6ctw dormeuse-style OEC double drops from Ivy & Rose and Sako

[yssie]

Thank you @AllAboardTheBlingTrain!! I’m laughing - they definitely surpassed any expectations that I had, based just on the information that I had provided

How they sit on the ears - so that was a whole big #Thing actually! I knew these stones would be heavy, so I knew up front that I wanted minimal articulation. The best option seemed to be a dangle style with support on the backside, like lever backs or omega clips, vs. the usual stud-and-drop model - to avoid hanging too much weight off the front...

But (maybe this is just me?) I hate seeing stretched piercings. I know that dangly earrings do stretch piercings temporarily but I just hate seeing that slit down the lobe Most of my dangly earrings have a stud portion, stud-and-drop style, for specifically this reason - the stud hides the piercing stretch. But there was no good way to add a stud to the tops of these where the post goes into the ear, the negative space between that hypothetical stud and the bottom dangle would have been awkwardly extensive. And I didn't want a third diamond!

So we made the posts a touch thicker than usual hoping that a thicker post would behave less like a knife edge in the piercing, fill it out and mitigate that slit effect. Seems to have worked really nicely! I do plan to use BlingDots when I wear them for hours on end, though. Just to be extra safe!


@canuk-gal Thank you so much


Thank you @stonewell!! I’m super happy with how these turned out - they wildly exceeded any expectations And of course now I have a dozen other projects that I really want to send his way and that I have no budget for


@maita13 Thank you! I do have a few more photos - sun came out and stayed out so I took an extra long lunch break to play with my new pretties


@Roselina Thank you!!

 

[yssie]

So this one of the photoshopped pics that I sent Sako. In the original - which I can't for the life of me find, I know I saved it somewhere here - there was no straight of metal immediately below the top basket, it just curved inward right below the basket. But my earlobes need wayyy more clearance!



So sako took that and turned it into this -



Which, y'know, the general theme was there but y'all can see why I wasn't really expecting anything astonishingly awesome going from that ungainly photoshop to this final result, that needed a designer. So many small adjustments that made ALL the difference

Oh! I left a photo out yesterday. Here's one from Sako - all four loosies!

 

[yssie]

And a few more pics from lunch today




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And a few with my older RB diamond studs. The RBs are 9mm H&A, J colour, set in platinum.



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I legit love both OECs and RBs. So different. But both so beautiful. I like round rose cuts best too. Anything round - I'll take

The bigger OEC in this pic is the GIA S-T.



- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I think this one shows the diamond and metal colour differences best. The stones in focus are GIA J in platinum and GIA U-V in unplated 14k nickel WG.

 

[cushioncutnut]

Breathtaking! The videos about did me in! They look beautiful on you!

 

[tyty333]

These are so beautiful and so well thought out (as are all your pieces)! Sako's work is amazing!

 

[Cerulean]

Absolutely stunning @yssie - Sako did an incredible job and I’d expect nothing less!

 

[Musia]

They are unique and stunning! I love the color and cut of your diamonds. I actually love everything: craftsmanship, size of the stones, proportions and how they look on you. Especially glad that you got this "Russian style back closure" (I don't know what you or Sako may call it). Half of all earrings made in the USSR and later after its "death" are having such type of SECURE (even heavy duty) closure, and I never understood why here in the US it is widely unknown or unpopular. When I try to open mine (I do this a few times a year for cleaning or before going to hair salon), my fingernails are usually slightly damaged .
Enjoy them!

 

[yssie]

@LemonMoonLex Thank you!!

I finally managed to get everything off my camera but this thread is going too quickly for me to keep up with! So there are some more photos buried at the top of this page, on the proverbial Page Six - effort counts right?


@LLJsmom Oh my goodness, thank you!! If earrings could blush...

You know me, and my collection compulsions I really feel like my dangly earrings collection is complete. There’s a pair for every mood and every outfit. Now I just need to be better about actually wearing all of them!!


