my pearl story

[ladykemma]

Rather than hijacking the pearl thread below I thought i would start a new thread.

for the houston people here are the results of my research:

I wanted a strand of AA - AAA akoya pearls.

read "The pearl book - the definitive buying guide" by antoinette matlin before starting out. Go look at real mikimoto pearls at bailey banks and biddle in the galleria. or ben bridge at memorial city mall.

I would have spent my money at Ben Bridge , but for a "julia roberts pretty woman " afternoon the sales people woudn't wait on me and they wouldn't consider layaway. (stoopid!) that's too bad because i lay away one expensive piece per year.

What I did: I bought a single AA 7.5 mm mikimoto pearl pendant for a calibration standard. then out I went up and down westheimer. I brought a loupe.

pawn shops, jewelry stores. I was lied to by sleazy or ignorant sales clerks, telling me that FW pearls were akoyas. I went to yucky pawn shops, and good pawn shops.

there was (is) a very nice strand of used mikimotos in a pawn shop on westhemier by where the old rosehill hospital used to be. near gessner. they are still there.

Nazar's fine jewelry won the retail cake that day. Wow! if I ever have mega-money to spend on poils that's where i will go. honest knowledgeable sales clerk, memorable experience.

There was an elderly japanese man in a booth in the antique mall -- wilcrest and I-10 -- selling real akoyas and FW pearls. I plan to buy from him. He knows what he is talking about. he has no overhead so his prices are lower.

I found a nice strand of A+ quality (by eyeball method) used pearls. I bought them. about 6mm.

Then later that week I found the strand at TK Maxx. extrordinary luster and orient. large pearls 7.5 -8mm, thick nacre - these had been in the oysters a long time. One of the pearls was chipped at the drill hole but not noticeable. definitely cultured. the pearls were very dry. It was evident that these pearls had been in a hot dry showcase for a long time. When I got home I soaked them in water overnight. and laid them flat to dry. they looked even better rehydrated. the minor blemishes were hardly noticeable for the incredible luster and orient. Ms. Matlin was right

Ms matlin says that the longer the pearls are in the oyster the more risk that they will become out of round, or blemished. This is certainly the case with the pearls I found.

I found the bracelet by accident. It was in a jewelry outlet in the katy mills mall run by teenyboppers. My eyes estimated it to be AA grade and it had a akoya shinjo label. It was clearly mismarked and the teens who worked the store obviously did not know what they had. I bought it for $50.

I'm always a sucker for jewels with a "story". almost all of my pieces have a rehabilitation story to go with them.

I will post a picture as soon as i figger out how.

 

[glitterata]

Picture! Picture! We want to see your Find!