Pearl Wedding Jewelry?

[nclrgirl]

I''d like to get a nice strand of pearls to wear on my wedding day and I figured it would be a nice thing to have to wear to the office as well, so I would like to buy something nice. Does anyone have any knowledge about pearls. If so, where did you learn how to pick them out and how much to expect to pay?

Thanks!

 

[Pandora II]

I have two sets of Mikimoto's - both are from the 1940's.

I bought them on the UK Ebay for $206 and $140 and had them restrung at Miki's in New Bond Street for $40 each. They valued and dated them for me at $2,500 and $2,000 respectively for replacement, so I was pretty happy. They also gave me some new boxes for them for free.

I would really recommend having a look there.

 

[nclrgirl]

Thank you Pandora!

 

[Elmorton]

I was wondering when someone would finally take advantage of the pearl exception - I have a lot of these questions about pearls, too. I do understand that there are some parameters when answering questions:

2. No discussion where pearls were purchased or can be purchased.

3. No outside links to pearls in any form.

But I think your questions can be answered without violating these rules.

My wedding pearl necklace was started by my godparents started for me when I was very young. The majority of my pearls are cultured (the oyster is implanted with a synthetic bead and then creates the nacre over it), but there are a few pearls in the strand that my grandpa brought back from WWII in the south pacific (I can''t even identify which those are let alone know anything about them). With those pearls as the exception, my mom purchased the pearls by the inch as I grew up, which was pretty expensive (a hundred to two by the inch depending on the mm - the smaller mms were less expensive and the larger were more expensive). It was also really difficult to match all of those colors and mms - my pearls are mostly ivory in color, but a few have a little more pink or a little more white depending on what mood I was in when I was in my early teens --oops. Purchasing an entire strand is definitely more cost-effective and you''ll have better matched pearls.

Freshwater pearls, from my understanding, are not cultured. However, cultured Akoya pearls tend to outshine them in terms of luster which makes Akoya more valuable. Also, Akoya are easier to match and are slightly better rounded. The more rounded the pearl, the more valuable - that''s why those big baroque pearls (while GORGEOUS) are often similar in price to a smaller strand. Also, from what I''ve been reading, it seems that Akoya pearls are typically cultured.

South sea pearls tend to be much larger than Akoya pearls. Tahitian tend to be darker, "black." Both are also very high-end.

That''s sortof the end of my knowledge without mentioning specific manufacturers. Don''t be afraid of purchasing cultured pearls - they''re not exactly synthetic. Do figure out what colors you want (I believe white is the most prized) and look for pearls with a pretty luster.

OH! I do know a bit more -

When you do find a strand you like, make sure they''re the last thing you put on and the first thing you take off. Pearls are like diamonds'' opposites - they keep their luster and shine by sortof feeding of our skin''s natural oils. To keep your pearls nice, you should wear them often. When you purchase pearls, they should be given to you in some sort of silky box to contain their oils (mine are in a leather envelope that''s lined with silky material and then folds that got over the necklace). It''s important that they breathe. To clean pearls, take a barely moist wash cloth and gently run your necklace across it. You shouldn''t have to clean them, though. I was sooo sweaty after my wedding reception (dancing!) and was sure that my pearls needed to be cleaned. I did the moist wash cloth thing, but that was after I had 2 jewelers say that I shouldn''t do anything to them (I have a problem with listening..I do think they look nicer now though). Anything abrasive (perfume, hairspray) is very bad for pearls and should be avoided.

Hope that''s a start!!

 

[surfgirl]

Oh boy! I was wondering what someone would ask about pearls, my other love, besides antique diamonds...

What I love about pearls is that they're the only true gem that comes from the sea and not the earth, and that they're basically the result of irritating a live oyster. There's something so natural and organic and warm about pearls. I have one really large South Seas pearl, about 15mm or so, unset, I cant bear to drill a hole in it so I just hold it once and a while and marvel and it's beauty.

To me, cultured pearls ARE "real" gems as natural pearls are extremely rare nowadays, mainly because oceans are overfished, dynamited, etc. and the traditional reefs where natural pearls used to come from just aren't conducive to growing pearls anymore. Plus, as far as I'm concerned, anything that people will pay tens of thousands of dollars for, and in some cases hundreds of thousands for, are "real" to me!

Mikimotos are the finest pearls out there today - massive kudos to you Pandora for scoring TWO strands at rockbottom prices!. Tiffany's also has gorgeous strands though I dont know where they get them from. Freshwater can be cultured too but usually aren't, and they are also farmed and rarely "natural". The one caveat to cultured pearls being wholly "natural" is when a pearl creates a deformed blob of pure nacre, which is called a "keishi" and keishi's are more expensive because although they are very mishapen, often looking like crazy teeth, they are 100% nacre all the way through, like a natural pearl.

South Seas pearls are large white or golden pearls, and Tahitian's are large black/silver pearls. The dark/silver/gold colors are created by different types of lining inside different oyster species, and South Seas and Tahitians come from shells that are often the size of dinner plates. I knew a guy in Indonesia who had connections to a South Seas pearl farmer and they introduced me once and this guy literally poured a ziploc baggie filled with pearls the size of marbles into my hand. It was amazing...

