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Blue Akoyas Baroques Pair-Need an Opinion

lulu_ma

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I missed out on a pair of baroque Blue Akoyas so now I’m looking from scratch.

These are 9-10mm and I’m looking for the ones that will look the most Blue. I’d like to make a pair of everyday drop earrings with white gold posts (I adore Mrs. B's stud enhancers).

Thoughts on this pair, please? The only pearls that I have ever bought for myself are a pair of Tiffany studs-so really I'm a total pearl noob!

8AC15DE4-5416-48C8-82D1-A6D0B72C31B6.jpeg 7A0087A9-31E0-443D-83A6-E9B2DA0EDD66.jpeg 443AFE4D-9210-48FC-93B2-474BF819693E.jpeg 83FFECF1-72BE-4E81-A6E7-1371617AE829.jpeg
like
 
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yssie

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The shape match on that pair is fantastic but I think one will be visibly more metallic and iridescent than the other IRL, based on those pics. How important to you is a colour match?
 

lulu_ma

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Maybe ask for a side by side of these three pairs - yellow and blue circled?

CBB01BCA-38B9-462D-B0ED-C66BBA249DDA.jpeg

Thanks for the input ladies!

Color match would be nice. @yssie the coloration of the pair that you matched up in the lower left!

I’m going to ask Takahashi for side by sides of the additional 2 pairs that recommended and will report back.
 

yssie

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Let us know what they come back with! Maybe also ask about the 10-11 size? Might be some promising options on the smaller side, if that's about the size range you're targetting.

In my very very anecdotal experience - Yy values shape and "visual weight" (do they kind of look to have similar volume/mass, even if exact shape is different) very highly. So if you would prioritize the most blue pearls over everything else (even if they aren't a perfect colour/shape/weight match), or a fantastic colour match over everything else (even if they aren't the most blue or a perfect shape/weight match), or a fantastic luster match over everything else (they'll lump glossiness, iridescence, and contrastiness into that word "luster")... I would let her know that explicitly ::)
 

lulu_ma

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Ok, yesterday was a Japanese national holiday. But I just got lots of pics…

@yssie the first cards are the two pair that you circled.
E3E94BAD-7CCA-4B3F-87E7-6AFF63CC8B73.jpeg 1FC1C339-0220-4269-86BC-6916AA49B8A6.jpeg

I love color of this one, but it doesn’t seem to have a good mate.
 

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lulu_ma

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The new pairs juxtaposed with the original pair (on the bottom)

1D940ABC-503E-48E9-B7DD-35761D1B3807.jpeg E6C3A56E-8E69-48EF-8853-55003D51510E.jpeg 0D3DF7C2-3B3E-42DA-AD13-EF9BCF93C46D.jpeg
 

lulu_ma

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Lastly, the 10-11 mm card. The top pair seem the most blue?

2FB6832F-25B1-4F91-B152-445653BD33F4.jpeg 0FBECDAB-25D5-4BFF-8B75-A275CD67FE42.jpeg 9534BFA4-2977-4A63-B98A-C6BDBF377757.jpeg
 

lulu_ma

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Umm…kind of liking these two together. Or possibly the 3rd one?

1E8C7A06-1DDE-4632-AF54-3F2B0093CF5E.jpeg
 

yssie

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1632450816752.png
 

yssie

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1632451415640.png
 

yssie

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The best matched pearls from the smaller card are objectively more impressive pearls in terms of strength of colour and strength of luster, and they're also a bit better matched to each other. BUT they're smaller, looks like they're on the small end of the size range, and they clearly veer green/teal, vs. the best matched pearls from the bigger card (which are "cooler" - they have more silver/violet).

Matching blues is kind of a PITA. Heck, matching any pearls is a PITA. But blue akoya rank near the top of the PITA scale for me - right under white south seas. If I was choosing for myself I'd pick the best matched pair from the smaller card. Partly my personal preference - I have warm colouring and I really like akoya that skew teal.
 
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lulu_ma

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@yssie Thank you for all your comments! I didn't realize that the blues would be this challenging to match:/

I have asked Takahashi for a couple more images. I'll report back!
 

Cerulean

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Agree all the way with @yssie. That smaller more vibrant pair on the smaller card is my favorite too.

Blues are a pain! When I was picking blue
Akoyas, I fell for one really vivid blue single pearl, but it didn’t have a mate. *sigh* I went for a paler, more aquamarine color and they are lovely, but I would’ve sacrificed a little size for more punch in color. I actually really like the greenish leaning tho

come back if they pull more for you
 

yssie

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Oh. I just reread my comment - this project is totally doable! By "PITA" I didn't mean to imply that there might not BE a satisfactory pair - that's not the case at all, not with blue baroque akoya. Just some reassurance for you that your back-and-forth with them on various match options is totally normal and totally expected!!

You might ask for some photos on the hand, as well - sometimes on-skin photos can be really helpful in figuring out what you actually care about and what you don't.

@yssie Thank you for all your comments! I didn't realize that the blues would be this challenging to match:/

I have asked Takahashi for a couple more images. I'll report back!
 

lulu_ma

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I got a couple more pics from Takahashi last night. I asked them to put pair these two 10-11 mm pearls.
DF862018-F38F-49AE-8189-D5F22DF738A0.jpeg
And to compare the larger “new” pair to the 9-10 mm pair that I had originally liked.
72F6BB34-7B61-4A68-9E0B-017D9A52E134.jpeg C64B06F6-FC3D-49D2-BBEA-AC97790F8386.jpeg
@yssie I totally agree that smaller pair you honed in on is the prettiest match, but I think that they are just too small for the drop style earring I want to make.

