pattye said:
Those are gorgeous! And the ametrine!! A favorite of mine too! Did you buy a strand and string them yourself? I love grey pearls, but of course, most are dyed.
Hi Pattye,
I'm glad that you like it. The Ametrine is 27.01cts and had it custom made as an enhancer. I bought it as a strand.
jerin said:
Lovely pearls. Freshwater pearls from Greenhill? Nice pendant too.
Hi Jerin,
Yep, from Greenhills. After hours of hunting.
Valeria101 said:
You say... the gray freshwater are of natural color? If so, how do you know? Got a bit of trouble with some: at first they were claimed not treated. Didn't believe that after seeing a load of hanks perfectly matched. Then the seller changed the label as well - they do not know, and the change apparently did no one any harm. The pearls - yours and theirs - remain just as great, of course. And I do not know for sure either - other than the hunch based on 'too many matched to be pristine'... for what that matters.
Hi Valeria101,
I knew someone would ask along the way
.
How did I know?
1) I've been collecting exotic colors piece by piece for quite some time now in loose, earring quality and carefully studying the characteristics. Note that exotic colors are very few in a lot and very hard to match.
2) I checked on the drill holes and blemishes. No dye marks or concentrations.
3) I only get exotic colors that "glow". After looking at a lot of dyed freshwater pearls, I've observed that dyeing or even bleaching takes away the "glow". Natural colored FW pearls can be metallic but they also tend to fluoresce, while dyed fw pearls can have the mettalic look but they look cold like a ball-bearing.
4) The strand is not perfectly matched. In diffused light, difference in overtones can be seen.
5) I checked the drill holes and smashed a piece. Same color all thoughout. The dyed pearls I've peeled so far are white inside.
Dfrey said:
These pearls all show mauve/ purple tones or pink tones as well. The color is very dependent on what light they are viewed in, as Perlas reports her new purchase is. I also purchased a large baroque pearl that appears grey almost black in some light and has strong tones of bronze and purple in other light.
Hi Dfrey,
Same observation. I checked the pearls in 10am sunlight and it looks definitely gray. In diffused light, it looks gray with overtones 5 inches away, looks pink 2 meters away, and looks purple 4 meters away! In incandescent light, it looks a bit of darker gray and mauve.
I've been asking around and got the answers pinkish-gray and purplish-gray and even a definite purple.
jshepherd said:
I am interested in how those were represented as well. They look very much like treated pearls, and unless I collected them myself (from a hundred kilo or so), I would not believe them to be natural without definitive proof. The dark ones I have seen tend to lead to the bronze (almost a gold overtone), and have peacock, Tahitian-like coloration.
Hi jshepherd,
They were represented as natural color from a new harvest in China. It was said to be top-grade for western customers (although blemishing is present). The hank was composed of 6 strands of which each strand do not have the same intensity of color, overtone, and luster. No bronze and gold overtone though. They do not look like tahitians, definitely.
knotty panda said:
Dyed or not, the colors are magnificent of all the samples on both pages! I really do like the one with the ametrine, though.
Hi knotty panda,
Thanks! It's my favorite jewelry at the moment. I'd love to see more of your works, too.
