Poll: First piece- pave pendant or MOP earrings?

Which for a first VCA piece?

  • Vintage Alhambra pendant: pave yellow gold

  • Vintage Alhambra earrings: MOP yellow gold

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janejane

janejane

O.G.
Jan 4, 2008
192
340
#1
I'm starting to build up a staple jewelry collection and would love to add a VCA piece. I currently don't have a good everyday pendant, or a nice pair of statement/dressy earrings.

After doing some research, I've narrowed it down to these two: the vintage alhambra pave pendant and the vintage alhambra MOP earrings. Or instead of the Alhambra pendant, a nice bezel set diamond solitaire pendant. VCA is several hours away so it's not easy for me to get to the boutique.

My concern about the pendant is that since it is fixed, it'll shift from right to left as mentioned here. I have a diamond line pendant that does this and it's annoying. Also there are some situations where I wouldn't want to display the signature alhambra, and it would therefore become less of an everyday piece. I could instead get an unbranded diamond solitaire pendant.

The earrings I anticipate mainly wearing for fancier occasions, so I am not sure if it would be a good use of money for a first Van Cleef piece. I have also lost earrings before.

Other suggestions are welcome. I am pretty set on rings and have everyday gold / diamond huggie hoops. I have a solid gold everyday bracelet and a tennis bracelet. Thank you.


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#2
A modest diamond solitaire is the best option for an every single day pendant if you’re going to places where it is important to be discreet. The YG pave is great as a pendant because you don’t need to baby it but if it being not exactly in the middle st all times will bother you then that may not be a good option either. I have one and if it shift a little it is fine with me. I’m not constantly staring at myself in the mirror anyway. It never turns around completely. If you wear the MOP earrings only on special occasions that may not be worth it unless you don’t have any special occasion earrings these meet that need. Though I do think you’ll find them easy to wear casually once you get them.
 
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#3
@EpiFanatic - Thank you very much. That is good advice - I believe I may get the diamond pendant solitaire either way. I have seen it stacked with the Alhambra pendant before. I haven't thought about wearing the earrings casually- I will have to look up some styling photos. I'm curious what your most worn VCA pieces are if you feel comfortable sharing!
 
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#6
The thing about your first VCA piece is that you may want a second after a while!

I started with the MOP Alhambra necklace as my first piece and have slowly built sets since then (ie matching earrings and bracelet to go with that pendant.) I also have the YG Alhambra pave necklace and matching earrings and love them both. The pave pieces are also fairly carefree in that they do not require special care, whereas the mother of pearl should not get wet.

Have you had a chance to visit a boutique and try on the earrings? With the combination of a post for pierced ears and also a clip behind, you don't have to worry too much about losing them as you mentioned. However, they do feel and fit differently than most earrings you might already have in your box. It might be worth trying them on if you don't yet have other earrings of this style, plus they can make adjustments if/when you actually purchase (ie there are two positions that the posts can be in so that the earrings sit higher or lower on you.)

As far as the pendant moving a bit, they do, but it does not bother me enough to be an issue. I just readjust its position once in a while as needed.

A diamond solitaire necklace will be less recognizable than an Alhambra piece, but perhaps you would eventually want both in your collection?
 
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#7
@citykitty24 - Thank you for the thoughtful breakdown! I think I will order the diamond solitaire necklace either way, as I've seen it stacked with the Alhambra necklace. Are you glad you purchased the pave pendant rather than the plain hammered gold version?

I have not gotten to try the earrings on; perhaps I'll make an appointment or order a costume earring with a similar style back to try on. I don't tolerate any jewelry that's uncomfortable so that would be very good to know. I did not know about the different post positions - thanks again!
 
