure and sterile, which is probably what I want in a jeweler. If you're expecting a storefront on 5th avenue or in the Diamond District, then yes, you may be disappointed but I appreciate that his overhead is lower... maybe it's because I lived in NYC, but I find it to be a smart and business savvy decision. It also goes to show that he isn't interested in taking on walk in clients for volume's sake, his demand is clearly not in jeopardy.
Overall, I would absolutely 100% recommend Leon Mege to anyone looking for engagement rings. Particularly if you're looking for more handmade work. While my husband was shopping for engagement rings, several friends and family offered up their "family jeweler" and we joked how we were out of the loop since we didn't have our own jeweler. Well, NOW we do! I've never been much of a jewelry girl, but I think Leon has changed my mind on that. Can't wait to work with him again in the future! read more