Influencers & VCA

[GlamarousBarbie]

Meh, my issue with fakes is it fuels social media/society's obsession with curating a false image of wealth. There's nothing shameful about not owning designer jewelry or only having 1 or 2 pieces -- but folks are going to extremes such as buying fakes, lying about it.. or even worse, going into extreme debt or committing crimes (like her fellow influencer friends husband slum lord business tactics) to purchase things to flex on the internet with. It's crazy to me. Influencers are totally responsible for normalizing this. Personally, if spending a certain amount of money on an item makes one feel uncomfortable, I recommend they hold out on buying it (or a fake which btw are often times not cheap per say) until they are comfortable with it. It ain't this deep!

I think people should feel comfortable investing in jewelry. Bags is one thing, but jewelry is a life time. Therefore, I feel that buying fakes makes no sense with jewelry because it’s a lifetime investment… It turns the items into trends even though the items are timeless

That’s belief, not fact.
Jewelry is one of the areas where replication can be perfect.
Precisely because alloys are no secret and most are machine made, including VCA.

I’m not sure because I’ve never seen white gold which is as white a VCA… I feel that they may have some secrets to their jewelry which aren’t replicable

 

[S0nia]

I’m not sure because I’ve never seen white gold which is as white a VCA… I feel that they may have some secrets to their jewelry which aren’t replicable

Ok...

There are no secrets in jewelry when it comes to the metals. Seriously, this is a very well studied, analysed, picked apart area.

Really.

More important, there is no such thing as "white" gold. For all the real joailliers, such as those on Place Vendôme, and all serious jewellers, by law in France, to call anything gold, you must have a minimum of 75% (so 18k out of 24k) of the alloy be pure Aureus, ie.e gold. BY LAW. The remaining 25% can be anything but most put silver, with more or less copper. For the "rose" gold effect they'll max up the copper. For "white" gold they'll max up the silver and then have it plated. Yes as most "white gold" is actually quite yellow under the plating; see, otherwise it is not real gold. At 75% gold, you piece can only be yellow. You have to plate it with something to make it white. Usually rhodium. And such pieces have to be replated on the regular.

That's why so many people go straight to platinum. It's less white, more gray, like silver, but you do not get the oxidization of the silver, nor do you have to replate it regularly as the rhodium wears out. I'll just *never* understand why anyone wastes money on "white gold" when it is just plated yellow gold. Get straight up platinum...

Ain't no *white gold* out there. All gold is yellow.





Now, after that, to get their hallmarks, ALL JEWELRY HOUSES HAVE TO SEND THEIR PIECES TO GET TESTED FOR THE ALLOY BY THE STATE. If your piece of jewelry bears a hallmark, then its contents got tested. AIN'T NO SECRETS IN ALLOYS!
Finally, anyone can buy anybody's pieces and melt them down and analyse them and pick apart the metals composing the alloy. Really. It is not that complicated, people have been doing that for centuries...

It is NOT some secret alchemy.

Please, for your own sake, take some time to read material other that marketing and/or promotional material from jewelry brands. Like actual manufacturing, characteristics, chemical processes etc. about metals and metallurgy. Marketing material is not real knowledge.

And FACTS DO MATTER!

Colored gold - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[eletons]

I’m not sure because I’ve never seen white gold which is as white a VCA… I feel that they may have some secrets to their jewelry which aren’t replicable

Cost and worth are two different things. It's up to an individual to decide whether something is worth it or not.

Some people like bargains while others have certain standards that they are very selective when it comes to some areas of their lives.

I guess people can say they can produce a copy of any paintings from any museums and say it's just as good as an original ones. The colours and the materials look 'the same'. Don't listen to the museums. It's the marketing that makes you waste your time and money lingering at a museum.

In their eyes, the fashion and the drawings created by their children are the best and it's not wrong. It just shows that what they value is not what you value.

As long as you are comfortable wearing and liking what you like, there's no need to persuade others to agree with you. Everyone is responsible for their own lives.

 

[september1985]

her husband taking one for the team ☠️

 

[S0nia]

her husband taking one for the team ☠️

I wish we could hear the husband's take on the whole "juste un clou" diamond-tipped bracelet that fell in the lake during surfing...
And how it was casually replaced by a Bulgari diamond-tipped bracelet, you know, for a change. Also wish I could hear the conversation with the insurance company:

"Hey, I went surfing with my fine jewelry and it fell into the lake. Please cover for it without arguing as it is totally normal behaviour. And make sure you hurry, because I have a Bulgari to buy next, you know, to replace it. What? Of course I am going to go surfing with that one as well... Duh!"

And it really rubs me the wrong way that someone who grew up in Canada cannot pronounce Guilloché properly. Isn't French mandatory in school?

