Different clasps on Mikimoto necklaces .. what do they mean?

[MKG]

Beautiful strand! Enjoy!

Thanks Pattye . I see you are from Oregon - fellow Oregonian here also.

 

[Camelotshadow]

Wow... how exciting! Thank you so much for sharing that information with me. I never seem to 'get lucky' when buying second hand/used/thrifting-- but this time I think I did! I purchased the set for a fairly large amount (to me), but I had the $$ and wanted to buy myself a "grown up" strand of pearls that I can pass down to my daughter someday. Thanks again for spending the time collecting the information and sharing it with me

Sometimes you have to pay for the quality. There are so many older so so strands around. Mikimoto if well kept are really stunning compared to the average strand. Even my 60 YO A+ strand is very nice & I paid alot for it too sight unseen so it was chancey but its unique as it a large 5.1mm to 8.8mm graduated strand & most around are not in this size with average 4 to 7mm. Mine also has silver overtones which was also on the rare side though it still has rose tones too.

I have not seen many with the diamond clasp... Hopefully you paid about half plus of a comparable new strand so its still a bargain. Good akoyas are becoming rarer & the nacre thinner so in the future who knows...

 

[amti]

Wow... how exciting! Thank you so much for sharing that information with me. I never seem to 'get lucky' when buying second hand/used/thrifting-- but this time I think I did! I purchased the set for a fairly large amount (to me), but I had the $$ and wanted to buy myself a "grown up" strand of pearls that I can pass down to my daughter someday. Thanks again for spending the time collecting the information and sharing it with me

You're very welcome. I wanted to call them to get some answers on switching out a clasp from white to yellow gold and asked a few questions regarding clasps since I was curious about them as well. I had the person email me a quote for restringing and switching out the clasp to send my mom so I have it in writing so I won't forget. I'm glad you got a great deal. I know you will cherish the strand and your daughter will love it too.

 

[MKG]

Sometimes you have to pay for the quality. There are so many older so so strands around. Mikimoto if well kept are really stunning compared to the average strand. Even my 60 YO A+ strand is very nice & I paid alot for it too sight unseen so it was chancey but its unique as it a large 5.1mm to 8.8mm graduated strand & most around are not in this size with average 4 to 7mm. Mine also has silver overtones which was also on the rare side though it still has rose tones too.

I have not seen many with the diamond clasp... Hopefully you paid about half plus of a comparable new strand so its still a bargain. Good akoyas are becoming rarer & the nacre thinner so in the future who knows...

I'm only guessing at what the value might be using the Mikimoto website, but if I am correct in my assumptions, I paid less than 1/4 of what a new strand is priced at. Even if I'm not correct, I'm sure I didn't pay more than they are worth

 

[Camelotshadow]

1/4 retails value is very good!!!! I paid a bit more than half of certificate value. on my 40 plus year old strand at the time. Still to me it was unique as it was old & had a nice size. I'm just glad they were A+ as I really did not know the grade. A+ on that old of a strand is pretty good.
Some AAA's become A's over time especially if they are stored improperly or not taken care of/
I know I paid alot but it was a pretty nice large graduated strand & it has silver overtones. I have never seen another like it.

You did great & I can;t imagine how much they go for now a in 2005 a AAA 16 or 18 in without the diamond clasp was going for $10,000.

 

[pattye]

Hi MKG, yes, here in Portland!

 

[MKG]

Hi MKG, yes, here in Portland!

I live in the Corvallis/Albany area

 

[Suka Pearl]

Wow, I just found this.. Your pearls are so beautiful, they look like mirror. This is the higher grade of Mikimoto pearls I am sure.

Now question .. once I saw on Ebay, one Japanese seller sold Mikimoto Best of The Best pearl necklace. It has a diamond on the clasp and on the M tag.
So 2 little pieces of diamond, instead of only 1.
Does this mean really Best of The Best?

I bought 2 weeks ago a Mikimoto Pearl Necklace, 8.5-9mm. Looks very good too with 18K Gold clasp...Maybe then only A+ ?

 

[amacasa]

Wow lovely pearl strand... I've been in the market for 2 weeks now looking for a strand.. mostly on eBay... any advice on which consignment shop you got this from? at this point, i am willing to drive to see the pearls... only reason i am asking is the clasps confuse me.. knowing that theres mikimoto boutique clasps, zales, sea magic, blue something ... so now i am not sure about buying on eBay... i am in oregon too by the way and would love to know which consignment shops are reputable... thanks ladies!!!

Here are some photos I took. Pearls are hard to capture on film . Thank you to everyone who has offered information.

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[pearlescence]

Plus, the clasp may be genuine and the pearls can be any old pearls