Pendant help? Barbara, etc.

[Loves Vintage]

I think I am going to get a Barbara pendant from BGD. The diamond to be set is with BGD now. It's somewhere around .70 or .80, I don't recall exactly, and not perfectly round with a chip on the girdle. I love a milgrained bezel, though I've considered some other options, I don't really want to spend the $$$ for something custom and/or requiring more metal.

I'm guessing it's not possible to use a bead chain with the Barbara, because it wouldn't fit through the back. What about fixing the chain to the sides, but still keeping the barbara setting?

What about a chain like this? Would it work, i.e. fit through the back? More likely or less likely to flip? Would it make enough of a difference to me to even bother changing out the standard chain?

I guess my real question is this -- if I decide to the do a chain fixed to the pendant, is there any point to having the Barbara setting? Is there something else I can do to still wind up with a milgrain bezel? The diamond is not perfectly round, so I think stock settings are out.

 

[Rosebloom]

They offer the Barbara with a bead chain. A few PSers have gotten it - I think maybe Elisateach? I'll see if I can find a link for you. If I remember correctly there is an upcharge for it.

ETA: not Elisateach (she has a stunning rose gold one though!). I can't find the one I had in mind - it was yellow gold and gorgeous! Good luck!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Yes, other chains will fit through the back. And I assume you mean you are getting it with milgrain?

I love that chain from JBEG...wonder if that is old or whether they sell those?

 

[Mara]

pretty much everyone except one person who has had a barbara has told me it flips. i don't own one, so i'm not sure but it def deterred me because flipping pendants kinda pisses me off.

my fave is a basic barrel thin bezel, with or without milgrain for a 70 pointer, like the one in my avatar. with mickey mouse ears. that pendant hardly ever flips. i also have been wearing a standard rabbit ear 4 prong lately and it doesn't flip either.

chains don't dictate when a pendant flips, i think some vendors will say it has to do with how the ears or chain is attached to the pendant itself, how tipped fwd the pendant is, etc etc. lots of diff vendors say diff things. i only know what has worked for me.

love that JBEG pendant chain btw.

 

[atp223]

I have the Barbara pendant from bgd, and for me it does not flip. I was just trying on a Majorca pearl pendant necklace when I was in Spain last week that was fixed to the chain on each side like that, and I found that one to be bothersome because it kept falling to one side or the other. I have also heard a lot of people say the Barbara flips, but I have definitely not had that experience. Good luck!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Rosebloom, Was it this one? https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/whats-rose-and-white-and-sparkly-all-over.156641/ Thanks so much for posting about this. I searched Barbara and bead, and the thread came right up!

DS, You were right. It will fit through, per the photos in the above thread! I thought I had read in another thread that it was difficult to get other chains through the setting. I must have misunderstood what the posters were talking about? Maybe because the end of the chain is intentionally too larger, and it (the end) won't fit through easily? And, yes, I love milgrain. Even though there is a choice btw milgrain vs. not, I just see the milgrain and ignore the non-milgrain/regular. Oh, and I do think the jbeg chain can be sourced. I had emailed it to Lesley, and she said they would have to order it. I didn't ask her specifically how she thought it would work with the Barbara setting. I guess my concern was that because the links are long, that they would somehow get caught up in the setting or cause some other imbalance, etc.

Mara, What is a basic barrel thin bezel? Is that a stock setting? Wondering if I should do that with milgrain? Does it matter if diamond is not perfectly round? You had a bezel not too long ago on DB. I actually emailed you to ask you about THAT setting, way back when, so happy to see your response here. I assumed you never got my msg! I'm going to find another photo, with chain fixed to sides and will post that.

atp, Thanks for your response. That's interesting. I wonder why the pearl was so flippy. How was it set?

 

[Enerchi]

I haven't had any big deal issues with my Barbara flipping too much. I mean, yes, it will flip because I've moved or turned or did something to get it out of position, but it rights itself almost instantly, so I don't find its an issue on mine. I never find myself (or others!) looking at the backside of the diamond - its usually face forward. I just went with the plain bezel and asked for a slightly longer chain than 16". Mine slides a bit but nothing like other necklaces where I'd be pulling the clasp back to behind my neck every 1/2 hour!

I love mine just as it is and have worn it daily since I got it, end of June this year.

