Birthday present poll: what to get?

[Sprinkles&Stones]

My birthday is coming up and I am allowing myself one moderately priced present. I want to continue with my “collecting the classics” roll that I’ve been on. I initially said I wasn’t going to get anything, but my husband convinced me to buy SOMETHING for my birthday.

I am either going to get a pair of WF ACA diamond studs, or a pair of gem quality Akoyas from either Miki or Andrew Moline.

My diamond studs would be .30 each or .60ctw. The pearls would be 7-8mm, depending on availability.


I don’t have a nice pear of diamond studs OR a nice pair of pearl studs yet (sad face).

I *might* upgrade the diamond studs, but not for a while. For a milestone birthday in 2 years I am going to treat myself to a second, larger set of WF ACA’s. The goal is to have 2 sets of WF ACA’s, one for each piercing hole. (The more the merrier woohoo!).

I recently bought myself 24k gold hoops which I wear every day, these are in my first piercing. My second piercing currently holds very poor quality B&M diamond studs that my hubby bought for our first Valentine’s Day as a married couple.

They. Are. Driving. Me. NUTS. Hence why my birthday present has to be earrings, haha.

My plan is to eventually get BOTH WF ACA and gem quality akoyas, and switch back and forth between them for my second piercing.

So…. What do y’all think?? I live pretty close to a Mikimoto in SoCal, so maybe I should drop by and take a peak? I’ve never seen gem quality Akoyas in real life before.

 

[Rhd3]

I'd get the one that fits my lifestyle the best. Personally, that would mean the ACA studs because I'm not that organized in the morning and am always 10 seconds away from sticky toddler hands. Either way, you should definitely visit Mikimoto because it will be a treat no matter what you decide!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

I'd get the one that fits my lifestyle the best. Personally, that would mean the ACA studs because I'm not that organized in the morning and am always 10 seconds away from sticky toddler hands. Either way, you should definitely visit Mikimoto because it will be a treat no matter what you decide!

I agree, I should go take a look! Which probably means I’ll walk out the door with something

 

[Rhd3]

I agree, I should go take a look! Which probably means I’ll walk out the door with something

You might! Their AAA akoyas are amazing. That's what sparked my pearl obsession.

 

[MamaBear]

Def get the diamonds! I wear my .60ctw ACA studs in my second piercing. They are a great size and very wearable!!

 

[Lookinagain]

Do you take your earrings off for showering, sleeping, working out etc? If not, I'd definitely go for the diamonds as they can tolerate those things better than pearls, I think. Also, for everyday, for me, small diamond studs in a second piercing would be my preference and I'd want to rid myself of the poor quality ones that you have now and are driving you nuts.

 

[tuckie]

I used to wear my pearl studs almost daily… then 5 years ago I got diamond studs. I think I wear something other than the diamonds perhaps 5 times per year.

The cost per wear is so ‘low’ for me that I’ve even decided to upgrade.

Hard to go wrong with either, but I’d expect more mileage out of the diamonds

 

[AllAboardTheBlingTrain]

I find diamond studs to be staples in a way pearl studs aren’t, so I’d buy the diamonds first. Happy birthday!

 

[Natylad]

Another vote for the diamond studs. Talking from personal experience they are much more wearable and durable than the pearls and fit for any occasion. Definitely the studs!!! Happy Birthday to you!!!

 

[Lakefront]

Ha! I’m the lone pearl voter. Idk, there’s just something so classy about beautiful pearl studs.

 

[LilAlex]

For earrings that you can not see and enjoy -- meaning they are mostly for others -- the diamond studs are the safer bet, imo. The typical person can not tell gem Akoyas from fake, I bet. But I would love looking in the mirror and looking at them in their pretty little box!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Ha! I’m the lone pearl voter. Idk, there’s just something so classy about beautiful pearl studs.

i agree
go for the pearls
and gem quality are going to be so worth it in the luster alone

 

[Diamond_Enthusiast]

I vote for diamond studs because they are so versatile, more hardy and for ease of cleaning. I exercise a lot and with diamond earrings, it is so easy to clean with just warm water, dish soap and soft toothbrush - comes out looking so fresh and sparkly! It depends on your lifestyle too I guess. You mentioned you plan to get both eventually, I would start with ACA studs first for practical reasons.

Edit: wanted to add that in case you want to also look at other vendors for gem quality Akoya pearls, I've purchased from Pearl Paradise before and the quality is excellent and prices are going to be more affordable than Mikimoto. They even have natural white Hanadama grade Akoyas.

 

[dvj]

Hey it looks like the WF .6 carat ACA studs you described are available pre-loved right now if you are interested.

Platinum WF .6CTW ACA studs

Purchased for Christmas .6 ctw ACA studs from WF specs are G VVS1 in classic Tiffany-esque four prong basket setting (cost $500 w/ La Pousette backings) offering 30% savings with PayPal $1600 via PayPal (invoice, no Friends and Family) which includes insured shipping by USPS. Perfect everyday...

www.pricescope.com

WF .6ctw ACA studs | Loupe Troop

loupetroop.com

 

[dk168]

I voted for the diamond studs, as I believe they could be jazzed up with a pair of diamond jackets without having to upgrade the studs to prolong their useful life for a while longer.