@Sparkles88 Thank you!! They’re definitely a different style from all my other diamond earrings, which I really appreciate


Thank you @Alex T!! I love them!!

Y’know, they’re fundamentally such a common style - Google had hundreds of images when I was looking for inspos. But there was something - or sometimes several somethings - just not quite right for me. Sako’s handiwork is the only pair I’ve seen that looks exactly like this. All the details Just Right for me. Goldilocks is satiated


@missy thank you love!!

I managed just a handful more photos before the sun took a nap These photograph so easily. They somehow even look pretty darn good not freshly cleaned - the grubby doesn't muck with the faceting the way it does in RBs. Things I hadn't thought about - even though I had OEC studs once upon a time!

So I have to say - Sako's work tends to be pretty "solid", I think. Solidly made, and structurally unflappable, but definitely generally not as delicate and dainty as Caysie, Erika, Maytal, Leon, Steven, etc. are predisposed toward. I'm actually reminded a lot of Mark Morrell's work in this respect - another designer who's mastered precise but doesn't really do dainty. These earrings aren't light - they're ~4.4g each. I shudder to think what they would have been had we kept the Georgian collet interiors! We deliberately made the posts a bit thick to stop them from becoming pseudo-knives cutting into the piercings (they were actually a little too thick and I took them down a touch with my dremel) and they hang nicely IRL, but I'll be using BlingDots to be safe.

I think I may be seeing you later this year? You are of course more than welcome to them if I do see you! I'll bring extra BlingDots They'd look regal on you, with your dark curls...

 

[Calliecake]

@yssie, They look gorgeous on you. Simply STUNNING! I can’t imagine ever finding a pair that would top these.

 

[yssie]

@caolsen That's so completely true. That's actually exactly what I thought when I first saw them - if I'd seen these at a jewellery store, priced at what I paid to have them put together, I'd have bought them on the spot! And really, how often do we get to say "that turned out way better than expected" and "it was incredible value for money"!? I got seriously lucky - lucky to run into this pair of diamonds, lucky to have known about Sako

Thank you!!


@Dandi Oh my goodness. Wow. What an incredibly generous thing to say. Thank you!!!! Y'all are totally making my evening here!!

My "collection" of dangly earrings is "complete". I double quote "collection" because it's not really unified in any way - just a set of earrings that I happen to like. And I say "complete" because... I refuse to buy more dangly earrings than I have Leatherology lipstick cases and I've got all the Leatherology lipstick case colours that have been available in the last couple of years I do want to take some collection pics one of these days though!


@Sunstorm Thank you!! They are!! It's really is a very easy-wear design - straddles casual and solemn, just as you said


@lala646 "Aspirational"... That's an empathetic choice of description... You're right. I mentioned to someone else that if I'd seen these in a jewellery store and they'd been available I'd have wanted to buy them. And if they hadn't been available I'd have taken a couple dozen photos and added them to my bucket list.
So in making a motivated-by with other pieces as my primary inspirations - I ended up with a design that I myself would have aspired to mimic in each and every way... Which is seriously such a fantastic feeling


@MissGotRocks Thank you so very much You say the nicest things. Everything went right for me with these - fortune definitely favoured me on this project

 

[yssie]

@icy_jade Thank you! And yes!! Oh my goodness yes! Sako made a lot of choices along that path to implementing my bigger picture ask.. I honestly don't think I ever would have thought them all up, let alone necessarily chosen wisely. And I have to say, seeing the end result, I really really feel that he made all the right choices for me.

The only thing that I overrode him on was the prongs - he recommended claws and I wanted tabs. And I love the tabs so I'll take full credit for getting that one thing 100% #Right

They don't say "compromise" to me in-person at all. I'm just blown away by how beautifully they turned out. Someone else very generously called them "noble" - I went from having four compromise stones and an awkward gangly mount idea to having something that I truly think is worthy of that description, lucky me


@plad25 Thank you!