 

[athenaworth]

I have the Barbara with milgrain and a beaded chain. [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-new-oec-milgrained-barbara-pendant.172645/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-new-oec-milgrained-barbara-pendant.172645/[/URL] It flips quite a bit. I don't know what would've changed that. But I can tell you that you can buy your own chain on ebay and send it to BGD and save yourself a little extra $$. I've used this ebay vendor and I've had nothing but amazing experiences with them. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Solid-Diamond-Cut-Bead-Chain-Necklace-14K-White-Gold-/330513003274?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item4cf41c330a

 

[Joolz]

I just got my Barbara pendant on Wednesday, so I have only been wearing it for 2 days, but I haven't noticed any flipping. I also thought it would be difficult to remove the pendant from the chain but it was "backwards" for me (I like the clasp on the left side) and it was pretty easy to switch with a little patience.

 

[Dreamer_D]

LV for a stone that out-of-round or wonky in any way, I personally like a prong set bezel over a true bezl where the wonk will either lead to too much o the stone covered or else a wonky bezel...

I am obsessed with this style of bezel for an old cut:

http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Earrings/230ctw-est-Antique-Diamond/16946857_khCQHP#!i=1281234131&k=7fmt8Wx

 

[Loves Vintage]

LV for a stone that out-of-round or wonky in any way, I personally like a prong set bezel over a true bezl where the wonk will either lead to too much o the stone covered or else a wonky bezel...

I am obsessed with this style of bezel for an old cut:

http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Earrings/230ctw-est-Antique-Diamond/16946857_khCQHP#!i=1281234131&k=7fmt8Wx

Dreamer, I've never heard of a prong-set bezel til now. Since you might know a little about the stone in question, do you think a standard barrel thin bezel (still not sure what that is, like the one below w/o the opening, maybe?) would wind up wonky? In macro or to the naked eye?

 

[Dreamer_D]

Do you want a round bezel?

Your stone has -- to me -- a really lovely slight cushion shape. If I were setting it I would NOT want to fit that lovely outline into a round bezel. To fit your stone into a round bezel would mean that they would need to make the bezel quite thick so that it covered the "corners" and thus made the visible portion of the stone look round to the eye. not appealing to me personally!

Or you can make a cushion shaped bezel like this one that would show more of the stone. I think that BGD could easilt modify a simple beze lto try and make the stone look more cushiony rather than making it looks round:

http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Pendants-and-Necklaces/66ct-Antique-Cushion-Cut/23883448_rkdhkQ#!i=1936911060&k=db9W9w6

Either way you are looking at a custom job to some extent, and if that is the case, for *me* I would rather set is so that the lovely cushion shape can be seen, in a bezel like the first I linked (the JBEG earring) that showcases the stone, adds the heft of the bezel and has milgrain, and protects it to boot. I have seen similar settings with more box-liek or square prong set bezels too:

http://jewelsbyericagrace.smugmug.com/Jewelry/Earrings/82ct-Old-European-Cut-Bezel/23581770_P6P7GR#!i=1911257487&k=FzrrGSf

 

[Loves Vintage]

Ah, no, I guess I don't want a round bezel! So, I guess with the Barbara, it is custom, but wire (?), and therefore, more affordable. Though everything you are posting is lovely, I had inquired about some other settings that would require a CAD (and I think yours would too), which I am not interested in paying for. So, unless I'm missing something, I think I'm back to the Barbara . . . .

 

[Dreamer_D]

Maybe send Brian a good picture of the stone showing its shape ( I can send you one if you don't have one handy) and then ask him if he can do the Barbara where the bezel follows the outline of the stone for a *slight* cushion shape, but also tries to "fix" any asymmetry in the outline?

 

[Loves Vintage]

Thanks, Dreamer. They actually have the stone. I will ask Lesley the question, as you suggest. Thanks for your help!

 

[Sparklelu]

Yeah!! I'm pretty sure but could be wrong, each setting is made for your diamond so it is semi custom? The milgrain detail from BGD is beautiful. I would go for it.
I believe a PSer had the chain done in a bead chain. If they make it with the bead chain then they will make sure it fits.
I have the standard rose gold chain in 18 " and it hardly flips. I think where it hits your throat makes the flipping difference.
I have considered changing the chain on mine as it gets strange knots up near the clasp! Plus I really like the bead look!