First Pearls: Pearl Source vs PearlsOnly?

[eico323]

Hello! I’m a pearl newbie and looking to get a set for my graduation at the end of March. I’m 24, and very petite. I’m thinking of going for white freshwater pearls as I’m looking for longevity, 18”, and maybe 7.5-8mm. I’m wanting the best quality I can buy, although my budget is around £500-600.

My issue is that I’m UK based, and the extra charges of shipping and customs will add up. I found a 7.5-8mm Freshadama set on Pearl Paradise for roughly $760 (£560 give or take) but I’m not sure I can justify what I imagine will be at least an additional £100 for shipping and customs, and possible bank charges for paying in USD. If it wasn’t for this, I’d buy these pearls.

I found a set on Pearl Source which (after all my adjustments) is £553 for 8-8.5mm pearls which are said to be AAAA quality. I know that the grading scale technically does not go this far and I believe PS has some negative reviews on here.

I also found a set on Pearls Only which is £456 for AAAA pearls, 7-8mm. I haven’t seen many mentions of this site on here and I’m a bit concerned about the 1mm range in size as I’m not sure if this is common. Also, I know it’s a bit shallow, but the whole website seems a bit less professional and polished.

I’m a bit torn over what to do. My questions are: has anyone ordered off PS or PO before, and if you were me which pearls would you buy?

Thank you!

 

[pearlsngems]

I have never bought from either, but back in 2007 when I bought my Freshadama strand from Pearl Paradise, they came in full-millimeter range. 7-8mm, 8-9mm etc.

I got a 7-8mm strand (only because 8-9mm were over my budget). The strand looked just a bit too small on me. With a full mm range, too many of the pearls are in the lower half of the range. If I were you, I'd aim for 7.5-8.0mm instead, whoever you buy from.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Congratulation on your upcoming graduation
Well done
That's fabulous you are going to get pearls for yourself to celebrate your achievements

can someone in your family perhaps shout you the shipping as a graduation gift ?

 

[pearlsngems]

Another thought: there are often sales, 20% off and sometimes more. If you buy during a sale it will help compensate for the shipping charges, Customs etc. Get on their email list so you get alerts for the sales.

 

[LHethrington]

Hello! I’m a pearl newbie and looking to get a set for my graduation at the end of March. I’m 24, and very petite. I’m thinking of going for white freshwater pearls as I’m looking for longevity, 18”, and maybe 7.5-8mm. I’m wanting the best quality I can buy, although my budget is around £500-600.

My issue is that I’m UK based, and the extra charges of shipping and customs will add up. I found a 7.5-8mm Freshadama set on Pearl Paradise for roughly $760 (£560 give or take) but I’m not sure I can justify what I imagine will be at least an additional £100 for shipping and customs, and possible bank charges for paying in USD. If it wasn’t for this, I’d buy these pearls.

I found a set on Pearl Source which (after all my adjustments) is £553 for 8-8.5mm pearls which are said to be AAAA quality. I know that the grading scale technically does not go this far and I believe PS has some negative reviews on here.

I also found a set on Pearls Only which is £456 for AAAA pearls, 7-8mm. I haven’t seen many mentions of this site on here and I’m a bit concerned about the 1mm range in size as I’m not sure if this is common. Also, I know it’s a bit shallow, but the whole website seems a bit less professional and polished.

I’m a bit torn over what to do. My questions are: has anyone ordered off PS or PO before, and if you were me which pearls would you buy?

Thank you!

Have you checked out Pearlescence - from England ? I got a custom off-website order of a gorgeous necklace and earrings set for a wedding from them a year or so ago.

 

[Snowdrop13]

Definitely look out for sales, I know PP has them regularly and if you can get 20% off that covers much of the extra charges. I’ve bought from them multiple times from the U.K. as I believe their quality for freshwaters is the best.

