comparison of high luster strands. What's your favorite?

[Beagles]

They are gorgeous on you. Congratulations!!!

 

[NY_Resonant]

Pics on my neck in different lighting (car and sun). Didn't have time to take any in the shade or compare to my Takahashi pair that I have in my jewelry box (I also need to remember what Yy said the quality of that pair was).

Looks amazing on your skin!

 

[Calla-lilies]

Pics on my neck in different lighting (car and sun). Didn't have time to take any in the shade or compare to my Takahashi pair that I have in my jewelry box (I also need to remember what Yy said the quality of that pair was).

Absolutely gorgeous!! Enjoy!

 

[lovedogs]

Looks amazing on your skin!

Thanks! I really like that I see both blue and pink overtones in different pearls (means they match less, but my weird eyes like that).

 

[NY_Resonant]

Thanks! I really like that I see both blue and pink overtones in different pearls (means they match less, but my weird eyes like that).

I’m a fan of the blue overtone! Adds a very pretty color beyond the standard pink

 

[Bluebell5]

Those are beautiful! Do you mind sharing the name of the vendor?

 

[Catmom]

Wow, so gorgeous and perfect on you!

 

[diamondyes]

Pics on my neck in different lighting (car and sun). Didn't have time to take any in the shade or compare to my Takahashi pair that I have in my jewelry box (I also need to remember what Yy said the quality of that pair was).

Oh darn. Now I want some!!

 

[lovedogs]

Those are beautiful! Do you mind sharing the name of the vendor?

General pearl

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Gorgeous on you!!!! You wear them so well!!! They don't look small on you somehow even to my weirdo macadamia nut size loving self!!!!!

 

[lovedogs]

@NY_Resonant wanted to show some amazing pics I got comparing tue earrings from general pearl with a pair from T. When I bought the pair from T I asked for their highest quality (without the insane price jump that happens at big sizes).

Compared 1 earrings from GP with one loose from T to try and make the comparison fair.



Genuinely curious if you or @yssie see any differences. To me they look identical. I would have easily mixed them up if they were the same size and set.

 

[NY_Resonant]

@NY_Resonant wanted to show some amazing pics I got comparing tue earrings from general pearl with a pair from T. When I bought the pair from T I asked for their highest quality (without the insane price jump that happens at big sizes).

Compared 1 earrings from GP with one loose from T to try and make the comparison fair.



Genuinely curious if you or @yssie see any differences. To me they look identical. I would have easily mixed them up if they were the same size and set.

Thanks for that comparison!

Both are very beautiful and high quality but to my eyes the smaller one has better lustre than the larger Pearl. The blacks are deeper, the hands are more defined and that blue “cloud?” Is a deeper blue. It’s easier to see the difference in the direct sun pictures.

One thing to consider is that smaller pearls, of the same quality, naturally have a contrast advantage to larger pearls. Since the sizes are more than one 0.5mm step apart, i’m not surprised to see a bit of difference.

Curious what @yssie sees!

 

[lovedogs]

Thanks for that comparison!

Both are very beautiful and high quality but to my eyes the smaller one has better lustre than the larger Pearl. The blacks are deeper, the hands are more defined and that blue “cloud?” Is a deeper blue. It’s easier to see the difference in the direct sun pictures.

One thing to consider is that smaller pearls, of the same quality, naturally have a contrast advantage to larger pearls. Since the sizes are more than one 0.5mm step apart, i’m not surprised to see a bit of difference.

Curious what @yssie sees!

Agreed. I feel the same way--if I had to choose I prefer the smaller one. But I've been told by multiple vendors that smaller pearls can be more "contrasty".

Smaller = general pearl, and the larger is from T, fwiw.

I can probably compare the T pearls with some from the GP necklace tomorrow!

 

[NY_Resonant]

Agreed. I feel the same way--if I had to choose I prefer the smaller one. But I've been told by multiple vendors that smaller pearls can be more "contrasty".

Smaller = general pearl, and the larger is from T, fwiw.

