I recently started my VCA collection (such a slippery slope!) and had VA earrings in YG MOP and the RG sweet 6 motif bracelet on my wishlist (the latter I was debating with a 5 motif YG MOP).
Had the good luck of seeing the RG 6 motif in person last month and decided to pass for now ultimately to spread out my purchases - done a bit much shopping recently, and the SA told me I can always order it. (mulled about it in this thread)
So it turns out that as of this month, VCA doesn't allow preorders of any alhambra items in my country! I learnt that when I went browsing on Friday to look for and try on VA earrings - which I have never tried (I have sweet earrings and they work well for an everyday size on my ears).
And they had TE vintage earrings! Rather surprised because it's been quite hard to find any vintage earrings recently at all.
And I was more surprised at how beautiful the colour was - TE was never on my radar, but wow it suits my skin tone so well, and surprisingly can go with my GMOP pendant (not matchy matchy but it goes well together).
(pardon the awkward cropping, wanted to crop out my face
)
Was REALLY tempted to pull the trigger but I'm travelling to Japan at the end of March and would save quite a bit with tax refunds + weak JPY. Also, at the back of my mind I felt that I still wanted MOP - and wanted to look at it IRL at least. So, I decided to hold out and take my chances in Japan, knowing that I might not find what I wanted then. It's ok even if I don't, I can wait for next time in my home country.
I found myself in town the next 2 days in my city where there are another 2 VCA boutiques - so I went asking if they had VA earrings to take a look at the different colours.
One boutique had carnelian - was just meh, and my sweet earrings are carnelian so I wasn't looking for another carnelian piece.
Another boutique had WG MOP (pardon my lululemon outfit lol) - WG MOP just didn't do it for me, not much contrast between the WG and the MOP.
I chatted with the SA about the colours and casually asked oh, what do you think about TE?
Him: "that's super rare I only see like one pair a year."
Me: "oh really? I saw it at xx mall on Friday"
Him: "really? You should've grabbed it! [..] it's probably gone by now"
I was slightly surprised - and that gave me more fomo - and he said that "Japan is empty [stock wise], don't get your hopes up".
I told him I was also still looking for the RG 6 motif so please let me know if you ever see it! (he said he's starting to see it come in once a month now)
I texted the SA from the boutique who had the TE earrings once I got home, and to my surprise, it was still available! [Sunday now] Debated about it - even my husband who's usually not impressed by these things said "the TE is very nice" (and also "it's your money, it's your decision"
) and decided to pass and try my luck in Japan to save ~S$500.
I woke up on Monday still thinking about the earrings, and looked at all the photos again - and decided that
1) The TE pops in a way the other stones just won't; carnelian looks quite boring in VA earrings as there's no sheen or contrast, and from the MOP piece I saw - it would need a lot more movement to catch light. The striations in the TE are so unique!
2) Even if I was lucky enough to find a pair of earrings in Japan, more likely than not it'd be MOP
3) Even if I did find another pair of TE earrings down the line, it would not be exactly the same as no 2 pieces are the same - might not be as nice as this pair
And so... I texted the SA to ask if it was STILL available, and....I went home with this beautiful piece
And guess what - the next day the SA texted me to say that a RG 6 motif just came in.
Thought about it for one hot minute but can't spend any more this month LOL.
Did I make the right decision getting the earrings first?! Vs waiting out for a bracelet first or getting it for cheaper abroad - and knowing that I would have worn the bracelet 24/7? Timing is so curious some times, huh!
Thanks for letting me share my long story
Had the good luck of seeing the RG 6 motif in person last month and decided to pass for now ultimately to spread out my purchases - done a bit much shopping recently, and the SA told me I can always order it. (mulled about it in this thread)
So it turns out that as of this month, VCA doesn't allow preorders of any alhambra items in my country! I learnt that when I went browsing on Friday to look for and try on VA earrings - which I have never tried (I have sweet earrings and they work well for an everyday size on my ears).
And they had TE vintage earrings! Rather surprised because it's been quite hard to find any vintage earrings recently at all.
And I was more surprised at how beautiful the colour was - TE was never on my radar, but wow it suits my skin tone so well, and surprisingly can go with my GMOP pendant (not matchy matchy but it goes well together).
(pardon the awkward cropping, wanted to crop out my face
)Was REALLY tempted to pull the trigger but I'm travelling to Japan at the end of March and would save quite a bit with tax refunds + weak JPY. Also, at the back of my mind I felt that I still wanted MOP - and wanted to look at it IRL at least. So, I decided to hold out and take my chances in Japan, knowing that I might not find what I wanted then. It's ok even if I don't, I can wait for next time in my home country.
I found myself in town the next 2 days in my city where there are another 2 VCA boutiques - so I went asking if they had VA earrings to take a look at the different colours.
One boutique had carnelian - was just meh, and my sweet earrings are carnelian so I wasn't looking for another carnelian piece.
Another boutique had WG MOP (pardon my lululemon outfit lol) - WG MOP just didn't do it for me, not much contrast between the WG and the MOP.
I chatted with the SA about the colours and casually asked oh, what do you think about TE?
Him: "that's super rare I only see like one pair a year."
Me: "oh really? I saw it at xx mall on Friday"
Him: "really? You should've grabbed it! [..] it's probably gone by now"
I was slightly surprised - and that gave me more fomo - and he said that "Japan is empty [stock wise], don't get your hopes up".
I told him I was also still looking for the RG 6 motif so please let me know if you ever see it! (he said he's starting to see it come in once a month now)
I texted the SA from the boutique who had the TE earrings once I got home, and to my surprise, it was still available! [Sunday now] Debated about it - even my husband who's usually not impressed by these things said "the TE is very nice" (and also "it's your money, it's your decision"
) and decided to pass and try my luck in Japan to save ~S$500.I woke up on Monday still thinking about the earrings, and looked at all the photos again - and decided that
1) The TE pops in a way the other stones just won't; carnelian looks quite boring in VA earrings as there's no sheen or contrast, and from the MOP piece I saw - it would need a lot more movement to catch light. The striations in the TE are so unique!
2) Even if I was lucky enough to find a pair of earrings in Japan, more likely than not it'd be MOP
3) Even if I did find another pair of TE earrings down the line, it would not be exactly the same as no 2 pieces are the same - might not be as nice as this pair
And so... I texted the SA to ask if it was STILL available, and....I went home with this beautiful piece
And guess what - the next day the SA texted me to say that a RG 6 motif just came in.
Thought about it for one hot minute but can't spend any more this month LOL.
Did I make the right decision getting the earrings first?! Vs waiting out for a bracelet first or getting it for cheaper abroad - and knowing that I would have worn the bracelet 24/7? Timing is so curious some times, huh!
Thanks for letting me share my long story
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