Detachable 2-in-1 earring project

[syndrome]

Hello! I’m working on a pair of akoya studs with detachable baroque earrings with Takahashi. It was inspired by @gelily. I am asking for removable drops so I can wear it as studs or dangles.
Specs: 8-8.5mm akoyas and 10mm baroques

I received one pair of pink akoyas and one pair of grey akoyas for my consideration. She says they are the best luster. To my newbie eye, they look good, but I would love feedback of all kinds! If they are great quality, I may even order both pairs! As for baroque pearls, I can’t tell if they are 2 or 3 different pairs for consideration

 

[seaurchin]

I like the top pic, the first row earrings on the right and the baroque pearls under them.

To me, those two pairs seem well matched in color. I also think the drop shape of the baroque pearls is the most pleasing for the detachable dangles.

 

[LilAlex]

Waiting for @yssie

 

[syndrome]

Thanks! I may end up just getting plain studs and scrap the dangles. I’m not 100 certain about the grayish color. I prefer a set of white/ivory pearls but its unavailable.

How do the pink akoyas rate purely as a stand-alone stud? I don’t have any other akoyas to compare too. I prefer cooler tones/less pink with blue tones.

 

[yssie]

The luster diff between the dangles and the studs would be visible IRL and would be difficult for me personally to get past… I’d probably do studs and dangles as two separate earrings to avoid that.

For a first pair of akoya I def suggest white over grey. My greys are lovely but my whites are my staples These whites are linked but they’re not going to look “pink” in-person - here’s a thread with a ton more discussion on that:

Natural White Akoya Studs - pic 1 Thoughts?

Spoke with PP - McKenna. Very nice and prompt with her reply. This is their only 8-8.5 Nat white Hanadama. Inventory is extremely low. This will be a gift for my DIL - her first real pearls. I'd like these to be nice but they do not have to be gem quality. Thoughts? Apologize for the large pic.

www.pricescope.com

This particular pair of whites is a nice pair. It’s not a perfect match. But you’ll either pay a lot more or wait a lot longer for a perfect match, so it’s up to you to decide how much you want to compromise! By “not a perfect match” I mean that when you’re wearing them no one will ever see anything other than “matched pair of very shiny white pearls”, but when you’ve got them side by side and you’re looking closely at them yourself, you’ll see a little bit of colour difference.

 

[syndrome]

The luster diff between the dangles and the studs would be visible IRL and would be difficult for me personally to get past… I’d probably do studs and dangles as two separate earrings to avoid that.

For a first pair of akoya I def suggest white over grey. My greys are lovely but my whites are my staples These whites are linked but they’re not going to look “pink” in-person - here’s a thread with a ton more discussion on that:

Natural White Akoya Studs - pic 1 Thoughts?

Spoke with PP - McKenna. Very nice and prompt with her reply. This is their only 8-8.5 Nat white Hanadama. Inventory is extremely low. This will be a gift for my DIL - her first real pearls. I'd like these to be nice but they do not have to be gem quality. Thoughts? Apologize for the large pic.

www.pricescope.com

This particular pair of whites is a nice pair. It’s not a perfect match. But you’ll either pay a lot more or wait a lot longer for a perfect match, so it’s up to you to decide how much you want to compromise! By “not a perfect match” I mean that when you’re wearing them no one will ever see anything other than “matched pair of very shiny white pearls”, but when you’ve got them side by side and you’re looking closely at them yourself, you’ll see a little bit of colour difference.

Thank you! I agree with your opinion—I’m going to order pink akoyas as a pair of studs. Should I ask for additional 8-8.5 to consider or are these as nice as this type of pearl gets from Takahashi? I’ve poured over the thread you linked as well as your GSS one with the in-depth tutorial. It’s been really illuminating! Thank you so much for all the knowledge you’ve shared!

 

[syndrome]

Also, in case anyone is looking for a 2-1 earring, here are the findings that Takahashi would use. The chain drop is 1cm.

 

[Sprinkles&Stones]

Oh my this is going to be so pretty!

 

[ittypea]

I cannot wait to see the final product! I'm still torn if I should get drop earrings!