Thoughts on the new 10-11 mm pair? To my eye shape match is ok and the color match is decent. I love shape match of the smaller pair, but the colors seem more disparate.
 
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lulu_ma

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Here are a few inspo pics of the earring style that I am aiming for.

59B5F842-1427-4B12-8C50-3CA392E9654C.jpeg 1BABBC6D-1B22-4D21-A4D2-6129D2E7357A.png FE6E84FC-44B2-4E4F-9B68-FCB70C3D88CA.jpeg
 

Pearlescence

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Whatever pearls you select, your end result will look much more 'high-end' if you have them half drilled and use a pendant cap to attach them to the rest of the earring. The pearls shown are all full drilled and taken from a strand (much cheaper)
 

lulu_ma

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Whatever pearls you select, your end result will look much more 'high-end' if you have them half drilled and use a pendant cap to attach them to the rest of the earring. The pearls shown are all full drilled and taken from a strand (much cheaper)

I think I know what you mean, but can you please provide an image of an example? Thanks.
 

lulu_ma

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Actually, my intention is to half drill the pearls but not do a cap. I want the earrings to have modern luxe vibe like this:

0580CB90-46EA-498E-A2F0-49CF757E3405.jpeg
The pendant cap feels a little more formal to me.
 

yssie

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I got a couple more pics from Takahashi last night. I asked them to put pair these two 10-11 mm pearls.
DF862018-F38F-49AE-8189-D5F22DF738A0.jpeg
And to compare the larger “new” pair to the 9-10 mm pair that I had originally liked.
72F6BB34-7B61-4A68-9E0B-017D9A52E134.jpeg C64B06F6-FC3D-49D2-BBEA-AC97790F8386.jpeg
@yssie I totally agree that smaller pair you honed in on is the prettiest match, but I think that they are just too small for the drop style earring I want to make.

Thoughts on the new 10-11 mm pair? To my eye shape match is ok and the color match is decent. I love shape match of the smaller pair, but the colors seem more disparate.

Ohh the shapes on the 10mm you put together are fab :love: super complementary, they’d look fantastic in the ultra modern style you’re wanting! More than the smaller pair. More geometric :cool2: Yeah I’m on board with the 10s :bigsmile:

Def ask Takahashi about the findings too, if they have what you want it’ll most likely be way cheaper than buying comparables here in the US. And they can drill to the exact depth and diameter for the findings.

Just for general FYI - You do pay more on import tax if you have them do the actual mounting, but depending on how expensive the pearls are - the hassle of DIY may not be worth the savings. My personal cutoff for DIY rather than having them do the work is when I’m spending over a thousand-ish, that’s worked out to about $50-$75 in import tax in my home state. But in this case - I would recommend having them do the work if they have the findings, if these pearls cost anywhere near $1000 something’s very wrong!!
 
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Cerulean

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I got a couple more pics from Takahashi last night. I asked them to put pair these two 10-11 mm pearls.
DF862018-F38F-49AE-8189-D5F22DF738A0.jpeg
And to compare the larger “new” pair to the 9-10 mm pair that I had originally liked.
72F6BB34-7B61-4A68-9E0B-017D9A52E134.jpeg C64B06F6-FC3D-49D2-BBEA-AC97790F8386.jpeg
@yssie I totally agree that smaller pair you honed in on is the prettiest match, but I think that they are just too small for the drop style earring I want to make.

Thoughts on the new 10-11 mm pair? To my eye shape match is ok and the color match is decent. I love shape match of the smaller pair, but the colors seem more disparate.

Those big ones are actually pretty yummy!
 

lovedogs

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I think the bigger pair is lovely
 

lulu_ma

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@yssie @Cerulean @lovedogs I’m glad you all like the larger pair bc that’s pair I was going to go for. Phew!

Yssie thanks for the tip about the findings! The pearls are no where near $1k so I would love to have Takahashi do the findings.

I have never seen Blue Ayokas irl, but I’m inclined to do a white metal. I was originally thinking to do a half ball stud in either matte platinum, matte 14 kt white gold or unplated white gold. Thoughts on the metal choice?

If I did want matte studs, would it be ok to get regular 14 kt white gold findings?
 
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yssie

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I love blue akoya with white gold. There’s some grey even in the strongest coloured blue akoya, I think “cool” white metals always suit them nicely. So I’m voting rhodium plated WG (or a really white palladium WG alloy that doesn’t need plating)… Platinum too, but platinum is just much harder to find without going custom…
 

yssie

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If I did want matte studs, would it be ok to get regular 14 kt white gold findings?
100% fine! In terms of visual mismatch - the visible metal is minuscule, no one would ever see a polish difference IRL - but you could also take a tiny bit of Brillo pad to the eye/jump ring if you wanted to! And in terms of wear and tear - earrings are such low-impact pieces, even if in fact you did have different metals or different alloys of the same family rubbing against each other it would still make no real world difference to usability or durability. For rings it’s a different story of course!
 

Cerulean

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I love blue akoya with white gold. There’s some grey even in the strongest coloured blue akoya, I think “cool” white metals always suit them nicely. So I’m voting rhodium plated WG (or a really white palladium WG alloy that doesn’t need plating)… Platinum too, but platinum is just much harder to find without going custom…

Definitely rhodium plated! I’ve gotten blue Akoyas with platinum and unplated 14k palladium WG (it’s a bit warm) and much prefer the platinum

Sorry my image is horrible bc of limited mobility but the studs are platinum and the dangles are 14k WG

2DE29640-C34E-4E2C-969E-91A1AE6B23AB.jpeg
 

lulu_ma

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@yssie @Cerulean thanks for pointers and for weighing ladies!

I've asked Takahashi for skin pics and for finding options.
 
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