I can probably compare the T pearls with some from the GP necklace tomorrow!

Size is it‘s own quality when the luster drop-off is that small How big is the T Pearl? I‘m finding it’s hard to go from 8.5 to 9mm+ without a luster drop right now —- I’m in search of a top gem 9-9.5mm!

 

[lovedogs]

Size is it‘s own quality when the luster drop-off is that small How big is the T Pearl? I‘m finding it’s hard to go from 8.5 to 9mm+ without a luster drop right now —- I’m in search of a top gem 9-9.5mm!

I'll have to re check my convo with Yy, but I think it's 8 or 8.5 (?)

 

[yssie]

@lovedogs congratulations!! Your pearls look spectacular!! And I actually feel like I can hear myself in the way you describe them, two years ago, having all expectations blown away I hope you wear them often and I hope they always feel magical to you

 

[yssie]

On the stud comparison - the General Pearl is the more lustrous in terms of contrast (smaller size definitely helps!), but I think the Takahashi might have a smoother skin?

That tracks, from what I've heard about these vendors from other buyers who've got pearls from both - Takahashi puts higher value on what I think of as a "traditionally Japanese" preference for a smooth skin, whereas General Pearl seems to value contrast to a higher extent...

Either way - you have some enviably beautiful pearls!!

 

[NY_Resonant]

On the stud comparison - the General Pearl is the more lustrous in terms of contrast (smaller size definitely helps!), but I think the Takahashi might have a smoother skin?

That tracks, from what I've heard about these vendors from other buyers who've got pearls from both - Takahashi puts higher value on what I think of as a "traditionally Japanese" preference for a smooth skin, whereas General Pearl seems to value contrast to a higher extent...

Either way - you have some enviably beautiful pearls!!

Yea, I saw the slighter better surface on the larger Pearl too. It’s most visible to me in the direct sunlight picture, a *small* difference in the tiny surface bumps, etc. Overall both have very smooth surfaces though.

 

[yssie]

Yeah. Both are beautiful specimens. We're being extraordinarily nuanced here.

 

[lovedogs]

Back w comparison pics of the strand vs the loose pearl from T.

The T pearls are 8.5-9mm top gem quality (as per my convo w them).

The strand from GP is 8-8.5, so there's a small size difference between the loose and strung pearls.

Again, these are SUPER close in quality (to my eyes). I see what @yssie said about the GP having less smooth skin but slightly higher contrast. That's what my eyes see when I compare the two.

Sorry for the bathroom lighting, but the window made it possible for me to get multiple angles of light

 

[NY_Resonant]

Back w comparison pics of the strand vs the loose pearl from T.

The T pearls are 8.5-9mm top gem quality (as per my convo w them).

The strand from GP is 8-8.5, so there's a small size difference between the loose and strung pearls.

Again, these are SUPER close in quality (to my eyes). I see what @yssie said about the GP having less smooth skin but slightly higher contrast. That's what my eyes see when I compare the two.

Sorry for the bathroom lighting, but the window made it possible for me to get multiple angles of light

Strand quality is as high as you could have hoped for in my opinion! Very clean surfaces overall and the contrast is superb.

The comparison to the T pearl is super close. In some pictures I think the T has a higher contrast and in others when you compare different pearls the general pearl has the higher contrast — which is great for a necklace when it matches/exceeds an earring quality piece.

To give you a frame of reference, when I compared a takahashi top category earring pearl to my takahashi gem luster with minor flaws — I saw 21-24 pearls out of 47 that matched the contrast of the earring pearl (With worse surfaces whereas your surfaces are great).

I’d guess based on what i’ve seen so far that your necklace has a bit superior contrast and much better surfaces to the gem luster with minor flaws i’ve seen (and own) from Takahashi.

 

[ItsMainelyYou]

Ahhhh! Those are crazy beautiful What is that clasp?!
Holy amazeballs. Yes, that's the scientific term, because I said so.

