Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians...

[bluebirrrd]

I seem to have walked the plank willingly, diving headfirst into an ocean of pearls. Warning that I'm new to pearls and about to post a lot of photos.

First up, my lavender freshwater metallic strand from Catherine Cardellini. These are 17.5" long and taper from 8mm to 8.9mm. They are just as she described and her photos were extremely accurate. With that said, the accuracy of her photos is specific to a certain type of light and I have quickly learned that colored pearls are just as moody and light sensitive as colored gemstones. What you see on a white paper towel is not necessarily what you will see on your neck. I think I'd have to be inside an igloo, an ice cave or a white tent to get the full effect of these against my skin. There a few significant blemishes that weren't in her photos, however they don't detract from the overall appearance of the strand. The pearls are quite beautiful, and the frosty iridescence they can display is amazing. They also came in a beautiful embroidered bag.


Catherine's photo, before restringing


Catherine's photo, after restringing


Neckshot, indoors, artificial light


In their bag, indoors, artificial light

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Next, the baroque tahitian strand. I have mixed feelings about these because they were over $600, which is extremely expensive for me. I basically abandoned another long term project in favor of pearls, but being new it's hard to know exactly what I want, how to interpret vendor photos, and how to know if I'm getting a good value for my money. These are from The Pearl Outlet and are 18" long ranging from 8.28mm to 11.45mm. I'm sure the photos are accurate for the type of lighting they used, however I've found the same colors impossible to reproduce in real life. Compared to their photos, their written description of the color and overtone was much, much more accurate. The body color is medium gray, and that's what you see the majority of the time. The rainbow and vibrant blue overtones in their photos just aren't visible in real life and so I'm not sure if I'm getting a good value for the amount I paid. I had quite a few e-mail communications with Crystal as well as a phone call. I commented on what I liked about the coloring in their photos and it was never mentioned that those same colors weren't really visible in real life. Luckily, I like gray pearls and I like the shape of these so it's not that I dislike the strand. It's just not what I was expecting, and I won't be able to afford any more pearls this expensive for a looong time. I'm still deciding if I should keep them.


Photo from their website


Additional photo that I requested via e-mail


Neckshot, indoors, artificial light


Neckshot, indoors, artificial light

 

[Supers]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Love both of them.
I just received my necklace from Catherine today and am very happy with it. The colours look more subtle than the photos, but I'm also trying to view them in different lights to see how they perform.

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Lastly, here are several additional photos. These pearls love bright, diffused light. I welcome your comments and insights. Thanks for looking!


I like 8mm pearls so I thought 11.45mm might be too big. Turns out, I like that size too!


Outdoors, evening shade, on the beautiful bag Catherine sent


Outdoors, evening shade


Indoors, inside their bag, artificial light

Supers, I'd love to see some photos!

 

[Enchante]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Bluebirrrd I LOVE your fresh water strand, such a lovely lavendar!

You are also right about tahitians - the colours are very very very hard to capture accurately in pictures, especially the orient. Which is why when I shop for tahitians, I would do in person and not online. Plus you get to paw and try many more pearls!

This is still a lovely strand, keep it if it 'speaks' to you.

 

[baby monster]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Love the CC strand- such pretty colors. The Tahitian strand is fairly priced IMHO but whether you're happy with the quality and color at that price point is a different issue. I bought and returned a Tahitian strand in that price range as I wasn't happy with it. I waited and saved a bit more to buy a great strand I'm very happy with. The recommended vendors here all have great return policies because sometimes pictures are a bit off from what you expect.

 

[movie zombie]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

i love Love LOVE the catherine strand on you! wowzer!

the tahitian strand? not so much. i might if it were a bit longer. to my eye it sits too high up and the color isn't as complimentary to your skin.....but then tahitians are hard to photgraph, right? all that matters is what YOU think.

i will add that i do like the tahitians with the catherine strand together....but i think it should still be a bit longer. something about the two together that softens the tahitian look against your skin. have you tried twisting them together? might be a good look.....

