Pearl stud earrings

[Mong]

Hi!

I’m interested in white freshwater pearl stud earrings in size 8-9 mm but I have some questions for the people who had bought from these online recommended vendors.
Is there a vendor better than the other between Pearl Paradise, Pearls of Joy and Pure Pearls ?

Is Freshadama from Pearl Paradise and Gem Grade from Pearls of Joy the same thing?
Which is better for earrings? Metallic white or Freshadama ?

TIA!

 

[amoline]

You will find that of the vendors you mention all are comparable quality, so go with the one who has the best sale running at the time - or, since they have great return policies, order from multiple and choose which you like the best.

Metallic and Freshadama are a slightly different type of pearl. They are both nice, but metallic freshwater seem to imitate the bright shine of akoya pearls a little better.

For freshwater pearls I can't think of any other vendors right off the top of my head, but those you mention definitely do offer a nice product. I also know at least in the case of Pearl Paradise you can contact them and ask for photos ahead of time as well and choose the one you like best.

 

[Begonia]

I have both freshadamas and metallic FWP. They’re quite a bit different - the metallics have a glassy look to them and the freshadamas have a softer glow. The overtones are different too with the freshadamas being pinkish and the metallics bluish. You’ll need to get glamour and regular pics of both methinks, to make your decision.

 

[cmd2014]

Metallic freshwater pearls also tend to be more egg shaped. Mine also have a distinctly yellow tinge to them compared to my white freshwater (nonmetallic) pearls.

My experience is that Pearls of Joy and Pearl Paradise tend to be comparable in terms of freshwater pearl quality. I have never bought freshwater pearls from Pure Pearls, but I have bought Tahitians from them and they were excellent (on par or slightly nicer than strands I bought from PP - but a little more expensive too, so there is that too).

 

[Mong]

Thank you !
I’m not in the US so I‘d rather not buy multiple and return.
I guess I’ll get the one which have the best Black Friday sale price.

I think I would like the more glassy look. But I don’t know if I would accept an egg shape when I want to get round studs...

Near round is not round at all then ?

 

[cmd2014]

Thank you !
I’m not in the US so I‘d rather not buy multiple and return.
I guess I’ll get the one which have the best Black Friday sale price.

I think I would like the more glassy look. But I don’t know if I would accept an egg shape when I want to get round studs...

Near round is not round at all then ?

It depends on whether you're getting earrings or a strand. I have some 12mm white metallic freshwater earrings from Kevin at Pearls of Joy and they are not noticeably off round. You can tell they are freshwater metallics rather than south sea pearls as the luster and colour are slightly different, but you would not call them egg shaped at all. If you are concerned, reach out to the vendors and get them to show you some pictures of the actual pairs that you might be able to buy. Most will happily do this for you.

Strands OTOH are mostly egg shaped, especially in the larger sizes for metallic freshwater pearls.

 

[amoline]

If very round is important to you, for "mind clean" or otherwise, then Akoya will be the type of pearl you're looking for. It is worth noting that even in the Freshadama-type category, pearls can be not perfectly round.

But, if both the luster and roundness are important to you, it may be worth saving for the AAA or even Hanadama grade akoya.

 

[Mong]

If it’s round to human eyes, it’s enough for me. But if it’s described as round and I get an egg shape, I would return it. I guess what is important to me is if it’s true to the description.

I’m not sure if I’m willing to pay 5 times the price of freshwater pearls for Hanadama grade Akoya pearls.

 

[Snowdrop13]

I’m not in the US either and have bought many items from Pearl Paradise. I have a large pair of white Freshadama studs, 9-10mm, I think. They have very clean surfaces and plenty of lustre (well, enough for me, I’m not exactly a pearl aficionado!). I’d say they are very slightly off round but it’s not noticeable on the ear, and I certainly wasn’t prepared to spend the amount needed for similar sized akoyas or even south sea pearls.

 

[Begonia]

My metallics are certainly round to the eye!