 

[yssie]

At some point we hit a real world quality barrier where you can’t have ”everything” (even if you’re willing and able to spend a house) because “everything” just isn’t available. I’m there now (minus the house-spend bit LOL) - waiting to see if a supearl akoya strand shows up… I’m not holding my breath. It seems extremely unlikely.

I think that point is different for different people, but in our quest for quality we’ll all hit it! Because “everything” isn’t available and so different organizations prioritize different characteristics and define “top quality available” differently.

I recently had this experience with GSS. Haven’t posted a thread yet, work has been kind of lunatic, but my definition of “best” in GSS doesn’t match others’.

@lovedogs I remember you saying that you wanted contrast luster above all, and preferred a slightly darker body, and didn’t mind a wee bit of blemishing if it didn’t interfere with contrastiness, and weren’t super duper picky about all the pearls matching exactly if it opened pricing options. And I think the GP strand and studs fit your asks perfectly, they prioritize *exactly* what you prioritize. I can’t think of a better purchase

Me, I also don’t want to spend a house And I’ve found out that for me matching is probably my top priority, and after that comes contrast, then surface smoothness. So I love that GP understood what you were asking for and made it happen!! That is so rare. And, like, legit, all of this faff aside, those pearls are just objectively absolutely decadent

 

[lovedogs]

At some point we hit a real world quality barrier where you can’t have ”everything” (even if you’re willing and able to spend a house) because “everything” just isn’t available. I’m there now (minus the house-spend bit LOL) - waiting to see if a supearl akoya strand shows up… I’m not holding my breath. It seems extremely unlikely.

I think that point is different for different people, but in our quest for quality we’ll all hit it! Because “everything” isn’t available and so different organizations prioritize different characteristics and define “top quality available” differently.

I recently had this experience with GSS. Haven’t posted a thread yet, work has been kind of lunatic, but my definition of “best” in GSS doesn’t match others’.

@lovedogs I remember you saying that you wanted contrast luster above all, and preferred a slightly darker body, and didn’t mind a wee bit of blemishing if it didn’t interfere with contrastiness, and weren’t super duper picky about all the pearls matching exactly if it opened pricing options. And I think the GP strand and studs fit your asks perfectly, they prioritize *exactly* what you prioritize. I can’t think of a better purchase

Me, I also don’t want to spend a house And I’ve found out that for me matching is probably my top priority, and after that comes contrast, then surface smoothness. So I love that GP understood what you were asking for and made it happen!! That is so rare. And, like, legit, all of this faff aside, those pearls are just objectively absolutely decadent

Thank you!!! And yes, i think GP understood what I wanted and my priorities 100%, which is great. The surfaces aren't 100% smooth on all the pearls, but I truly don't care (which I told them). So they nailed it a million percent


Can't wait to see / hear about your GSS!!!

 

[yssie]

Thank you!!! And yes, i think GP understood what I wanted and my priorities 100%, which is great. The surfaces aren't 100% smooth on all the pearls, but I truly don't care (which I told them). So they nailed it a million percent


Can't wait to see / hear about your GSS!!!

Honestly this is so important. I feel like I personally started out thinking that I *should* want certain things, so I would buy stuff that didn’t quite match what I actually wanted, wasted a lot of money doing that. Now I’m very careful to really think about what my eyes want and I try to forget about what I’m supposed to want. So - um, not to make this about me, but maybe just for a second I’m super happy when something I’ve said lets someone else short circuit that nonsense

 

[NY_Resonant]

Honestly this is so important. I feel like I personally started out thinking that I *should* want certain things, so I would buy stuff that didn’t quite match what I actually wanted, wasted a lot of money doing that. Now I’m very careful to really think about what my eyes want and I try to forget about what I’m supposed to want. So - um, not to make this about me, but maybe just for a second I’m super happy when something I’ve said lets someone else short circuit that nonsense

@yssie all of your posts and the experiences you have shared has helped many many people save a ton of money AND time. I have no doubt many people here are much happier with their purchases thanks to you — I know I am!