Which necklace for my mom? (53rd birthday gift!)

TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others

#16
thank you all very much for your kind words and suggestions!

I love solitaire diamond necklaces and would definitely like to gift her one someday. However, at the moment I think the most I can afford is one around 0.30ct which I think is a bit too small for her age. Therefore I'd rather gift her now something without a diamond and then save some money and gift her a bigger solitaire diamond necklace (1895/C de Cartier), e.g. for her 55th :). In this way she can have 2 necklaces in total to switch :)

I personally prefer either the interlocking love or VCA Guilloche. I like think the interlocking love is more casual and looks nice with T shirt and jeans, while VCA is more flashy. I'll probably ask her before which one she prefers and get that :D her birthday is in a month so I still have some time.

Does anyone have these 2 necklaces or any other from my list above and have experience with the quality of them? Is the secure mechanism... secure? Do they get scratched easily?
 
  • Like
Reactions: thundercloud and periogirl28
#17
ugaugauga said:
thank you all very much for your kind words and suggestions!

I love solitaire diamond necklaces and would definitely like to gift her one someday. However, at the moment I think the most I can afford is one around 0.30ct which I think is a bit too small for her age. Therefore I'd rather gift her now something without a diamond and then save some money and gift her a bigger solitaire diamond necklace (1895/C de Cartier), e.g. for her 55th :smile:. In this way she can have 2 necklaces in total to switch :smile:

I personally prefer either the interlocking love or VCA Guilloche. I like think the interlocking love is more casual and looks nice with T shirt and jeans, while VCA is more flashy. I'll probably ask her before which one she prefers and get that :biggrin: her birthday is in a month so I still have some time.

Does anyone have these 2 necklaces or any other from my list above and have experience with the quality of them? Is the secure mechanism... secure? Do they get scratched easily?
Click to expand...

i think you’ve made the right decision on forgoing the solitaire for now. Personally I would not invest in a solitaire pendant from Cartier as you can source an AGS/GIA stone from a reputable online dealer (Brian Gavin, Whiteflash, James Allen) to name some, as well as local jewelers for a much bigger carat weight.

I think the guilloche Alhambra will look beautiful on your mother. To me the interlocking love is more youthful while the Alhambra is more refined and elegant, well suited for someone your moms age. I share some jewelries with my mom and she absolutely loves my alhambras and they look fabulous on her.

As for the durability on both pieces, mechanism wise I don’t see there being a problem for either. Just check the clasp by opening and closing them to make sure they are secure before you purchase.

A few things to take away on the wear and tear, depending on the wearer, if your mom is more rough on her jewelry, the guilloche will not fare as well long term. Simply because the guilloche cannot be polished and scratches will remain present. The Cartier can be polished, hence if it becomes scratched or accidentally dented etc, it can be be restored to like new.

I however, do not see either necklaces posing a big problem with wear and tear simply because it’ll be on her neck. It’s not a piece of jewelry that would frequently come into contact with something hard or rough. Unless she stacks her necklaces, I think either necklace will be fine and should age well with proper care.

I would also recommend taking a look at the hammered gold or pave version of the Alhambra pendants. These 2 options would be most durable and require the least amount of care. The stone versions, MOP being one of my favorite is beautiful as well but would require more care as it’s after all a stone.

Good luck with the final choice and come back to share with us the beautiful pick (pic)!!
 
  • Like
  • Insightful
Reactions: prettyyybizarrre, lulu212121 and 880
#20
Based from your options, I will pick the VCA guilloche for your mom. You’re considering the necklace, right? I think it really makes a statement and just a very beautiful piece. Mind you I don’t have any VCA and collected several Cartier pieces all just last year, but the guilloche always attracts my attention.
 
#21
Hi all!
Update: I gifted her the Cartier interlocking Love at the end! :)

I've sent her the pictures for her to choose. Instead of surprising her I thought it's better to let her choose as this should be something she likes to wear. Also in consideration of the price range, I thought it was a bit risky to surprise her. We looked at the pictures of the items together and discussed before I've bought it.

In case anyone is also having a hard time to make a decision, here is why we chose for the mentioned necklace:

The VCA Guilloche was being removed first because it was too "overstated" for her as it's too obvious VCA/"luxury brand" (Alhambra Motive). She didn't want something that stands out too much as it would be too much for everyday live and also because where we live, everyone is extremely understated.

She didn't liked the trinity one so this one is removed as well.

So at the end it was a choice of the Cartier interlocking Love and the Love with 2 diamonds. She actually liked both designs very much and it wasn't a easy decision. Mostly we decided for the interlocking because we thought it's more understated, more classic and more versatile than the Love with 2 diamonds. Also, the interlocking has a thicker, "duller" chain which she liked :)

She's now super happy with our choice and was super happy about this birthday present :) and wears it everyday now hehe. The necklace looks in real actually so much better than on the photos!

Thanks to everyone for your kind words and your help! We're both super happy :)
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: ilovemathLA, Julie_de, Roarxx and 7 others
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top