365 Days of Pearls

[baby nurse]

I'm not sure what happened to the wire on the earrings and closest to the soufflés on the tin cup. It must be silver that has tarnished? Yet BAS has the same set and there's no dark metal on hers. Maybe because she's worn hers more often than I've worn mine?

 

[Lugana]

I'm not sure what happened to the wire on the earrings and closest to the soufflés on the tin cup. It must be silver that has tarnished?

I was thinking same when looking at the photos.. looks like the wire is silver.. well, if that's really the reason for discolouration, at least it should be easy to clean) was it not advertised as silver though on the listing?..

 

[trulyviolet]

omg they look like clouds and mist touched by the first glimmer of dawn

 

[Katbran]

Definitely looks like Silver wire ... I was a little confused when I first saw the photos as I thought they'd used Oxidsied Sterling and white gold ...which would be odd. It's such a pretty necklace .. is the chain tarnished as well ..it looks a bit dark . Love the design.

Those big fat ripples are wonderful...ripples are quite mesmerising aren't they ?

 

[baby nurse]

I was thinking same when looking at the photos.. looks like the wire is silver.. well, if that's really the reason for discolouration, at least it should be easy to clean) was it not advertised as silver though on the listing?..

It was a custom piece in white gold. No mention of silver but when I saw the dark areas I figured it was probably just the usual thing to use silver wire for those "wrapped" parts. I don't do any wire wrapping, not sure if that's even the correct term.

What's the safest way to clean it?

 

[baby nurse]

omg they look like clouds and mist touched by the first glimmer of dawn

Ahh-- beautiful description, trulyviolet!

 

[BAS]

Now this is freaky. I wore the exact same set yesterday and I hadn't worn it forever! It just seemed to suit the dress I was wearing and I like the way it fell around the neckline.

 

[Lugana]

It was a custom piece in white gold. No mention of silver but when I saw the dark areas I figured it was probably just the usual thing to use silver wire for those "wrapped" parts. I don't do any wire wrapping, not sure if that's even the correct term.

Well, white gold wires also exist and are widely used in pearl wrapping.. they are much more expensive of course.. maybe there was a misunderstanding between you and Hisano, and only the chain was supposed to be gold?..

What's the safest way to clean it?

I would try cleaning it with potato water, but just to play it safe I would immerse only a short end of the necklace first, with just one pearl) to make sure it doesn't affect the pearl. I used it on silver pearl bangles, worked fine, but those were normal freshwater pearls - so I would double check before using it on expensive soufflés I'm quite a chicken))

 

[SunSeeker]

Beautiful set, BN (and BAS). I love the length and the mix of the coolness of the blue Akoya with the warmness of the souffles. However, they really pick up the color of your sweater, which is an excellant backdrop for your tincup. I've never tried the potatoe wash, but would love soem feedback if you do.

 

[Purranha]

BN! your ripples pearls are beautiful! When you had the chance to show case through most of them, I would be so curious to see another family shot and perhaps a little portrait shot as well?

Love the souffle & akoya set. The tarnish is indeed a bit strange. I find that some yellow/white gold do still tarnish a bit, especially if it is a lower K mix. But the earring wire wrapped portion does seem more severe than others.

In terms of cleaning, I know a lot of people swear by the sunshine cloth, but it would be difficult to use it on wires.

Personally, I LUV Jewel Brite. (http://www.jewelbrite.com/) CAVEATE MEPTOR!!!
I randomly stumbled upon them at my first Intergem in White Plains. They had a booth there, took one of my silver pieces, scrubbed it up, it was good as new, and I immediately plunked down a very reasonable few bucks and brought a set home.

The silver paste is indicated to be pearl/opal and other more fragile materials friendly. I haven't needed to use it on my better pearls, have tried it on some cheaper pearls and they did not damage the pearl and cleaned up the silver well. It is a paste you scrub onto the wire with toothbrush then rinse & dry off. You may want to test it on some less loved pearls (if that's possible lol) first.