@Catmom Oh, but they are!! I haven't take an IS or ASET to them yet but I'm sure they would fail RT mores! But I knew where my spend had to end for this project and I don't believe I could ever have done better than this I&R pair And the finished earrings, they really are so much more than the sum of their parts - Sako made magic with metal


@lulu_ma Thank you!! I got one more ear pic before the sun noped out for the day and I think it's the last I'll be getting this week


@sunnyside74 Thank you!! I'm so thoroughly chuffed to have made someone else's bookmark bar - that's such a compliment

I've had a ton of projects in progress for months and months and months and months - finally closing out on some of them, slowly but surely, and it's super duper exciting

 

[yssie]

@lizzydm26 Thank you!! Sako did SUCH a wonderful job with these, I can't think of anything at all to improve - there's just nothing that could be done better!! This was my first experience working with him and I will happily go back for more


That's such a sweet thing to say @luv2sparkle - thank you!!

I got the OECs from I&R summer 2020, and sent them over to Sako January 2021. So they've been brewing for a while! Sako was very busy earlier this year and I wasn't in any rush, fine to take second priority to engagement projects. I asked him if he could finish them by end of July this year and he had them done earlier this month - well within timeline. I couldn't have found a more perfect artist for this project, I'm so grateful to all the other PSers who introduced him to me


@lissyflo Thank you so much love

Of course you already know that - well, I felt exactly the same These were a #HappyEnding project in every single way


@YadaYadaYada Thank you!! I must say that if they continue to bring me the same sort of enjoyment that I've felt wearing them out and about today I'm in for quite the happy ever after - I've been randomly grinning like a loon all day, and sneaking selfies in windows and bottles and random shiny metal things I walk by


@junebug17 Thank you!

I had so many questions and concerns about this style, back when we first got started, and I idled a lot of time away wondering whether my usual stud-and-dangle style wouldn't be a better choice... I'm so glad we went with this design. The end result is true to period, mind-clean in a way that a stud with a drop never could have been

 

[valenledge]

Oh @yssie , I’m so overwhelmed myself just reading through this fascinating adventure with Sako and seeing this beautiful treasure you have! And so beautiful on you! What trust and patience, and it certainly feels like it was all worth it in the end.

So very happy for you to enjoy and wear these in good health! You make me want to repierce my ears that have closed up to see how something like this would look on me!

 

[MrsBlue]

Is it weird that this is my favorite photo? The finished earrings are stunning but this color choice was genius -- the absolute key to bringing the design together.

The metalwork is exquisite. Bravo to Sako for keeping this level of craftsmanship alive.

 

[Donnass117]

They are absolutely stunning! I haven't seen earrings that I love for along time, but these are gorgeous!

 

[Jax172]

Simply stunning. Your compromise and not once in lifetime budget are my dream stones and will never have that kind of money to spend on earrings budget. Enjoy them, they look lovely on you!

 

[yssie]

@diamondseeker2006 Thank you so much!! After all the pieces PS has compelled me to buy - feels only fair to do what I can to pay it forward… Is that enablement or sabotage?

I’m thinking that that olive tint was part of the reason for the unusually low pricing on these stones. It’s a challenging colour to work with - pure whites and greys, pure yellows, peaches/pinks all turned them sallow and sickly. I just happened to have enough WG samples to find a colour match - I tried a number of alloys and karats and happily the most common 14k WG mix was also the best fit!

The metal almost completely eliminates the olive in-person. The stones are shifty but they stay more or less in the white/yellow range throughout various lighting environments, and the yellow gold distracts from any in depth assessment of precisely what other colours might be mixed in with the white - exactly what I had hoped to achieve!!


Thank you @Dancing Fire!!


@123ducklings Thank you!! Today was Day 3 of wearing them and I’m apparently still in that slowing-down-when-I-pass-a-mirror honeymoon stage with them

 

[yssie]

@m-2-b Thank you!!

And with these - my dangly earring collecting is finished. Now I just need a certain pair of statement studs and that’ll be an earring wrap for a good long time!