Anyway, I wore large White South Seas baroque drops for my wedding (they attach to my diamond studs). I wanted to wear my Tahitian strand but it didn't go with my dress, sadly. I think there's nothing more classic and bridal than pearls and diamonds one's wedding day. For a bride, I'd recommend a white strand, of the highest lustre you can afford (that's the surface shine) and the best orientation (that's where you can see a smaller dark round circle on the pearl and it's uniform and very round. The better the lustre, the clearer and more sharp the edge of the orientation shadow is...if that makes sense. The strand should also match in color and there shouldn't be any obviously different colored/hued pearls on a good quality strand. They should be strung on pure silk cord as that is the strongest material to string pearls on. Mikimoto grades pearls with letter grades like A, AA, AAA and also adds a "+" if they are superior within each grade. Mikomoto also, like DeBeers, has a monopoly on round Akoya pearls (the smaller sizes, usually less than 9mm in diameter) and buys up entire harvests so it's difficult to find places that have really top quality pearls but look around and I"m sure you can find them. Oh, and I personally prefer semi-baroque pearls, slightly off round, teardrop and/or slightly mishapen. To my eye, they look more real than round strands since there are so many fake round strands out there. In fact, I've had a standing order at my super secret pearl vendor in Bangkok for two years, waiting for a specific strand of baroques that I'm waiting to find! It's a game, much like finding the right diamond...

As for color, you should consider what color your skin tone is and what color your wedding dress is. Most women of all skin tones look good in white with a rose undertone (a slightly pink hue). There are also white with silver undertones (which look slightly silvery white) and those look best on olive skin, IMO. Then there's cream undertones, which look good on very dark skin and very pink hued skin, again IMO.

Oh, and what Elmorton said about care of pearls is right on. In fact, you should only clean them with a dry clean cloth because dampness can stretch the silk thread. And the more you wear pearls, the better to enhance their lustre because they shine up and dont dry out by rubbing against your natural skin oils.

What else can I tell you?

 

[JulieN]

If you are looking for white, <10 mm, freshwater are cultured...

If I had the money, I'd go for Akoyas, but the price difference is striking.

My favorite trick for picking out a strand is to pick out a few strands, and lay them in the box with the dividers. Then, turn the box 90 degrees, so the the strands are perpendicular to you, like this: |||| Then, lift the box to eyeball level. This really helps you distinguish minute differences between strands.

 

[Pandora II]

Couple of things to add...

In the West most graduated pearls are strung with a knot between each pearl. In Japan, only the 6 end pearls are knotted and the rest are loose - they do seem to sit a lot better than any of the ones I had before that were all knotted.

I think graduated pearls tend to look better if you are wearing a single row.

DON'T spray perfume or hairspray anywhere near them - put your pearls on last of all.

I adore pearls - I wear mine nearly everyday and they seem to make your skin glow in a way other gems don't. I would love to get some of the southsea ones eventually. I was happy to spend quite a lot on a strand, and was super-lucky to get mine. The second strand, the seller didn't realise what they were - but posted a photo of the back of the clasp which had the logo on. Yay!

I spent so much time oggling the Miki stand at the Vicenza Gold Fair a few years ago, that they gave me a DVD on pearl production to make me go away!

 

[sumbride]

I love pearls too! I''m a June baby so I''m lucky to call them my birthstone. I don''t think you can get more bridal than pearls. I DID have to clean the ones I wore at my wedding because it was so hot my makeup melted and there was a makeup ring on each pearl! I spent some quality time with a soft microfiber cloth and some water and they cleaned up easily, even if it was a bit painstaking.

 

[Dreamgirl]

I have the Elsa Peretti Pearls by the Yard from Tiffany. They have a pink tone to them with extreme luster and luminescence and appear to be flawless. (gorgeous) (cultured freshwater pearls, pearl diameter 5-5.5mm on a 16" 925 sterling silver chain.) I absolutely love it! I hope to wear them on my future wedding day as my "something old" from the boyfriend. Goes well with office attire. They have several sizes with various price ranges. I posted a photo of it at the bottom of this thread link: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/jewelry-help.80083/

You can also check them out on the Tiffany website.

 

[nclrgirl]

Wow! Thanks for all of the feedback! So another question for you all...my wedding dress is strapless. What length of pearls would you wear? I was considering a 16" graduated pearl necklace. Would that leave too much bare skin? Should I consider a double or triple strand, or a longer strand?

 

[Pandora II]

I like the 16" as it comes to just below your collarbone which is a flattering length.

With a strapless dress, you might want to try a 17" if you don''t like the idea of acres of unadorned flesh!

I have a low cut dress, so I am attaching the sphene pendant FI is giving me for a wedding present to the pearls just so it''s a bit longer.

 

[Dreamgirl]

Date: 4/17/2008 6:44:26 PM
Author: Pandora II
I like the 16'' as it comes to just below your collarbone which is a flattering length.
With a strapless dress, you might want to try a 17'' if you don''t like the idea of acres of unadorned flesh!

I agree. Also, I would go single or double strand......

 

[Elmorton]

Pandora, I didn''t know that about the different knotting styles! I went back and looked at the photos in the Show Me Your Pearls thread, and it''s kinda cool to see

My mom and I both wore longer pearls for our weddings - she wore my great-grandmother''s double strand that was about 18 in.. I love the look a lot, but I''m biased