 

[yssie]

Replying from @ittypea’s thread:

Budget is fluid and I wasn’t able to convey my thoughts very clearly in my earlier post. I’m now at the point where I’m deciding between Takahashi at xxx price point or Mikimoto AA-AAA at $XXXX price point. I’ve taken Mikimoto A out of contention. A fun first world problem to be sure!

If you have the budget for Miki’s top and you know you will appreciate owning the best that an oyster can produce, a Mikimoto Reserve strand is it!
On occasion another vendor might be able to match Mikimoto AAA/Reserve but even if they do happen to find a pair/strand that’s that good, which will likely take some time - pearls like that always cost a bundle (think maybe 5-15% discount from Miki but no more), and you’ll have to do your own in-person comparisons to guarantee that Mikimoto quality match.
Honestly for that cost difference I’d go ahead and pay extra for the brand cachet anyway. I’m convinced that no vendor will ever do better than Mikimoto’s best - I’m convinced that Mikimoto owns the top end akoya market.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Replying from @ittypea’s thread:


If you have the budget for Miki’s top and you know you will appreciate owning the best that an oyster can produce, a Mikimoto Reserve strand is it!
On occasion another vendor might be able to match Mikimoto AAA/Reserve but even if they do happen to find a pair/strand that’s that good, which will likely take some time - pearls like that always cost a bundle (think maybe 5-15% discount from Miki but no more), and you’ll have to do your own in-person comparisons to guarantee that Mikimoto quality match.
Honestly for that cost difference I’d go ahead and pay extra for the brand cachet anyway. I’m convinced that no vendor will ever do better than Mikimoto’s best - I’m convinced that Mikimoto owns the top end akoya market.

 

[syndrome]

Replying from @ittypea’s thread:


If you have the budget for Miki’s top and you know you will appreciate owning the best that an oyster can produce, a Mikimoto Reserve strand is it!
On occasion another vendor might be able to match Mikimoto AAA/Reserve but even if they do happen to find a pair/strand that’s that good, which will likely take some time - pearls like that always cost a bundle (think maybe 5-15% discount from Miki but no more), and you’ll have to do your own in-person comparisons to guarantee that Mikimoto quality match.
Honestly for that cost difference I’d go ahead and pay extra for the brand cachet anyway. I’m convinced that no vendor will ever do better than Mikimoto’s best - I’m convinced that Mikimoto owns the top end akoya market.

After a full day of debate, I decided to go forward with Takahashi for the earrings as planned. The discovery of affordable mikimoto A grade gave me pause until I learned more. Thank you!

I’ve asked for these pink 8-8.5s to be held for me.

I’m also ordering two kid-sized sets. Based on age, they recommended size 5mms. I’m drawn to the top left. The other 3 don’t look as nice to me but I need 2 sets. Thoughts?



I’m also considering white oval WSS for dangle earrings. Possibly on lever back or small hoop. I was offered these options. I like the color of the top row 10mm card I haven’t a clue what else to look for in WSS. I think the bottom one looks more lustrous but I don’t really have a strong feeling any which way. Feedback is greatly appreciateed.

 

[yssie]

How old are the kids? I think Japanese culture has an appreciation for daintiness and small-scale that we here in America really don’t! But a 5mm pearl is seriously tiny… If you’re buying anyway I would probably go a bit bigger, 7-7.5mm or so, for something they could keep wearing through their tweens and teens. I think they’ll outgrow 5mm pearls very quickly if they live in the US or Western Europe.

 

[yssie]

I like the white akoya for you more than the grey. The grey are beautiful but white is a classic staple, can’t go wrong. They will be beautiful!

The WSS… Well. I’ll be honest, I really don’t like any of them. The top 10mm pair is lackluster - literally - and the bottom 10mm pair has so much green, and no secondary… That’s not an uncommon challenge with WSS. But I think you’d have to be basically Oompa Loompa coloured for pearls with this much green to be flattering. The 11mm also has a green primary and no secondary to cut it, and additionally has a luster mismatch that will be visible in-person. Now is just not a good time to be looking for WSS outside of Australia, sky high pricing and mediocre quality. IMO you definitely want to buy WSS with a return option.
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/colourplay-in-white-south-seas.265319/

 

[syndrome]

I like the white akoya for you more than the grey. The grey are beautiful but white is a classic staple, can’t go wrong. They will be beautiful!

