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- Aug 14, 2009
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I had the opportunity to attend a Paspaley trunk show a couple of weeks ago, have a few (okay, no, tons of 
) pics to share!!
This was apparently their second show in the US - first one was last year. At the Wall Street Hotel, which is apparently owned by the Paspaley family. Fun backstory actually: The Paspaley family bought a property several decades ago and when they received the paperwork they discovered that deeds to a number of other properties had been included - the Wall Street Hotel amongst the surprises! But various companies had long-running leases on office space, so it's only in the last few years that they've started to use it themselves.
The trunk show was on the 15th floor, at the top of the hotel. It's beautiful and spacious up there
And they were spacing their visitors out quite a bit - my other half and I had the displays, the bubbly, and the nibbles to ourselves for over an hour
The main display:
So... First impressions... Thrilled that I got to see so many pieces in-person They're much more impressive IRL than on the website. I realized, in a palm-to-the-head sort of way, that I'm so used to thinking about pearls in the context of Japanese design - dainty and delicate and super feminine - that I'd been transcribing that aesthetic onto every other pearl piece I came across. But Australian pearl people, they go for a very different look and feel Every single piece was *bigger* than I expected. The rings, the bracelets, the chains - they're weighty, they're sturdy, they felt solid and substantial. And, unsurprisingly, the pearls themselves are a whole lot bigger than the masses of akoya I'm accustomed to, too!
The entryway display downstairs:
) pics to share!!This was apparently their second show in the US - first one was last year. At the Wall Street Hotel, which is apparently owned by the Paspaley family. Fun backstory actually: The Paspaley family bought a property several decades ago and when they received the paperwork they discovered that deeds to a number of other properties had been included - the Wall Street Hotel amongst the surprises! But various companies had long-running leases on office space, so it's only in the last few years that they've started to use it themselves.
The trunk show was on the 15th floor, at the top of the hotel. It's beautiful and spacious up there
And they were spacing their visitors out quite a bit - my other half and I had the displays, the bubbly, and the nibbles to ourselves for over an hour The main display:
So... First impressions... Thrilled that I got to see so many pieces in-person
They're much more impressive IRL than on the website. I realized, in a palm-to-the-head sort of way, that I'm so used to thinking about pearls in the context of Japanese design - dainty and delicate and super feminine - that I'd been transcribing that aesthetic onto every other pearl piece I came across. But Australian pearl people, they go for a very different look and feel Every single piece was *bigger* than I expected. The rings, the bracelets, the chains - they're weighty, they're sturdy, they felt solid and substantial. And, unsurprisingly, the pearls themselves are a whole lot bigger than the masses of akoya I'm accustomed to, too!The entryway display downstairs:
So here I'm very very carefully keeping the very very pricey Mejesti bracelet as far down my wrist as I can 
The pearl is 15-16mm, same as my Takahashi peachy 
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