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Thank you so much, Enchante! The lavender strand is a grayish lavender, which is my favorite kind. There are a few light pearls, and one is right in front. It kind of drives me crazy when I see it. I would have strung it more off to one side. Here's a photo in nice outdoor shade. How I would love to "paw through" a bunch in real life to find just the right strand.



Babymonster, the vendors' return policies are pretty amazing to me. When you explain it that way, it makes sense, but it still seems very generous. Maybe they think the longer they let you keep something, the more attached you'll become! And I would really love to keep the tahitian strand, but somewhere in my mind is the idea that $600+ is too much to pay for gray pearls. I guess at that price, I expect them to be jaw dropping and maybe that isn't fair. Here are some photos in nice outdoor light. I love that they appear fairly round and smooth despite being semi-baroque and somewhat circled. If they were $300-$400, I wouldn't hesitate to keep them.




Last but not least, mozo, wrap them together? You are cray-cray! I can barely get away with wearing one strand of nice pearls, let alone two, lol! I'm more than happy to indulge you though, so here you go! Thank you for your honest feedback, I really appreciate it. The length doesn't bother me at all, though one or two more inches could be nice. Interesting that they are different sized pearls and different lengths and seem to fall at about the same spot. One more thing to complicate the buying process...



Btw, did I mention how I love the heft and clinking sounds they make when you run them through your hands?

 

[movie zombie]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

wowzer! i love love love the two strands woven together on you! you can rock the look! and i like the last picture of the baroques you took......the color looks good to my eye now that i can see the pearls better and they do look good on your skin.

again, i love love love the two strands woven together on you!

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Mozo, thank you so much for your extremely kind words. I wish I could keep my neck stretched out like that all the time, it looks so much nicer than real life! I read a blog post on Kojima called something like "How to wear our pearls," which was just a bunch of photos of different women rocking their pearls in different ways. I'm trying to find the right style for me and I'm not sure a big luxurious full strand is it. I can't wear them to work because I work in a rough urban neighborhood with the underprivileged. At home, I get dirty, have chickens, cattle, horses (not an estate or luxury ranch by any stretch). In only one day, I did manage to fall in love with them but I've decided to let them go because they'll get very little wear and don't match well with my lifestyle I"ve already packed them up and it makes me sad to see the pictures and know I won't be keeping them, BUT luckily there's a silver lining...

I wanted to wait and share after it becomes a finished project, but here's a sneak peak. I'm really excited because it's not only much, much more affordable, I think it matches my personal style so much more. I've ordered this beautiful sterling silver chainmaille necklace from an Etsy vendor, minus the turquoise drop. I'm going to replace the bottom ring with something that opens and closes, so I can switch on different drops, or even multiple drops. I'm sooo excited about this project because I can try so many different sizes, colors and combinations. My mind is already thinking of a future Kamoka pearl, or even an SoC. For now, I have a very large 14mm x 12mm dark gray drop and a 13mm x 11mm lighter silver drop in my sights.

I know this is pretty different than how most people wear their pearls, but what do you think?

 

[baby monster]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

300-400 might be a bit of a stretch if you're buying from a retailer. There was an inexpensive strand posted in Preloved forum and it's listed on LP http://loupetroop.com/listings/necklaces-and-pendants/silver-gray-vivid-teal-tahitian-strand

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Oh geez, baby monster, thank you but also gah! I feel like I missed out on that whole FF period because it seems like Elana was giving everyone some really great deals. It looks like that strand is 16", which is too short, but that's a fantastic price. Thank you so much for pointing it out. On the other hand, that same seller has one of my all time favorite pieces listed, and since I rarely check the preloved section, I missed it completely. I've e-mailed her about it. Fortunately (?) the money from returning the tahitian strand will cover more than one new purchase!

Regarding lower priced tahitian strands, I will say that Jose at TahitianPearls.biz has some pretty nice ones in smaller sizes in the $300-$400 range.