Oh, well...

 

[GlamarousBarbie]

Ok...

There are no secrets in jewelry when it comes to the metals. Seriously, this is a very well studied, analysed, picked apart area.

Really.

More important, there is no such thing as "white" gold. For all the real joailliers, such as those on Place Vendôme, and all serious jewellers, by law in France, to call anything gold, you must have a minimum of 75% (so 18k out of 24k) of the alloy be pure Aureus, ie.e gold. BY LAW. The remaining 25% can be anything but most put silver, with more or less copper. For the "rose" gold effect they'll max up the copper. For "white" gold they'll max up the silver and then have it plated. Yes as most "white gold" is actually quite yellow under the plating; see, otherwise it is not real gold. At 75% gold, you piece can only be yellow. You have to plate it with something to make it white. Usually rhodium. And such pieces have to be replated on the regular.

That's why so many people go straight to platinum. It's less white, more gray, like silver, but you do not get the oxidization of the silver, nor do you have to replate it regularly as the rhodium wears out. I'll just *never* understand why anyone wastes money on "white gold" when it is just plated yellow gold. Get straight up platinum...

Ain't no *white gold* out there. All gold is yellow.

View attachment 5894297



Now, after that, to get their hallmarks, ALL JEWELRY HOUSES HAVE TO SEND THEIR PIECES TO GET TESTED FOR THE ALLOY BY THE STATE. If your piece of jewelry bears a hallmark, then its contents got tested. AIN'T NO SECRETS IN ALLOYS!
Finally, anyone can buy anybody's pieces and melt them down and analyse them and pick apart the metals composing the alloy. Really. It is not that complicated, people have been doing that for centuries...

It is NOT some secret alchemy.

Please, for your own sake, take some time to read material other that marketing and/or promotional material from jewelry brands. Like actual manufacturing, characteristics, chemical processes etc. about metals and metallurgy. Marketing material is not real knowledge.

And FACTS DO MATTER!

Colored gold - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I’m literally just stating what I’m seeing with my own eyes, VCAs white gold is much whiter than other companies. Cartiers white gold is not as white, for example, from me comparing the two. there is something about the plating of VCA which is so much whiter than other jewelry companies

Cost and worth are two different things. It's up to an individual to decide whether something is worth it or not.

Some people like bargains while others have certain standards that they are very selective when it comes to some areas of their lives.

I guess people can say they can produce a copy of any paintings from any museums and say it's just as good as an original ones. The colours and the materials look 'the same'. Don't listen to the museums. It's the marketing that makes you waste your time and money lingering at a museum.

In their eyes, the fashion and the drawings created by their children are the best and it's not wrong. It just shows that what they value is not what you value.

As long as you are comfortable wearing and liking what you like, there's no need to persuade others to agree with you. Everyone is responsible for their own lives.

There’s no persuading, neither would I ever be a victim of marketing. The colors do not look the same, the materials are, but the coloring does not from comparing them. I have compared them and seen the difference with my own eyes, the plating is just a lot whiter with VCA.

 

[S0nia]

I’m literally just stating what I’m seeing with my own eyes, VCAs white gold is much whiter than other companies. Cartiers white gold is not as white, for example, from me comparing the two. there is something about the plating of VCA which is so much whiter than other jewelry companies

Sure.

But there is nothing magical, or mystical or secretive or alchemical about it: their mix of rhodium or palladium or platinum (or whatever they have) for the plating is set in a certain way for purposes of branding and brand identity.

But that choice does not have anything to do with any particular secretive or sophisticated craftsmanship. It is branding and clientele taste.
Just like different jewellers elaborate their rose gold mix in a certain way that is particular to them; you can compare Hermès rose gold to the pink gold of the late 90'S when everyone was sporting morganites on pink gold.
Even the yellow gold colour is different from continent to continent. In the West, people like the gold quite pale. Elsewhere, yellow gold is darker to adjust to people's skin tones.

Taste and branding. Not craftsmanship.

 

[september1985]

idk why these influencers are so quick to scream ‘defamation’ when they are simply being called out for lying. if its not true prove it. simple. she began showcasing the guilloche bracelet about a year ago and claims to not have any receipt or record of the purchase, but then pulls out the receipt of the mop magic pendant from 10 years ago.

 

[september1985]

 

[chanellover333]

View attachment 5894586

What a vulgar and also threatening response she made. These influencers have 0 humility or class.

Now that I pay closer attention, I realize she has worn many high end pieces from afar and not showed them in her jewelry collection (VCA 4-motif drop earrings, pave love bracelets, bulgari pave rings).

