The PANDORA thread

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#3,541
guccilover21 said:
View attachment 3582380 My bracelet is coming along nicely. Sorry I must stop posting whenever I get gifted a new charm but I get so excited! Hubby is so good at fashion and knows what goes together. He said next charm will have to be two tone to continue with the colour scheme of gold and silver. I love ❤️ him.
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I think it's a great shame there are so many fakes on EBay and they can't do more to stop it. One of the problems is the fakes look so authentic and most sellers say they are authentic. They all seem to be hallmarked now and it's so difficult to tell them apart.
My son purchased me a gold charm for my Birthday from EBay that was used. It cost him a great deal of money and the seller assured him it was genuine and had positive feedback. I was concerned he may have been duped and hated the thought he had spent so much money on something that wasn't genuine. Luckily I have a good relationship with my local branch and I took it in and we all studied it against a genuine one. The hole was a slightly different size, the shape was a little off and there were a few minor things that became more obviously as we looked. If you have nothing to compare with, or Pandora hadn't been so helpful, I'm sure we would never have been any the wiser.

My advise would be proceed with caution, if the price is too good to be true it's a fake. Having said that a high price doesn't mean it's genuine, nor does a used charm as it may have been a fake bought on EBay in the first place. I would ask the seller where it had been purchased, do they have a receipt, can they gurantee it's 100% Authentic? If you say you have your jewellery cleaned at Pandora in their tumbler and it damages cheap plated copies :panic: they quite often suddenly can't guarantee it's genuine :giggle:
 
#3,544
Emibella said:
The first and most notable marking is the three letter marking “ALE”. For sterling silver or two-tone charms, in addition to the 925 mark (sterling silver must contain at least 92.5% silver), beginning in June 2011 Pandora has added an “S” in addition to 925. So on newer charms, you will find the S925 mark. For 14k gold charms, you will find the 585 mark (which must contain at least 58.5% gold). And these markings are always engraved on the charms, as opposed to stamped.

As for Ebay sellers, you'll want to check the positive and negative feedback, but sadly, it's often not enough to tell if they're legit. And counterfeiters have become quite good at putting those marks on the charms. If a seller sells tons of the same charm, it's often a sign that they are fake. Also, do they advertise the charms as "authentic" or "Pandora style"? Is it a new charm or a pre-loved one? Is the price really too good to be true? I would also look for real high resolution pictures from multiple angles, as opposed to stock pictures. You can ask the seller to send you pictures of the charm you want if you have any doubts before buying. It will give you the occasion to look for the crispness of the markings, the craftsmanship and the detailing of the charm, the quality and colour of a murano bead and it's core, etc. And if they refuse, it's another telltale that they're probably not legit. If the seller advertises their product as "authentic" and it turns out they are fake, then you'll be protected by Paypal and the Ebay terms. But as many people here have experienced in the past, it's often a hassle to get a refund.

I myself never bought on Ebay, even if I was tempted a couple of times. Reading through the older Pandora threads on TPF, a couple of legit sellers on Ebay have been mentioned, but they don't seem to exist anymore. Maybe someone else here could guide you on that front.

Living in Canada, when I want a good deal on a charm, retired or not, I buy from Perlen or Rue La La has who holds Pandora sales every couple of months or so (they have one going on at the moment). Otherwise, I go into a Pandora store.

Hope this helps! :smile: Out of curiosity, which charm are you looking for?
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Thank so much for the great info! I'm afraid to buy from anyone but an authorized retailer as well. I'm looking for the Unicorn charm. One person on ebay has sold close to 40 of them. I figured that was too good to be true. I may have found one at a store so fingers crossed. I've learned my lesson not to wait too long if it's one I want.

I have a few charms I need to put on but I'll try to post a pic when I have it all put together :graucho:
 
#3,545
Freak4Coach said:
Thank so much for the great info! I'm afraid to buy from anyone but an authorized retailer as well. I'm looking for the Unicorn charm. One person on ebay has sold close to 40 of them. I figured that was too good to be true. I may have found one at a store so fingers crossed. I've learned my lesson not to wait too long if it's one I want.

I have a few charms I need to put on but I'll try to post a pic when I have it all put together :graucho:
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The unicorn charm is available on rue la la right now :)
 
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#3,546
guccilover21 said:
View attachment 3582380 My bracelet is coming along nicely. Sorry I must stop posting whenever I get gifted a new charm but I get so excited! Hubby is so good at fashion and knows what goes together. He said next charm will have to be two tone to continue with the colour scheme of gold and silver. I love ❤️ him.
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It's lovely to see your bracket's journey.......,,,,,....keep posting, I love to see the pictures. What a lovely Hubby, your bracelets look gorgeous together. I love the clasps, very pretty and your new charm looks fabulous.

I wish now I hadn't purchased the barrel clasps but I can always add a bit more glitz with a pretty safety chain :smile:
 
#3,547
Emibella said:
These are simply stunning, Mulberrygal!!! :coolio: Thanks for sharing. Both bracelets are beautiful, but I must admit my eyes still haven't recovered from seeing your gold one... lol

I like the look of a bracelet with only a few charms. That's why I have an Essence bracelet. But for the Moments bracelets, I prefer to wear them full. And I only wear one at a time.

I like both of your creations and would wear them as is. To me, they're perfect!

If ever you were looking for gold charms, I've had a look earlier today and Rue La La has quite a few at more then 50% off on sale right now. I love the gold charms but wouldn't dare go there at the moment, my wallet wouldn't survive it... ;)
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Thank you Emibella for your lovely comments. I will get some better pictures as they were hastily taken with my iPad in poor light. I've been taken pics as I go of anything I've come up with that I like . Looking back now I agree and have recreated the two- tone version more or less as it is here and am wearing it today :smile:

I do still prefer to stack & mix up with other brackets and like you love my Essence bracelets but have kept them very simple............gold clasp with single gold charm & silver clasp with pearl charm.

Thank you for the tip on Rue La La but I'm in the UK and unfortunately we definitely don't do as well on the bargains :tdown: They do now ship here but the duty, tax, shipping and handling charges would double the price :facepalm: I've been caught out before
 
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#3,551
Love seeing all the pics, they're making me want to work on my bracelet more!
I'm excited for the upcoming Disney release, Mora Pandora showed Donald and Daisy silver heads and a Tinkerbelle dress dangle that I've got my eye on. I'd also like to get a couple from the Valentines release.

I do have a question, could anyone recommend a bead that would make a good representation of a loved one that has passed? I lost my mom in December and would like to add a bead to my bangle in her memory as she was always interested in my bracelet as I built it up. Thanks!
 
#3,552
mrskolar09 said:
Love seeing all the pics, they're making me want to work on my bracelet more!
I'm excited for the upcoming Disney release, Mora Pandora showed Donald and Daisy silver heads and a Tinkerbelle dress dangle that I've got my eye on. I'd also like to get a couple from the Valentines release.

I do have a question, could anyone recommend a bead that would make a good representation of a loved one that has passed? I lost my mom in December and would like to add a bead to my bangle in her memory as she was always interested in my bracelet as I built it up. Thanks!
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I got the Divine Angel to represent mine...
 

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