The WSS… Well. I’ll be honest, I really don’t like any of them. The top 10mm pair is lackluster - literally - and the bottom 10mm pair has so much green, and no secondary… That’s not an uncommon challenge with WSS. But I think you’d have to be basically Oompa Loompa coloured for pearls with this much green to be flattering. The 11mm also has a green primary and no secondary to cut it, and additionally has a luster mismatch that will be visible in-person. Now is just not a good time to be looking for WSS outside of Australia, sky high pricing and mediocre quality. IMO you definitely want to buy WSS with a return option.
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/colourplay-in-white-south-seas.265319/

 

[ittypea]

After a full day of debate, I decided to go forward with Takahashi for the earrings as planned. The discovery of affordable mikimoto A grade gave me pause until I learned more. Thank you!

I’ve asked for these pink 8-8.5s to be held for me.

I’m also ordering two kid-sized sets. Based on age, they recommended size 5mms. I’m drawn to the top left. The other 3 don’t look as nice to me but I need 2 sets. Thoughts?



I’m also considering white oval WSS for dangle earrings. Possibly on lever back or small hoop. I was offered these options. I like the color of the top row 10mm card I haven’t a clue what else to look for in WSS. I think the bottom one looks more lustrous but I don’t really have a strong feeling any which way. Feedback is greatly appreciateed.

Hey! I came over to see what you decided on!
I ended up deciding on a pair each of studs and dangles. I plan to mount the dangles on large-ish peg bail so I can put them on a detachable leverback like this one from Etsy



if you go to my original post, I have a picture of my 5mm stud on ear, for size reference

 

[syndrome]

Oh good to know! I’ve spent most of my time learning about akoyas. I was underwhelmed by the WSS but thought it was perhaps I hadn’t yet learned to appreciate the satin look of them.

Re: kid’s studs. So very true about the cultural preferences! I had originally asked for 6mm and they suggested smaller. I don’t plan on them wearing it to their teens so the 5mm should be fine, but I will ask for some 6.5-7 too. Thank you!

 

[syndrome]

Hey! I came over to see what you decided on!
I ended up deciding on a pair each of studs and dangles. I plan to mount the dangles on large-ish peg bail so I can put them on a detachable leverback like this one from Etsy



if you go to my original post, I have a picture of my 5mm stud on ear, for size reference

Thanks for sharing the findings! I’d love to see your finished earring project. The 5mms are also very cute on you! Also, I’d love to see your Mikimoto AA strand vs the Takahashi one once you get it. This pearl addiction went deep really fast!

 

[syndrome]

I like the white akoya for you more than the grey. The grey are beautiful but white is a classic staple, can’t go wrong. They will be beautiful!

The WSS… Well. I’ll be honest, I really don’t like any of them. The top 10mm pair is lackluster - literally - and the bottom 10mm pair has so much green, and no secondary… That’s not an uncommon challenge with WSS. But I think you’d have to be basically Oompa Loompa coloured for pearls with this much green to be flattering. The 11mm also has a green primary and no secondary to cut it, and additionally has a luster mismatch that will be visible in-person. Now is just not a good time to be looking for WSS outside of Australia, sky high pricing and mediocre quality. IMO you definitely want to buy WSS with a return option.
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/colourplay-in-white-south-seas.265319/

How old are the kids? I think Japanese culture has an appreciation for daintiness and small-scale that we here in America really don’t! But a 5mm pearl is seriously tiny… If you’re buying anyway I would probably go a bit bigger, 7-7.5mm or so, for something they could keep wearing through their tweens and teens. I think they’ll outgrow 5mm pearls very quickly if they live in the US or Western Europe.

I decided to ask for 6-6.5s. In terms of longevity, they’re so young that I’m only expecting 3-5 years of wear before moving on to longer posts. I think this should be a good size to get them up to the pre-teen years. The sales rep is so fast! She sent these cards back today and said she likes the middle pairs best. I think the left middle one is prettiest. The middle right is so much larger, but not matched in size and maybe the body tone is different? One is yellower? I’d love opinions so I can learn how to assess akoyas better. Before, I had no idea what a pretty pearl is but I hope I’m developing an eye for it!