@Lisa Loves Shiny Thank you!!


@Ann I’ll take the compliment and pretend it’s earned - my Good Jewellery Karmameter ticked up a few notches with these

You’re more than free to copy anything and everything - I wanted these to be made as if they could have been made a hundred years ago, and Sako nailed it - they really could have been made a hundred years ago!! This is such a fundamentally generic design, for me the win and worth is totally in Sako’s execution

Thank you so much


@GeorgieQ Thank you!! Sako KILLED this. Killed it ded. Totally. Completely. There’s literally nothing I see that I want to change. And for me that’s saying something

And we’re back to rain all day up here, no matter how much Yssie might want to play So I’m being #ThatPerson and looking back through the reject photos from yesterday and day before to see if there are any others worth sharing anyway…

 

[RunningwithScissors]

Beautiful, beautiful works of art. I've really enjoyed reading your thoughtful process for finding the diamonds and designing the earrings. This is one of those iconic posts that I'm going to come back to and read many times. So much to soak in. I love even the picture of the diamonds next to the examples of the metals. Thank you for taking us all by the hand and leading us through your process.

And ENJOY your sparkly beauties!!!! We'd love to see more ear pics and hear about where you wear them. I can imagine them at romantic dinners and concerts and all sorts of marvelous occasions! Enjoy!

 

[yssie]

@cushioncutnut Thank you! Those videos were darling - he said he was trying to capture the wiggle. En tremblant. They wiggle and tremble marvellously


@tyty333 Thank you!! For your thoughts on the rest of my pieces too!

I’m a walking example of your tagline I’m afraid! And I’m always more interested in other people’s collections than my own… It’s this odd juxtaposition of genuinely adoring my own pieces but at the same time having gotten so used to seeing them (well - within banking hours anyway!) that they aren’t really intriguing anymore... I’m lazy about changing my jewellery and I don’t wear my own pieces nearly as much as they deserve! I’ve resolved to join the Shop Your Closet thread and fix that


Thank you so much @Cerulean! He really really really really did


@Musia Thank you!!

That’s so interesting - because yes, these feel incredibly secure. And yup, my nails have nicks from the past few days opening these I’m always leery of jewellery with moving parts, because it seems like the point of motion must be a local instability waiting to fail, but Sako’s handmade hinge system is reassuringly tight and slides buttery smooth.

I was confident these diamonds would be heavy enough to droop if I went with my normal stud-with-dangle style, so I wanted the diamonds to weigh equally from the front and the back of the earlobe. But the mechanism required to balance that weight - the leverback - well, that’s extra weight to the overall. And then there’s the en tremblant mechanism which needed a post in front to attach to - more extra weight to the overall! Cue BlingDots saving the day as usual I do totally agree that we made all the right final choices, for security and comfort and period appropriateness

 

[Redwoods-hiker-girl]

Good God. Gorgeous!

 

[Kim N]

Oh my, yssie, these are so stunning. You put so much thought and care into designing your pieces, and it really shows. These are heirloom quality for sure. I love how they look like they could have come from someone's collection a century ago. They look utterly romantic. And as always, your photography skills are incredible.

 

[LALove]

I have never seen such elegant and sophisticated earrings that are also fun and a bit whimsical. I LOVE LOVE LOVE them!

 

[yssie]

@Calliecake Thank you!!

Historically if I’m not happy with something I start to obsess over whatever is irking me nearly right away, and I try to convince myself that I shouldn’t be bothered but no amount of trying to talk myself into satisfaction will ever succeed So if after three or four days the devil on my shoulder hasn’t found anything to grouse about it’s usually a safe bet that he won’t later on!! And he has been most mercifully silent on these. So I think you’re spot on, I don’t think I’ll be having any niggling urges to change anything… And I gotta say, not feeling those bothersome niggles, not feeling guilty about having them, all of that - just being genuinely happy with a new piece - is SUCH a wonderful feeling


@valenledge That’s so super sweet of you - thank you so much!! Sako did such an amazing job with these!! And oh my goodness, yes, the wait was most definitely worth the outcome

I’m thinking tomorrow perhaps I’ll wear something else. Maybe? We’ll see in the morning

Are you considering re-piercing!?