I don’t want to second guess your decision making but are you sure you would wear a strand of white pearls? I know these are a classic but my first pearl purchase was a similar one and I’ve found that I just don’t wear them. Make sure to have a look around at this forum to see what’s available in the pearl world. There is a lot of fun to be had!

 

[eico323]

Thank you for your replies and suggestions! They’re much appreciated.

The prices I have are already including sales. I actually went ahead and ordered from PP last night and then cancelled this morning. I realised that if I wanted to return the pearls I would have spent ~£100 in charges and shipping, which would be a waste of money in terms of having absolutely nothing to show for it. Aaaaargh!

I might look at Pearlescence again. I was previously put off by the lack of sets on there (excluding pendants) and by many of the clasps being gold. I feel it’s potentially less competitive as a custom set order with silver clasps like that would likely set me back more. Money isn’t the only factor, of course, but I’m just wanting to get the best I can for the budget I have.

Re colour, I’m definitely leaning towards classic white purely because I never wear warm tones like peaches/golds/champagnes. I’m so pale that I struggle to buy makeup, and my hair is a very dark brown, so lavenders might make me look paler. All of my jewellery is silver because gold and rose gold look awful on me. My ideal pearls would be blue, but that moves me into Akoya/Tahitian. Ideally I’m looking for something classic and durable as I don’t want to go too bold for a graduation gift.

I’m a little stumped and a bit stressed. I’m tempted by TPS purely to see what the pearls look like, as I won’t lose money if I return those.

 

[dk168]

I am in UK and have been importing a lot of products from abroad, including jewellery since I discovered internet shopping back in the mid to late 90s.

Never bought anything from Pearls Only or Pearl Source, however, I have been eyeing a pendant in Pearl Source for years (it still has not been sold, and I may make an offer later this year).

Most of my better pearls came from PP, POJ and TPO which is sadly no longer trading.

There are a copy of vendors on Etsy that I follow, one is called Roley that is based in Hong Kong, and I have come across them at jewellery shows when I visited HK between 2009 and 2015.

When importing, I would normally budget for at least 25% import duties and custom charges. For example, Royal Mail would add 15 GBP for custom clearance on top of import duties per transaction.

IMHO, importing from abroad, even with the extra charges on top, offers much better choices and quality when it comes to jewellery, pearls included.

It should noted that I treat buying from abroad as one-way transactions, as the return process is too laborious to be worth my while, as I would not be able to reclaim import and custom charges, and often have to fork out postage myself.

DK

 

[pearlsngems]

Another point: I find that white FWP are generally a warmer shade of white than my akoyas and SSP.

Be sure to communicate with your vendor to request they select a cool shade of white for you. You can even ask for photos of several strands so you can choose the one you prefer.

 

[mayaINaU]

Hello! I’m a pearl newbie and looking to get a set for my graduation at the end of March. I’m 24, and very petite. I’m thinking of going for white freshwater pearls as I’m looking for longevity, 18”, and maybe 7.5-8mm. I’m wanting the best quality I can buy, although my budget is around £500-600.

My issue is that I’m UK based, and the extra charges of shipping and customs will add up. I found a 7.5-8mm Freshadama set on Pearl Paradise for roughly $760 (£560 give or take) but I’m not sure I can justify what I imagine will be at least an additional £100 for shipping and customs, and possible bank charges for paying in USD. If it wasn’t for this, I’d buy these pearls.

I found a set on Pearl Source which (after all my adjustments) is £553 for 8-8.5mm pearls which are said to be AAAA quality. I know that the grading scale technically does not go this far and I believe PS has some negative reviews on here.

I also found a set on Pearls Only which is £456 for AAAA pearls, 7-8mm. I haven’t seen many mentions of this site on here and I’m a bit concerned about the 1mm range in size as I’m not sure if this is common. Also, I know it’s a bit shallow, but the whole website seems a bit less professional and polished.

I’m a bit torn over what to do. My questions are: has anyone ordered off PS or PO before, and if you were me which pearls would you buy?

Thank you!

