Tin Cup-Honora or The Pearl Outlet?

[Gayletmom]

I am a pearl lover but have never felt quite confident enough to make the big investment in a pricey strand. I''ve done a little research on pearls and am learning alot but I''m not yet at the "I know the good ones when I see them stage".

I have recently fallen for a modern look with a couple of layered strands of different pearls. I thought I might start with a longish (24 in?) strand of tin cup pearls as a not too pricey but attractive look. I could wear them long or double them up. My local jeweler has some by Honora that run about $225 and I have noticed that there are some on TPO site.

Any thoughts on a quality comparison? Does anyone know if the pearls are similarly beautiful or if one brand looks better than the other?

Also, the Honoras are shown with a sterling chain. How do you keep the sterling polished without damaging the pearls?

Many thanks!

 

[Indylady]

I would probably go for TPO. I do have some tin-cup style necklaces, and so far I haven''t had to do anything to clean them, but when the time comes I''ll probably use a silver polishing cloth to polish the chain.

 

[Gayletmom]

Thanks for the info. It''s good to know that you haven''t had to polish yours

 

[DiaDiva]

Hi Gayle,
There is a strand of tin cup freshwater pearl necklace on futurefashionista.com that is either 16 or 18 inches but set in 14K gold. They are on sale at 50% off and cost $160. You might want to check that out.

Forgot to show you a picture of it.

 

[DiaDiva]

Sorry, here is the picture.

 

[Gayletmom]

Thanks for the tip-I''m going to check them out now!

 

[jmtomaui]

Gayle, an 18 inch Tin Cup from TPO in gold is only $120. And has pearls that are not striped and oddly shaped. Don''t get me wrong, I love baroque pearls for just this reason but generally baroque has a lesser price due to the irregularities and at "half price" of $150, it would seem you are paying more for less?

If you go up to 7 - 8mm on the TPO with white gold it still comes in at $140.

 

[Streeter1]

Date: 7/9/2009 9:06:32 AM
Author: jmtomaui
Gayle, an 18 inch Tin Cup from TPO in gold is only $120. And has pearls that are not striped and oddly shaped. Don''t get me wrong, I love baroque pearls for just this reason but generally baroque has a lesser price due to the irregularities and at ''half price'' of $150, it would seem you are paying more for less?


If you go up to 7 - 8mm on the TPO with white gold it still comes in at $140.

Thanks jmtomaui. I am glad somebody said what most were probably thinking. One is not a deal.

 

[jmtomaui]

Thanks Streeter.

Gayle, as my dad always told me, it is only a bargain if you get exactly what you want for what you want to pay. That said, if it is a more baroque look you want, and the one showed is exactly what you want, it is worth considering. Or, keep looking. I'm sure what you want is out there...

 

[Gayletmom]

I came to the same conclusion after comparing them to TPO ones! Thanks for the help.

 

[elle_chris]

I think the reason for the similiar price between the baroque, and the round, is size. The TPO one is 6-7mm, Futurefashionista is 9-11mm. That's a large size difference.

I don't think I'd do baroque for a tin cup but I would go larger than 6-7mm.

 

[Gayletmom]

I agree Elle. With the tin cup style I like the more classic looking pearls as opposed to the baroque style. Im thinking that 8mm might be about perfect. What do you all think?

 

[elle_chris]

I think 8mm would work well, but i''m one of those people that always prefers bigger pearls.