 

[september1985]

I don't know why I thought she purchased it directly from the boutique, make sense that the authenticity of the 5 motif remains questionable at the moment since it's purchased preloved and allegedly through her husband. Minus the impromptu clip where she put her husband on blast, which giving me 'my dog ate my homework' vibe, I think the overall approach seems reasonable and a good PR move

it was so hard to watch her poor husband searching through random piles of paper for something that doesn't appear to exist.

 

[GlamarousBarbie]

Sure.

But there is nothing magical, or mystical or secretive or alchemical about it: their mix of rhodium or palladium or platinum (or whatever they have) for the plating is set in a certain way for purposes of branding and brand identity.

But that choice does not have anything to do with any particular secretive or sophisticated craftsmanship. It is branding and clientele taste.
Just like different jewellers elaborate their rose gold mix in a certain way that is particular to them; you can compare Hermès rose gold to the pink gold of the late 90'S when everyone was sporting morganites on pink gold.
Even the yellow gold colour is different from continent to continent. In the West, people like the gold quite pale. Elsewhere, yellow gold is darker to adjust to people's skin tones.

Taste and branding. Not craftsmanship.

if someone is branding something as white gold, why wouldn’t they go for the whitest shade they could go for? I do not think it’s a taste or branding for a company to make their white gold jewelry actually white, but more so skill. Yellow gold and rose gold is one thing, but gray isn’t white. Yellow gold can have a different look, so can rose gold, but to claim jewelry to be white gold but being the same shade as stainless steel seems to be a lack of craftsmanship.

Also, your basis on shade of yellow gold also isn’t true. Yellow golds shade is based on the karat, people in Indian culture like 22/24k gold compared to people in the west who like 10/14k yellow gold

 

[JLO1]

So in summary,

1. Is this "jewelry" of hers insured? I would think so since she lost a gold and diamond Cartier bracelet "surfing".
2. If the "jewerly" is insured would she not have to present a RECEIPT to the insurance company for valuation?
3. She pulled out a box of Hermes receipts to prove authenticity for the background blanket but does not know if one exists for the bracelet.
4. Puts her spouse in avery awkward postion in front of viewers to exclaim he doesn't remember if he has a receipt.
5. She seemed very nervous and "shook" during the response video
6. Went to SM page and left a comment
7. Offered to "collab" with someone who apparently has done her dirty
8. Presents a receipt for "jewelry" that is not being questioned
9. Video conveniently cuts off/cuts out without a proper sign off or view of questioned receipt
10. Sends her minions over to SM account to leave hate messages
11. Mentions her friend who is the wife of alleged slum lord - according to TPF, Reddit, and the NY Post who allegedly served 66 months behind bars for arson - like a badge of honor
12. Trashed authentic VCA new releases: she called Silver Obsidian or Obsidienne (in French) set in rose gold only which is a naturally occurring volcanic - an ingenous rock, which is only offered in a 20 motif necklace and a 5 motif bracelet and the second stone which is a dark blue-breccia aggregate comprised of hawk's eye and tigereye and a variety of chalcedony set in white gold only- called Pietersite which is only offered in a 20 motif necklace and a 5 motif bracelet: "quartz countertops".

I rest my case.

 

[waterlily112]

it was so hard to watch her poor husband searching through random piles of paper for something that doesn't appear to exist.

Yeah, and as if he knows exactly which receipt for which item. If it's for her fine jewelry pieces wouldn't it be easier if she keep track of them for whatever reasons - insurance claims, after sale service/repair? My SO collect watches and he wouldn't be running to me for the receipts, he keep track of his own things and I do so with mine. The whole thing is just odd. But all the random discussions around her past behaviors & comments are also odd. The world of influencers.

 

[waterlily112]

There’s no persuading, neither would I ever be a victim of marketing. The colors do not look the same, the materials are, but the coloring does not from comparing them. I have compared them and seen the difference with my own eyes, the plating is just a lot whiter with VCA.

VCA is plated with rhodium, there's no secret sauce to it, they stated it on the product page and the SA's concurred the same information. But the thickness of the rhodium plating vary by brands so I suspect just like wearing multiple coats of nail polish, a thicker coat (or multiple coats) would be more opaque, in this particular case, appear more white. With that said, I own white gold & silver pieces from other brands that are as white as VCA's white gold. Cartier only use rhodium plating on their diamond pieces, solid white gold pieces aren't so you have to pay extra for it if you prefer it to look extra white. I've worn my 5 motif chalcedony to death and the rhodium plating has definitely chipping away by the days, now it's has a grey-ish tone compared to my other white gold/platinum/silver pieces that I don't wear as much. But even in brand new condition, my chalcedony & 2020 HP aren't as white as, surprisingly, my Hermes silver CDC ring which also have a thick coat of rhodium plating. But I do think the white gold guilloche may appear whiter than it actually is since it's so reflective.