Pearl Education (Warning: Somewhat of a Rant)

#31
I'm, I'm just STILL to this day, drooling over that one stinking pearl ball.....I've never in all my ever (and all mine is almost 40....well, closer to it than 30.....)........never ever seen a pearl WITH an xray. And the xray was blank. no nucleus. no center agitation to make a pearl. It was totally a true, NATURAL spontaneous pearl ball. I've never seen anything but cultured til then. I probably will never again, what w/all the pearl farms.

I mean, stuff like that is truly flabbergasting to me. I hope some of you can appreciate it. I wonder if it ever got sold? Maybe I could call in and ask for it to just be shown again. It really was pretty cool, guys.
 
#32
jan228 said:
I haven't disagreed that brand name and non-brand name pearls can't have the same quality. I definately never mentioned akoyas vs. freshwaters. I'm saying there's nothing wrong with preferring a little extra in terms of what many consider to be the "gold standard" name brand.

I wouldn't consider Tiffany to be an innovative designer... ambiguous lumps and hearts don't make the cut in my book. You can get a classic Mikimoto strand, but there's also several lines that incorporate dozens of unique designs, like the Pearls in Motion or the Olive line.
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That's why I'm not saying "Wow, you can get a pearls in motion necklace on ebay for sooo much less!" My point was more that the pearls themselves, as a gem, can be bought at the same quality for less. Most people don't seem to realize that there are "black" pearls out there, let alone the difference in qualities. While some people disagree on where to buy jewelry and why, I just wanted for people to know the options and then decide if it's worth it to shell out the extra cash for the brand name.

Yeah, I agree about the open heart, but I'll occasionally buy tiffany pieces if I love them to pieces. I'm not buying it for the silver, I'm buying for the authentic design, you know? I'd never advocate fakes.
 
#33
Thank you for this info, sincerely. B/c as much as I'd LOVE to think I know about gemology, I've never "gotten" pearls. I think most are fake and dyed, or at least farmed and dyed..........then I found out, that is pretty much how it works period, and if I call it that, I insult some and inflate others.......and you can imagine my chagrin.

But I'm glad some can figure what is good vs. not and how gradings should be done, b/c to me it is a total mind boggle (and I'm NOT being sarcastic, here). I used to leave it to only top gemologists, but heck, they don't even know either, and can never agree. That's why I got papered and then out of that racket. Now I just do whatever looks pretty to me.

tah dahhhhhh ::waves jazz hands::
 
#34
When i look at pearls i just go with my gut feeling on what looks more appealing to me. I have a few of those pick your own oyster from those tourist places and i enjoy looking at them. I have gotten white, pinkish, light gray and even a orangy one before. my mom gave me one she picked out 30years ago and its a nice 9mm. mine are about 5-6mm.

Designer names always jack up prices on jewelry and everything in general. the object of obsessions are the same/similar with but that special name they become more priceless. IE tiffany VS independent jewelery with the same GIA cert stones.

anyways my poor orangy pearl is stuck in some ugly silver setting i picked out when i was like 12 and i want it out.. if you have any clue how to remove a pearl please let me know! its glued on the sides and bottom.
 
#36
I'm joining the thread because I :heart: pearls...but don't know that much about them yet!

My parents gave me a black pearl earring and necklace set for my 21st birthday which I absolutely love. I also have pink-ish studs and that's about all I know.

My question is this: is it worth it to go from AA to AA+ or AAA?
I've been looking at pearlparadise.com and I want to get an Akoya set, but don't know how high in quality I should go.

TIA!
 
#37
queennadine said:
I'm joining the thread because I :heart: pearls...but don't know that much about them yet!

My parents gave me a black pearl earring and necklace set for my 21st birthday which I absolutely love. I also have pink-ish studs and that's about all I know.

My question is this: is it worth it to go from AA to AA+ or AAA?
I've been looking at pearlparadise.com and I want to get an Akoya set, but don't know how high in quality I should go.

TIA!
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Okay, are you talking about black pearls or white pearls?
For black pearls, it depends, because black freshwater and black akoyas are dyed. I've gotten AAA quality black akoya earrings (they were really deep, almost navy and very reflective) but I hated them because they looked so "dead." (Since they don't have natural orient). It's very tricky with dyed pearls, because everyone has different perceptions of what they want.

For natural pearls, you have to outweigh size (I'm guessing, right?) versus quality.

Example: $100 for 6-7mm AAA or $110 for 7-8mm AA+ (or whatever the difference is)

Here's the rule of thumb: Buy the absolute best quality you can afford before you start increasing the size. But that's not neccessarily true, it just depends on how often you'll wear it.

For example, I really wanted some fun, larger pearls, so I got some AA+ multicolor pearls 10mm-11mm just for kicks and giggles. It wouldn't have made sense to spend the extra to get AAA because I don't wear them all the time.

If you're going for everyday pearls, absolutely get the highest quality. The really high quality pearls look so stunning in person. I love my pink freshadamas (one of my daily strands) because the orient in them is breathtaking.

Also, IMHO akoyas are so overrated, especially if you're looking at AA+ instead of AAA or hanadama. I'd look at the freshadama line from pearl paradise, as you can easily get a strand for much cheaper than the akoyas.
 
#39
I'm talking about white pearls; sorry, I should have made that more clear.

Here is something else to consider: I'm not someone who's crazy about necklaces, but I LOVE earrings and bracelets. Should I maybe get akoyas in the earrings and bracelet and then freshadama as a necklace since I won't be wearing it that often?
 
#41
queennadine said:
I'm talking about white pearls; sorry, I should have made that more clear.

Here is something else to consider: I'm not someone who's crazy about necklaces, but I LOVE earrings and bracelets. Should I maybe get akoyas in the earrings and bracelet and then freshadama as a necklace since I won't be wearing it that often?
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Sure. That way you can see the two side by side and see which you prefer. BTW- White pearls really aren't all that great for everyday unless you're in an office or formal setting (I know, shocking, it's like the antithesis of the rules of fashion). Pink, lavender, peach, or multicolored pearls are actually much easier to wear than white pearls for casual settings. I wear my pink over my white pearls just because the pink overtone looks amazing with my skin. That's another advantage to colored pearls, if you pick the right overtone, they make your skin glow!
 
#42
callire, thanks so much for sharing your knowledge of pearls with us :smile: If you don't mind, could you post pics of your pink and peach pearls? I'm wondering what the colors look like in real life.
 
#45
queennadine said:
I second that: I would LOVE to see the pink and peach pearls!

I have blonde hair, blue eyes, and very fair skin...what color pearls do you think would look best on me?
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I'm the same. It depends if your skin is a yellowish, pinkish, or bluish. I'm pinkish, so white with Rose overtones looks great, as does pink pearls. Peach/gold look horrible, as do lavender. Some really pale people look amazing in lavender though, it just depends if you've got that undertone. Rose is pretty universally flattering though, I think it's so much prettier than ivory or silver.

I'll cross post my pics when I get a chance!
 
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