 

[movie zombie]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

they really do look fab on you, blue....but i understand the practicalities. sigh.
confession: i've started wearing my pearls while bowling. i've worn them to the farmers' market, movies, nursery, etc. before but now its bowling! can you imagine?! but hey it beats having them sit in the drawer.

ok, now onto the next project: i LOVE it! it will be practical. it will be unusual. it will versatile. it will go from the chicken coop w/o adornment to the opera with a solitary pearl [or cluster of pearls] should you ever desire to go. very smart, very elegant, and ever so whimsical at the same time. i do think you're first "pendant" purchase, however, does need to be a pearl for it.

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Lol, I seem to have limited my bowling to wi-bowling these days and that would be an even funnier occasion to wear pearls.

Well, I've done it and fingers crossed that there's no more purchasing for me for a while. I got a Kamoka pearl for the necklace! Maybe not the showiest, but I think it's lovely and it seems to have more lustre than the one I was considering at Pearl Society. The seller will be top drilling it and including a silver cap and ring. I think it will go well with the chainmaille necklace. Dimensions are 13.58mm x 11.10mm



I also, ahem, made another purchase more appropriate for discussion in the colored-gems forum. I was able to buy the sunstone asscher pendant set in rose gold with diamonds that I have always lusted over. It's one of my favorite pieces ever, so I still can't really believe it. I also can't believe someone else didn't get it first. It's been for sale for a while apparently and I was the last to know.

So, even after all this, I'm still a couple hundred dollars ahead, and I feel very happy with the decision to return the lovely tahitian strand. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the pearl section of PS, which I've read top to bottom. I appreciate all your information and encouragement regarding pearls.

 

[4Ranch Girl]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

Love your new pearls. You have made excellent choices. I did like the T's. One thing I have found is that the color/clothes/neckline you wear can either suck the color out of them or enhance them. They are fickle beings.

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

From one ranchgrrrl to another, thank you. I've loved reading your posts and I love all your beautiful pearls. My very favorites are your SoC's. Those are my dream pearls!

One thing I like so much about pearls is that they really are for everyone, no matter your budget or personal style. I think I may just not be a classic full strand type of girl, although full strands seem to dominate the overall market aesthetic. Besides tin cups and standard pendants on gold chains, I think there's lots of room for design exploration with pearls and I'm really enjoying the hunt for different styles.

 

[bluebirrrd]

Re: Pearlies, avast! Metallic freshies AND baroque tahitians

I feel a little embarrassed to admit that I forgot I already had a loose pearl on the way, more of a "test pearl" I guess. I won it at auction from Pearl Society on ebay for a very good price. Considering that it came all the way from Hong Kong, it arrived very quickly, so silly of me to forget about it! It's not drilled and they have repeatedly refused my polite requests for drilling, cap setting, etc. I can't actually use this pearl as it is, but I decided in advance that it would be going to a friend who will love the fact that it's undrilled.

Anyway, I must say I loved it the second I saw it! I had second thoughts about giving it away and felt tinges of pearl greed that I had to push away The surface is practically flawless, and although the magnified photos show the natural bumps in the surface, to the eye it is nothing but smooth and metallic. It was impossible to take any pictures without reflections.


This is the vendor photo. I had doubts that the colors would be visible at all. The photo is actually very accurate for natural lighting. In real life it is very smooth and mirror like.


My photo, I only got one because the rain was interfering. This pearl is 11.5mm x 10.8mm. Indoors it is a very pleasing shiny charcoal gray.

Today I sent back the Tahitian strand and made one last order this time from Taaroa Bijoux and their farm on Ahe Atoll. Very, very bad of me I know but these will look amazing as a trio on my chainmaille necklace. I am now officially banning myself from ebay and pearl shopping sites. I have plenty to keep me busy now and must focus my buying on others until Christmas has passed.


These are no more than 10.5mm at their biggest diameter. Having learned firsthand that pearls don't always match their photos, Sandrine and I had some discussion about them and she insists the colors are the same in real life. I feel I'm taking a gamble on them because there's really no way I think I'd try to return them. They are coming the long, slow way so wish me luck.