Just wanted to suggest that you also look at Moline Pearls. I haven’t bought from him but would definitely consider it if/when making a pearls purchase. He’s been well reviewed by others here. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/molinepearls/?hl=en

Home | Moline Pearls

Moline Pearls specializes in curating some of the finest, bespoke pearls available on the market. Andrew Moline, Moline Pearls

www.molinepdg.com

 

[yssie]

Andrew has gorgeous akoya! But he doesn’t do FW as far as I’m aware? It’s not a specialty, at any rate.

My understanding is that Pearl Paradise gets early dibs on gem FW at the shows and such. They're also just a fantastic vendor whose top priority really is making their customers happy.

If you buy from Pearlescence - ask for a few photos of the piece you'll get, from different angles and in various lighting environments. QC is a known concern with this vendor.

Don’t buy FW from The Pearl Source. I bought a “Gem FW AAAA” bracelet to see what their FW were like. They're lustrous, but they're poorly matched, clearly potato shaped (nowhere close to genuinely spherical), surfaces have some pitting, and the green overtone is overwhelming. Massive overpricing for thoroughly mediocre FW, in my opinion. Photos of my bracelet below (ignore the dry skin, OMG!)

 

[Pearlescence]

If your ideal pearls are blue..get blue pearls. While round perfect blue akoyas are incredibly rare now (there are mostly silver greys with a blush of blue) there are still baroque blue akoyas about in larger sizes. Blue Akoyas flatter most skin shades as the blue really stands out against all permutations of yellow - and we all have yellow in our skin.

I'd also suggest getting a cheap strand of fake whites (even Tesco has them) to see if you are likely to wear them for more than the couple of hours of your graduation ceremony.

 

[LHethrington]

Here's the gorge custom set i had made by pearlescence. Huge shiny pearl necklace with matching earrings - i wear them loads

 

[diamondyes]

Here's the gorge custom set i had made by pearlescence. Huge shiny pearl necklace with matching earrings - i wear them loads

That’s a really beautiful set!

 

[Cinders]

Congratulations on your upcoming graduation! I've only ever ordered freshwater pearls from Pearl Paradise. I did not even buy their best categories & I can say without hesitation that I've never even considered a return. For classic white pearls, they are hard to beat.

I know baroque pearls are fun & blue might be a great option for you but if you are even a little bit traditional I would not choose anything other than white pearls for such a gift. (Given what you've said about your coloring, preferences, etc.)

Though classic white strands of pearls are not particularly popular right now, there's a reason they are called classic. They are really so useful! Have a job interview? Pearls. (Corporate/business/office jobs.) Really nice dinner/event/gathering? Pearls. Important meeting for work? Pearls. Tickets to the ballet/symphony/opera? Pearls. Just want to dress up a sweater & jeans? Pearls. IMO, white pearls can be worn anywhere & anytime.

I used to wear mine with whatever I wanted.* Even if it was just to the grocery store. But, I don't feel that classic white pearls are at all stuffy or boring.

I only wish I had pearls from a grandmother or great-grandmother. Alas, that is not the case.

My collection of pearls did not stop with the classic white strand. I have ropes of black, white, pink, and lavender freshwaters. A triple-strand of white pearls. (Can't remember what type because I haven't been able to wear them for so long, but probably freshwater.) Most from Pearl Paradise. I also have several pairs of pearl studs, single pearl pendants, a couple bracelets, and some drops for sapphire studs.

I now have gorgeous loose blue/silver/gray/pastel-ish pearls from Cees that I'm hoarding & I have more earrings & loose pearls coming from Takahashi.

Forgive me for the dissertation, but I love pearls & gemstones & all fun, gorgeous things!

Best of luck to you with this fun purchase!! Keep in mind that though you may have to pay customs, the best deal for the best pearls may still be via an international outlet. (But, don't stress too much over the purchase because it should be relatively easy to find a fabulous freshwater strand in your budget.)



(*Due to hyper-sensitivity it is now difficult for me to wear necklaces.)