In the set, they also have a jewelry cleaning solution. It doesn't clean the tarnish - it is for general jewelry cleaning but it works great and I've used it on plenty of pearls with no issues what so ever!

 

[Pearly-Whites]

Those souffles are absolutely beautiful! Amazing luster! You are lucky to have them as souffles are getting harder to find and also getting quite expensive. Great description...like clouds!!

 

[baby nurse]

Definitely looks like Silver wire ... I was a little confused when I first saw the photos as I thought they'd used Oxidsied Sterling and white gold ...which would be odd. It's such a pretty necklace .. is the chain tarnished as well ..it looks a bit dark . Love the design.

Those big fat ripples are wonderful...ripples are quite mesmerising aren't they ?

The chain does look dark in the photos but isn't irl. I took a closer look and the clasp says 14kt, not that I had any doubt that that wasn't gold. But it does seem like the wire might be silver. I will give it a scrub : )

Yes, those ripples are wonderful-- thank you! I feel badly for having neglected them. They are indeed a mesmerizing pearl. Some people just aren't into ripples but I love their crinkly skins, rainbow overtones and organic shapes.

 

[baby nurse]

Now this is freaky. I wore the exact same set yesterday and I hadn't worn it forever! It just seemed to suit the dress I was wearing and I like the way it fell around the neckline.

Kismet, BAS. Hey--we're pearl sisters!

 

[baby nurse]

Well, white gold wires also exist and are widely used in pearl wrapping.. they are much more expensive of course.. maybe there was a misunderstanding between you and Hisano, and only the chain was supposed to be gold?...

I would try cleaning it with potato water, but just to play it safe I would immerse only a short end of the necklace first, with just one pearl) to make sure it doesn't affect the pearl. I used it on silver pearl bangles, worked fine, but those were normal freshwater pearls - so I would double check before using it on expensive soufflés I'm quite a chicken))

There could very well have been a misunderstanding, Lugana.

I've never heard of potato water being used to remove tarnish! Yeah, I'm a huge chicken when it comes to potentially damaging my pearls. Maybe I'll try dipping a Q tip into the water and applying it to the wire.... thanks, Lugana!

 

[baby nurse]

Beautiful set, BN (and BAS). I love the length and the mix of the coolness of the blue Akoya with the warmness of the souffles. However, they really pick up the color of your sweater, which is an excellant backdrop for your tincup. I've never tried the potatoe wash, but would love soem feedback if you do.

SunSeeker if you could see me wandering pearls in hand from sweater to tee shirt to blouse looking for a match lol! I agree the teal works well with the soufflés.

I'll definitely let you know how the potato water works.

 

[lmgarden]

Oooo, love those meringue clouds with blue akoyas!!! Stunning with the color of your sweater - great length, as well. Hmmm, never heard of potato water, I'd also be interested to know how it works.

 

[Red]

I'm not sure what happened to the wire on the earrings and closest to the soufflés on the tin cup. It must be silver that has tarnished? Yet BAS has the same set and there's no dark metal on hers. Maybe because she's worn hers more often than I've worn mine?

I have one wire wrapped tin cup necklace from PP which I specified was to be in 14 kt white gold. I would be quite disappointed if silver was substituted in any part of it. I'm sure this was an inadvertent mistake. Personally, I would have the silver portions redone in white gold.

Beautiful soufflés, by the way. Just gorgeous.

 

[Marianne]

Hi bn, I would not submerge the soufflés. They are hollow and might take on their bath water and retain it… Could get a bit stinky!

 

[JerseyPearl]

Purr, Sunshine now makes three different cloths in pink, yellow and blue. The blue did an amazing job on my grandmother's silver with very very little effort. Pink can put a matte finish on polished silver, yellow is the original, and blue is for high polish.

 

[MSC]

Love the souffle necklace and earrings, they are gorgeous!

I've had white gold wire get slightly darker with wear (tarnish), much like the wire wrapping in your necklace, but definitely not as dark as in your earrings. I've just used soap and water to give a surface clean. I've found a baby rubber finger toothbrush thing to help get into the nooks while not being scratchy.