@MrsBlue No not at all!! I probably spend more time in RT than anywhere else on PS, I love compare and contrasts too

Here are a couple more - unfortunately I didn't take all that many pictures of these stones loose before shipping them off to Sako! I wanted them to look as neutrally-coloured as possible. I knew it wasn't going to be possible to make them look white, they're just too strongly tinted, but I didn't want to play up the warmth either - and more than anything else I wanted to suppress that olive tint as much as possible. Olive and my skin don't play well together at all! These aren't great pics but they show the olive at its strongest - these were taken around noon on a cloudy day, right by a window:





The nickel WG worked wonders!! The metal itself has this very very slight green cast in this light, so the stones didn't contrast at all - stone and metal just kind of blend into each other. But at the same time the 14k WG is light enough that it can pass for "white", especially with YG right beside it. And the totality in-person is exactly the outcome I had hoped for

And a couple more - okay so these pics are even worse but they do show the loose stone colour nicely. And y’all can see how these OECs just aren’t m terribly flattering directly on my skin - those stones needed a buffer! The OEC on the right is the GIA U-V and the left is the GIA S-T. The pear rose cuts are GIA H and GIA I, and the RBs at the bottom are GIA J and AGS J.





I’ve never owned stones this low-colour before. They're chameleons - in some lights they pass for eggshell, in others they look shockingly yellow. Luckily the unplated WG behaves exactly the same way (neither platinum nor YG shift nearly as much) so it really is a matched combo across lighting environments!

 

[MrsBlue]

I've never liked two-tone rings before and now I see why. The jump from 18k yg body to platinum head is too jarring to my eye. A yg body and unplated wg head would be amazing with lower colored stones. I'm elated and terrified at having found a new thing to want!!!!

And can we talk about those rose cut pears??? When I was a kid I always wanted to make earrings out of chandelier drops and these stones instantly took me back to that memory. I can't wait to see what make with these. Gorgeous!!!!

 

[valenledge]

@Calliecake Thank you!!

Historically if I’m not happy with something I start to obsess over whatever is irking me nearly right away, and I try to convince myself that I shouldn’t be bothered but no amount of trying to talk myself into satisfaction will ever succeed So if after three or four days the devil on my shoulder hasn’t found anything to grouse about it’s usually a safe bet that he won’t later on!! And he has been most mercifully silent on these. So I think you’re spot on, I don’t think I’ll be having any niggling urges to change anything… And I gotta say, not feeling those bothersome niggles, not feeling guilty about having them, all of that - just being genuinely happy with a new piece - is SUCH a wonderful feeling


@valenledge That’s so super sweet of you - thank you so much!! Sako did such an amazing job with these!! And oh my goodness, yes, the wait was most definitely worth the outcome

I’m thinking tomorrow perhaps I’ll wear something else. Maybe? We’ll see in the morning

Are you considering re-piercing!?


@MrsBlue No not at all!! I probably spend more time in RT than anywhere else on PS, I love compare and contrasts too

Here are a couple more - unfortunately I didn't take all that many pictures of these stones loose before shipping them off to Sako! I wanted them to look as neutrally-coloured as possible. I knew it wasn't going to be possible to make them look white, they're just too strongly tinted, but I didn't want to play up the warmth either - and more than anything else I wanted to suppress that olive tint as much as possible. Olive and my skin don't play well together at all! These aren't great pics but they show the olive at its strongest - these were taken around noon on a cloudy day, right by a window:





The nickel WG worked wonders!! The metal itself has this very very slight green cast in this light, so the stones didn't contrast at all - stone and metal just kind of blend into each other. But at the same time the 14k WG is light enough that it can pass for "white", especially with YG right beside it. And the totality in-person is exactly the outcome I had hoped for

And a couple more - okay so these pics are even worse but they do show the loose stone colour nicely. And y’all can see how these OECs just aren’t m terribly flattering directly on my skin - those stones needed a buffer! The OEC on the right is the GIA U-V and the left is the GIA S-T. The pear rose cuts are GIA H and GIA I, and the RBs at the bottom are GIA J and AGS J.