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#9
janejane said:
@EpiFanatic - Thank you very much. That is good advice - I believe I may get the diamond pendant solitaire either way. I have seen it stacked with the Alhambra pendant before. I haven't thought about wearing the earrings casually- I will have to look up some styling photos. I'm curious what your most worn VCA pieces are if you feel comfortable sharing!
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I started with stone pieces but after about 10 years of collecting I find myself wearing the pave pieces the most. My sweet Alhambra WG pave studs are my most worn piece of VCA jewelry. (I’m a stud earring kinda girl.). For about two years I was wearing them to sleep. They displaced my diamond studs which I just found boring. My pave sweet six motif bracelet is now on 24/7 unless I’m running. Sometimes I’ll throw on some five motifs as well but 60% of the time I wear it alone. Pave means no worry. If you want YG daily earrings maybe consider YG and onyx sweet studs. Onyx is hard wearing. If you don’t already have, consider pearl studs and of course diamond studs. In my 40s I wore diamond studs a lot. Not so much any more. I would not be opposed to more vintage earrings. I have the WG pave but the size and weight make me reach for it less. Not that they’re uncomfortable but I gravitate toward jewelry that I “forget I have on”, so usually smaller pieces for me. If you want special occasions earrings, I would hold off on the MOP and see if you like the pave YG pendant and then, if you do, go for the pave YG earrings. That’s what I would tell my younger self anyway.
 
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#10
janejane said:
@citykitty24 - Thank you for the thoughtful breakdown! I think I will order the diamond solitaire necklace either way, as I've seen it stacked with the Alhambra necklace. Are you glad you purchased the pave pendant rather than the plain hammered gold version?

I have not gotten to try the earrings on; perhaps I'll make an appointment or order a costume earring with a similar style back to try on. I don't tolerate any jewelry that's uncomfortable so that would be very good to know. I did not know about the different post positions - thanks again!
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I am glad that this helped! I personally don't like to stack necklaces, but I know a lot of people here do, and it is has been a trend for a while as well.

Yes, the earring style is something that I got used to. It is quite secure. It is different, though, so I would check it out to see what you think. They can make adjustments to make the earrings more comfortable for you after you purchase.
 
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#11
EpiFanatic said:
I started with stone pieces but after about 10 years of collecting I find myself wearing the pave pieces the most. My sweet Alhambra WG pave studs are my most worn piece of VCA jewelry. (I’m a stud earring kinda girl.). For about two years I was wearing them to sleep. They displaced my diamond studs which I just found boring. My pave sweet six motif bracelet is now on 24/7 unless I’m running. Sometimes I’ll throw on some five motifs as well but 60% of the time I wear it alone. Pave means no worry. If you want YG daily earrings maybe consider YG and onyx sweet studs. Onyx is hard wearing. If you don’t already have, consider pearl studs and of course diamond studs. In my 40s I wore diamond studs a lot. Not so much any more. I would not be opposed to more vintage earrings. I have the WG pave but the size and weight make me reach for it less. Not that they’re uncomfortable but I gravitate toward jewelry that I “forget I have on”, so usually smaller pieces for me. If you want special occasions earrings, I would hold off on the MOP and see if you like the pave YG pendant and then, if you do, go for the pave YG earrings. That’s what I would tell my younger self anyway.
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The WG pave studs are gorgeous and have caught my eye several times in the past - if I wore WG I would be looking for those as an everyday piece. The sparkle gives them a subtle pop. You have great taste.

Good point about pave YG pendant --> pave YG earrings. It seems like most people are recommending the pendant in the poll over the MOP earrings.
 
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#13
littlecollector said:
YG pave is a great choice because of how hard wearing it is. I get tons of compliment on it. The YG pave is also harder to counterfeit than MOP. I love the look of MOP, but know that I’ll be very upset if it get scratched so I’ve avoided MOP so far.
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Thank you so much. These are excellent points. Even though the YG pave costs more up front than the MOP, it seems like many people are happy with it in the long run.

I ended up buying the diamond solitaire pendant I've been eyeing as I think it'll be a very classic piece. I am still eyeing the pave alhambra pendant as a first Van Cleef piece, but it may be more of a stacking/addon piece at this point. Would you still say it's worth it as a first piece at this point, or would you recommend something different?
 
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#14
janejane said:
Thank you so much. These are excellent points. Even though the YG pave costs more up front than the MOP, it seems like many people are happy with it in the long run.

I ended up buying the diamond solitaire pendant I've been eyeing as I think it'll be a very classic piece. I am still eyeing the pave alhambra pendant as a first Van Cleef piece, but it may be more of a stacking/addon piece at this point. Would you still say it's worth it as a first piece at this point, or would you recommend something different?
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Congratulations of your purchase! I usually wear the yellow gold Alhambra pave pendant on its own as it’s very striking. Given that you have a solitaire pendant, it might be worth trying the WG sweet Alhambra pave pendant as a stacking piece with it.
 
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