Although I have nice pearl studs, I seldom wear them nowadays, and prefer my diamond, MMD/lab or simulant studs in various styles instead.

DK

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Def get the diamonds! I wear my .60ctw ACA studs in my second piercing. They are a great size and very wearable!!

ooo that's good to hear! I feel like .30 sounds small to PS standards, but for a second piercing its perfect!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Do you take your earrings off for showering, sleeping, working out etc? If not, I'd definitely go for the diamonds as they can tolerate those things better than pearls, I think. Also, for everyday, for me, small diamond studs in a second piercing would be my preference and I'd want to rid myself of the poor quality ones that you have now and are driving you nuts.

I'm very bad about taking my earrings out. If I DID get a nice pear of pearls I would always take them off before bed/shower! But i agree diamonds would be more tolerant to every day wear and tear

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

I voted for the diamond studs, as I believe they could be jazzed up with a pair of diamond jackets without having to upgrade the studs to prolong their useful life for a while longer.

Although I have nice pearl studs, I seldom wear them nowadays, and prefer my diamond, MMD/lab or simulant studs in various styles instead.

DK

great idea!~

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

I vote for diamond studs because they are so versatile, more hardy and for ease of cleaning. I exercise a lot and with diamond earrings, it is so easy to clean with just warm water, dish soap and soft toothbrush - comes out looking so fresh and sparkly! It depends on your lifestyle too I guess. You mentioned you plan to get both eventually, I would start with ACA studs first for practical reasons.

Edit: wanted to add that in case you want to also look at other vendors for gem quality Akoya pearls, I've purchased from Pearl Paradise before and the quality is excellent and prices are going to be more affordable than Mikimoto. They even have natural white Hanadama grade Akoyas.

Great point!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

i agree
go for the pearls
and gem quality are going to be so worth it in the luster alone

I loooooove shiny pearls, I kind of want to eat them for some reason haha!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

For earrings that you can not see and enjoy -- meaning they are mostly for others -- the diamond studs are the safer bet, imo. The typical person can not tell gem Akoyas from fake, I bet. But I would love looking in the mirror and looking at them in their pretty little box!

Good point!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Ha! I’m the lone pearl voter. Idk, there’s just something so classy about beautiful pearl studs.

I'm so attracted to that classy stylish look of pearls, just knowing I would have them on would make me feel one step fancier haha!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Another vote for the diamond studs. Talking from personal experience they are much more wearable and durable than the pearls and fit for any occasion. Definitely the studs!!! Happy Birthday to you!!!

Thank you!

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

I used to wear my pearl studs almost daily… then 5 years ago I got diamond studs. I think I wear something other than the diamonds perhaps 5 times per year.

The cost per wear is so ‘low’ for me that I’ve even decided to upgrade.

Hard to go wrong with either, but I’d expect more mileage out of the diamonds

True! This is definitely an argument that I need both right?

 

[tuckie]

True! This is definitely an argument that I need both right?

Of course you need both! It’s just a question of which you’re getting NOW…

Unless of course you’re interested in the pre-loved linked above and your budget might have space for both (perhaps via Pearl Paradise!)

Always happy to enable!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I loooooove shiny pearls, I kind of want to eat them for some reason haha!

i get that because i want to lick them

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

True! This is definitely an argument that I need both right?

now you're talking girl !
id get the pearls first because really great pearls still cost significantly less than really great diamonds
and then save up for bigger diamonds !

and just like @tuckie
our job here is to enable !

 

[RunningwithScissors]

You can't go wrong with either type of stud (and I like how you think, concentrating on purchasing the classic pieces first.)

Just an FYI, I visited the Mikimoto at the Cosa Mesa mall over the summer. I got one of the worst sales associates I have ever had anywhere. I love Mikimoto, and I am not telling you to not visit Mikimoto. However, there is one SA I recommend avoiding because he pressured me like crazy and then treated me like dirt when I was interested in a size that they didn't have in their showroom. I won't mention his name, but if you are headed to that particular Mikimoto, then you may want to request one of the females working there as they all seemed nice, responsible and far less a-holey. I've honestly never been treated worse by a SA in my life then my this schmuck.

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

You can't go wrong with either type of stud (and I like how you think, concentrating on purchasing the classic pieces first.)

Just an FYI, I visited the Mikimoto at the Cosa Mesa mall over the summer. I got one of the worst sales associates I have ever had anywhere. I love Mikimoto, and I am not telling you to not visit Mikimoto. However, there is one SA I recommend avoiding because he pressured me like crazy and then treated me like dirt when I was interested in a size that they didn't have in their showroom. I won't mention his name, but if you are headed to that particular Mikimoto, then you may want to request one of the females working there as they all seemed nice, responsible and far less a-holey. I've honestly never been treated worse by a SA in my life then my this schmuck.

Omg yes that’s the exact place I was gonna go!! Thank you so much for warning me, I really don’t do well with that and tend to crumple under pressure. That would not make for a fun birthday present shopping experience, especially if I want to just browse at first.

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

So now that I have my Wolf CBI 5 stone in hand: I can’t stop obsessing over diamonds! I think I’ll go with the WF studs. Maybe next year I’ll do the pearls! Thanks everyone!