 

[pearlsngems]

My 3 pairs of metallic white fw studs from PP are round and highly lustrous.

Here is the 7.5-8mm pair, which is Freshadama grade.



Here are the 9-9.5mm and the 9.5-10.0mm pairs, both AAA grade.
The 9.5-10mm pair are a cooler white than the 9-9.5mm pair, which have a warmer and rosier tone.

9-9.5mm:


9.5-10mm


I like my metallic whites much more than my regular (non-metallic) Freshadama earrings, which are dangles. The luster of the metallic whites is really much better.
However, they are not as well matched as a pair of akoyas would be, or even gem grade FWP. I assume this is because there is a smaller pool of metallic white FWP to match pairs from. It doesn't bother me because the earrings are separated by the width of my head, LOL, but it might bother some folks.

 

[amoline]

@pearlsngems makes an excellent post and great pictures for comparison.

It really would boil down to preference. For me, I'm biased to akoya pearls and the top photo that was posted above would bother me with the off size/shape, even though it's slight. But even I admit that it would be a non issue when someone were wearing them because they aren't right next to each other.

Just for comparison, here are a couple of high quality akoya pearls (one is set -- my mother and I were trying to shop to match a pair to earrings she already had). Note that color is probably not very accurate, but these pearls are a slight pink-ish tone as opposed to the silver white above.



I think for me I'd put it as if you want something that is the "best no compromise" of round shape, ultra luster, and classic pearl look, Akoya is the way to go - but if you're wanting some great and beautiful earrings and you don't mind making a small compromise - perhaps luster isn't quite as sharp, or pearl isn't exactly dead on round, then some high quality freshwater pearls will certainly get you "out the door," so to speak, for lots less on your wallet.

 

[Mong]

Hi !
As feedback, I got a pair of 8-9 mm metallic white freshwater pearl stud from Pure Pearls with the Black Friday sale, so pretty!

 

[pearlsngems]

Ooh yes! Beautiful!
I have metallic white FW studs and love them.

 

[yssie]

@amoline And there you go again. You have some of the most incredible akoyas I've ever witnessed I mean, I do expect to see finger outlines in my quality akoyas, but I can honestly say that I've never seen pearls IRL that reflect nailbed outlines! Not at Miki, not anywhere.


Is it possible to contact you off the boards?

 

[amoline]

@amoline And there you go again. You have some of the most incredible akoyas I've ever witnessed I mean, I do expect to see finger outlines in my quality akoyas, but I can honestly say that I've never seen pearls IRL that reflect nailbed outlines! Not at Miki, not anywhere.


Is it possible to contact you off the boards?

Hey @yssie - thanks for the kind comments on the pearls. Sure, I have an LT account the same name as here. You can find some info there

 

[amoline]

Hey @yssie - just wanted to send a quick note and see if you saw the above message, as I didn't hear from you through LT and I know how finicky it can be. Let me know if there's anything I can do

(Sorry for the thread hijack!)

 

[yssie]

Thank you @amoline! I’m sorry - I’m just seeing this now, I’m not sure why I didn’t get an alert :-/ or maybe I did and I missed it. I’ll find you on LT tonight!

Sorry for the threadjack @Mong! Your new studs look lovely and sharp - I’m really amazed by the lustre on some freshwaters! How do you feel about the size? I’m personally most comfortable with studs in the 8-10mm range - they start getting heavy quickly after that!

 

[Mong]

Thank you @amoline! I’m sorry - I’m just seeing this now, I’m not sure why I didn’t get an alert :-/ or maybe I did and I missed it. I’ll find you on LT tonight!

Sorry for the threadjack @Mong! Your new studs look lovely and sharp - I’m really amazed by the lustre on some freshwaters! How do you feel about the size? I’m personally most comfortable with studs in the 8-10mm range - they start getting heavy quickly after that!

No problem !
I like the size, very wearable for any occasion ! It kind of make me want a pair of drop dangle earrings but in a much bigger size !