Very Newbie Pearl Question

[iota15]

If I wanted a set of nice starter pearls, what should I be budgeting for?

Or are there WAY too many factors to even begin to answer that question. If that's the case, what kinds of factors should I care/worry about?

 

[iLander]

This is a good strand (get it?) for newbie pearl info : [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/china-pearls.150317/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/china-pearls.150317/[/URL]

It has a lot of the basics of what to look for. Look for natural color and luster from a trusted vendor, then buy what you like.

For a starter set, you can go with freshwater, tahitian or south seas.

Freshwater can be natural white, natural multicolored pastels, dyed blacks and browns. They can be round, rice shaped, baroque (looks like the oyster was drunk ), drop, and every shape in between. The variety is huge! You can get something pretty nice for under $200 from this lady:
http://catherinecardellinipearls.com/ (pull down the menu to US dollars) You will be AMAZED at the variety there.

Tahitians can run you a few hundred into the thousands. The can be black or silver or grey with all kind of overtones, like green, blue, red, etc. They can be the standard round or even baroque like the picture. These are good sources for those:
http://shop.kojimapearl.com/collections/pearl-necklaces
http://www.tahitianpearls.biz/

South Seas are usually golden or white. The have a satin luster rather than a shiny luster, and their claim to fame is size. Big, round SS are glorious and are generally in the thousands. Tahitian Pearls . biz has some SS that are baroque for under $1000 and some great rounds under $3000.

I like to support micro business, so that's who I tend to recommend, also they tend to have great bargains. If you decide to get something, please share them with us!

 

[that_someone_special]

Personally, I would start with a AA+ 7mm white (classic) freshwater strand to see how you feel about pearls in general. Pearls can be VERY expensive and there is no need to spend money on something you are not sure you will wear a ton!

Here is one that is AA+ 7.5-8mm 16" http://www.pearlparadise.com/7580-mm-White-Freshwater-Pearl-Necklace60.aspx
18" is $15 more-- but google "pearl points" and they have a discount off purchases. (also, they have color options too, but in general $120- $135, or $105- $120 after discount) is a pretty good price to try pearls out.

I an make some more recommendations if you want if you are looking to try something a little more expensive.

 

[iota15]

Oh geez - that pink set is gorgeous! Does that belong to you, ILander?

And thanks for responding, Bean. That's really helpful.

I have a set of white pearls that my mother bought in a market in China. It was dirt cheap and looks nothing like these. As a result, I never wear it.

How much is that pink set?

 

[PumpkinPie]

iLander - is there an easier way to search http://catherinecardellinipearls.com/ site? I love her stuff and she has tonnes of it, but it's very time-consuming and frustrating to scroll page by page for over 190 pages!!

 

[iLander]

Oh geez - that pink set is gorgeous! Does that belong to you, ILander?

And thanks for responding, Bean. That's really helpful.

I have a set of white pearls that my mother bought in a market in China. It was dirt cheap and looks nothing like these. As a result, I never wear it.

How much is that pink set?

I don't have a pink set, I only have one set of pearls, that I can't have until the holidays, it's here:

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-strand-of-golden-pearls.150033/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/my-strand-of-golden-pearls.150033/[/URL]

Actually, I do have a strand of Mikimoto akoya pearls, got those years ago, but they are kind of boring to me. I have worn them maybe twice.

Don't know how much the pink set is.

 

[iLander]

iLander - is there an easier way to search http://catherinecardellinipearls.com/ site? I love her stuff and she has tonnes of it, but it's very time-consuming and frustrating to scroll page by page for over 190 pages!!

She does have tons of stuff! I use the search button a lot, and I type in what I'm considering, it makes it easier. I'll put in as many words as possible, like "keshi, necklace, high lustre", that kind of wording. Narrows it down some. She just recently changed the slide show pics under other info, so that all computers can use it, not just microsoft.

 

[Gailey]

Cathy has just upgraded her website. The search function works a lot better and you can filter out the sold items. I agree though, this is not a 5 minute job. The wish list function is awesome. The last wish list I created was 6 pages long. I gotta learn to be more disciplined.

To come back to the original question, I would suggest you do a ton of googling first to get a feel for what sort of pearls you like. As has been said previously, they come in all shapes, sizes and colours. Literally, the sky is the limit. Budget is from cheap-cheap to kings ransom.

Cathy specialises in pearls with character, so they have lumps and bumps and are not usually uniform. That might not appeal to a pearl newbie (sorry, I am generalising here). Peal Paradise and The Pearl Outlet are good places to look for more conventional looking pearls. These sites are run by the Shepherd brothers (one each) Jeremy Shepherd also has some informative videos on youtube.