I went to Pearl Paradise today, and Freshadama''s really are perfect!

[Indylady]

Hey everyone! I visited Pearl Paradise today, and their Freshadamas really are as gorgeous as everyone says! My parents bought me a 16'''' white Freshadama strand for my birthday, and a pair of freshwater studs for my little 2 year old cousin.

 

[diamondgirl4382]

I agree! I just got a pair of freshadama studs and they are definitely beautiful. I''m saving up for a strand--yours is gorgeous!

 

[Kelli]

I agree too. I bought a Freshadama bracelet and earrings and I LOVE them!!!

 

[Indylady]

Another picture.

 

[Indylady]

One more.

 

[Indylady]

I agree! Before I walked in, I was still torn between akoyas and the Freshadamas, but after seeing them side by side, I really honestly could not pick the Freshadamas apart from the AAA akoyas that were way more expensive. I have scoured every single local jeweler and mall store in town, and checked out everything from Zales to Carlyle and Co, and these Freshadamas really are worth it.

 

[elle_chris]

gorgeous strand now where are the neck shots?!

I''ve never seen a freshadama or AAA freshwater strand in person. I have seen top of the line Akoya''s though and reason i love them is their metallic luster. Freshadama''s look the same??

 

[cellentani]

You people who get to saunter in to Pearl Paradise in person are driving me crazy!!! But I guess I can simmer down enough to say that your pearls are very lovely, szh07 - they look perfect. But I''m with the others about needing a neckshot!

 

[Indylady]

Hehe I''m actually not from LA, but I was in town for a couple days so I took advantage of the opportunity to check out Pearl Paradise in person! The office is really very pretty and so organized, and everyone that works there is so sweet (also very chic and a little edgy, think tattoos and gauges). They have a ton of colored stones and diamond magazines...where do you even get a subscription? Because I would love to get magazines like that delivered to my house.

My dad is borrowing my camera, but I can post the neckshots on Friday.

I should have thought about it when I was taking pics in the first place!

Elli_chris, I feel the same exact way. I love the metallic lustre of akoyas, and I do think that Freshadamas are very very comparable.

My entirely honest, and incredibly picky and discerning thoughts: I have seen pearls that I found to be more beautiful- a pair of 5mm AAA Mikimoto studs. They were absolutely amazing, with a glossy lustre that was almost out of this world. But, I really think that was just about the only thing that I''ve seen better, and it was a specific pair of studs (ie, I''m not saying that all Mikimoto 5mm studs are amazing, just this particular pair that I saw at a store). I''ve seen other strands of Miki''s, larger studs, etc, and I do find them to be incredibly comparable to Freshadamas but I have not placed them side by side at a store (I think Skippy may have though). I think the ''reason'' why this set of studs might have stuck out to me is because it is much easier to match two really amazing pearls than put together a whole strand of them.

The lustre on the Freshadamas really is awesome, mirror-like, and just like their AAA akoyas. I''ve always been able to tell the difference between freshwaters and akoyas without much hesitation at most any store, but I couldn''t at Pearl Paradise. I didn''t know whether to be embarrassed or amazed. I didn''t ask them to pull out a strand of Hanadamas or AAA''s (I seriously should have though!) so I''m not sure how they compare to those. I really must say that Freshadamas are the best value that I have seen anywhere, and I have hunted and price-comparison shopped to no end; I really do think I am very discerning when it comes to pearls, and I think they are amazing. I think the average person would have no idea whether you spend $900 on a strand or $200, and these $200 Freshadamas are just as gorgeous as $900 akoyas.

Sometimes, in A or AA grade akoyas, if you look close you can see the ''layers'' of nacre...if you can imagine painting a nail kind of imperfectly, so that when it dries, you can see the different ''coats'' of polish. I kind of like that look, but it is considered an imperfection. There aren''t any imperfections like that on the Freshadamas because I think that kind of imperfection just isn''t common on Freshwaters at all, so that''s an added bonus.

Eek! Sorry this has been so long; I just wanted to be as clear and discriminating as possible. I''m a college student, and therefore don''t have a lot of money, so I read reviews for anything before I buy, and I especially love detailed reviews and seeing other people''s pictures before I plunk down serious cash anywhere. Its a long process, and I do ask a lot of questions, but I almost always end up very happy with the things I''ve bought and I make sure to call back and thank sales associates for helping me.

And of course thank you Diamondgirl, Kelli, Elle_chris, and Cellentani!

 

[D&T]

Ooooh lovely necklace.

 

[DiaDiva]

Gorgeous! What a great buy. We need neck shots!!!!

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Really lovely!!

cheers--Sharon