I’ve never owned stones this low-colour before. They're chameleons - in some lights they pass for eggshell, in others they look shockingly yellow. Luckily the unplated WG behaves exactly the same way (neither platinum nor YG shift nearly as much) so it really is a matched combo across lighting environments!

I had to come by to awe over how many diamonds you are holding!!

My mom keeps telling me I need to because she has so many earrings for me to borrow, but I’ll admit I’m a big baby when it comes to pain, and it’s getting the courage to sit in that seat as an adult while someone does the piercing! I also had an allergic reaction to the studs they put in the first time and couldn’t figure out why. Now, I suspect it was nickel!

 

[Cerulean]

@Calliecake Thank you!!

Historically if I’m not happy with something I start to obsess over whatever is irking me nearly right away, and I try to convince myself that I shouldn’t be bothered but no amount of trying to talk myself into satisfaction will ever succeed So if after three or four days the devil on my shoulder hasn’t found anything to grouse about it’s usually a safe bet that he won’t later on!! And he has been most mercifully silent on these. So I think you’re spot on, I don’t think I’ll be having any niggling urges to change anything… And I gotta say, not feeling those bothersome niggles, not feeling guilty about having them, all of that - just being genuinely happy with a new piece - is SUCH a wonderful feeling


@valenledge That’s so super sweet of you - thank you so much!! Sako did such an amazing job with these!! And oh my goodness, yes, the wait was most definitely worth the outcome

I’m thinking tomorrow perhaps I’ll wear something else. Maybe? We’ll see in the morning

Are you considering re-piercing!?


@MrsBlue No not at all!! I probably spend more time in RT than anywhere else on PS, I love compare and contrasts too

Here are a couple more - unfortunately I didn't take all that many pictures of these stones loose before shipping them off to Sako! I wanted them to look as neutrally-coloured as possible. I knew it wasn't going to be possible to make them look white, they're just too strongly tinted, but I didn't want to play up the warmth either - and more than anything else I wanted to suppress that olive tint as much as possible. Olive and my skin don't play well together at all! These aren't great pics but they show the olive at its strongest - these were taken around noon on a cloudy day, right by a window:





The nickel WG worked wonders!! The metal itself has this very very slight green cast in this light, so the stones didn't contrast at all - stone and metal just kind of blend into each other. But at the same time the 14k WG is light enough that it can pass for "white", especially with YG right beside it. And the totality in-person is exactly the outcome I had hoped for

And a couple more - okay so these pics are even worse but they do show the loose stone colour nicely. And y’all can see how these OECs just aren’t m terribly flattering directly on my skin - those stones needed a buffer! The OEC on the right is the GIA U-V and the left is the GIA S-T. The pear rose cuts are GIA H and GIA I, and the RBs at the bottom are GIA J and AGS J.





I’ve never owned stones this low-colour before. They're chameleons - in some lights they pass for eggshell, in others they look shockingly yellow. Luckily the unplated WG behaves exactly the same way (neither platinum nor YG shift nearly as much) so it really is a matched combo across lighting environments!

That description of the “niggling” feeling is so apt. I’m the same way. And I wish it didn’t happen to often!

Okay so I know this is radically off topic…but what is your plan for those gorgeous rose cuts?!

 

[Rosebloom]

Dearest Yssie, just perfection! So luxurious. Thank you for sharing them with us here!

 

[Tinkybell]

Beautiful!

 

[gregchang35]

Holy Guac!!!!
Congrats! And they are sublime!