Exotics

[Sueki]

Raisondetre,
Oh heavens, I feel for you.
You are not alone. I have made several stupid purchases when upset. Try rationalising; for me, that'd be under a pound a pearl and I'd probably soak the pearls in water to try to remove some of the uneven dye, and re-string into a few pretty bracelets as stocking fillers at Christmas.

 

[Sueki]

Hey, They're really pretty ! Beautiful colour, and 36 inches ??
I bet it looks lovely on you. I definitely wouldn't break that necklace up.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

On the other hand, not being overly dark, maybe it won't be so obvious that they are dyed. And baroques can get away with blemishes more easily than rounds can.

Let's face it, we have all made impulse purchases that we've regretted. And what you spent? The cost of a few meals out at a nice restaurant.

Maybe in a few days, the $200 will sting less and the pink color will cheer you a bit more. It's kind of a pretty shade, to me.

 

[olmander]

Raison, I really-really don't get it - they look very pretty!
As for wrong decisions, we all can show a master class in it

Nose up

Olga

 

[pearllove]

Dear Raisondetre,
I know how you feel. After I missed the exotics, I was so upset I just wanted to buy something, anything. The only thing that stopped me was my sick baby (also the reason for me missing the exotics).

I have a drawer full of rash purchases, mostly gemstones. Some examples are loose opals, ruby beads, tourmaline beads, a loose blue zircon, etc. Thousands of dollars wasted... Fortunately, I have an understanding husband.

By the way, your pearls don't look so bad. I actually like the pale color.

 

[Raisondetre]

Thanks for putting things in perspective. How's your baby now, pearllove? Poor little dear. One of my friends brought her baby out with another friend, and that person who's a nurse to boot commented that her baby was too noisy and she should control her. I was mad to say the least.

I'm now singing along J-pop. It took all my restraint not to buy the J-pop magazines in Kinokuniya today, only because it felt wrong for me to perving be over the cute young Japanese pop stars.

 

[GemGeek]

Really, those guys are soooo cute, and they can actually sing!

 

[Caitlin]

You did overpay for that, but I bet the jeweler did too. I saw a strand like that in a local antique shop and they wanted $350!!!!

 

[Raisondetre]

How much would those typically be?

 

[pearllove]

Hi Raisondetre,
My baby is fine now. She is almost 16 months old and she loves pearls. She loves wearing them just like her mommy. I have already bought her a 16 inch 6-7mm white Freshadama strand and matching earrings. PP had them on sale last December and after seeing GemGeek's set I couldn't resist. Here's a photo.

I can't wait to give it to her when she gets older.

 

[Raisondetre]

Wow, that's so sweet of you! Take a pic of the baby wearing her pearls! My dad put his glasses on me when I was 9 months old. I was destined to be a dork ...

 

[jerin]

Hi, everyone.

Finally my Exotics arrived and I have strung them. I will post some pictures later. They are very pastel coloured = pale and with fine luster, they sure could have been a little larger.

 

[Casey.R]

Jerin, Looking forward to your pics.

Pearlove, your 16 month old wears pearls? Wow. I've never let my two year old wear my pearls ( she wouldn't want to take them off ) but she does like them. She calls them beans. On the other hand I did let my cat wear some once.

 

[Caitlin]

How much would those typically be?

If you went to your local retail bead store, 2 strands of nice, large potato pearls shouldn't cost more than $40. At a gem and bead show, they shouldn't cost more than $8-$10 each, less if you bought in bulk. In a retail store, I would think $50- $80 would be more than fair- so you didn't do that badly.

And they are quite friendly, likable pearls. Just think of it as that you liberated those pearls to go to a good home with lots of other friendly pearls! Besides, they fit right in with your pink collection. Do you have pink jeans and/or tee shirts? Perfect!

 

[Pearl Dreams]

I have been experimenting with getting a more accurate color photo and have settled on this: pearls lying on an 18% gray card, with daylight spectrum lamp directly over them while I photograph from the side. The color seems more nearly accurate.

A few days ago I bought these oval coin CFW pearls, measuring about 21mm x 11mm. Although they are a pale cream with a hint of peach, their orient is out of this world! I hoped they would go with my exotics and I think they do.

I used a 3" gf headpin to make both the dangle and the ear wire. On top of the pearl is a horn bead (soft as fingernails so it won't scratch the pearl), then a gf 2mm bead and a 3mm garnet.

So here are the photos:

First, the 8-9mm exotic rounds -- with the earrings, then the 8.5-9.5mm exotic ovals, and lastly the (still unstrung as I debate what to do with them!) 7.5-8.5mm exotic ovals.

(I edited this on 8/22/08 to eliminate the Photobucket links and attach photos directly).

 

[Caitlin]

Where do you get a 18% gray card?

 

[Pearl Dreams]

I bought this years ago at a local camera shop. I would think any shop specializing in photographic equipment would have them. Do you have a Ritz camera near you? Try them, or B&H Photo Video (I've used them several times and was pleased.)

 

[Raisondetre]

I wasn't really sure I wanted to know how badly I've done. Oh well, gonna give it to my mom who's the one that made me upset and pretend it never happened. She's bought pearls in China for much more and those weren't as lustrous. Some have even faded so this isn't too bad. She loves pink too.

Those ovals are absolutely delicious ... the colors show up very very nicely on the gray card!

 

[jerin]

I have been experimenting with getting a more accurate color photo and have settled on this: pearls lying on an 18% gray card, with daylight spectrum lamp directly over them while I photograph from the side. The color seems more nearly accurate.

A few days ago I bought these oval coin CFW pearls, measuring about 21mm x 11mm. Although they are a pale cream with a hint of peach, their orient is out of this world! I hoped they would go with my exotics and I think they do.

I used a 3" gf headpin to make both the dangle and the ear wire. On top of the pearl is a horn bead (soft as fingernails so it won't scratch the pearl), then a gf 2mm bead and a 3mm garnet.

So here are the photos:

First, the 8-9mm exotic rounds -- with the earrings:

Then the 8.5-9.5mm exotic ovals:

Lastly the (still unstrung as I debate what to do with them!) 7.5-8.5mm exotic ovals:

They look lovely and the orient is outstanding!

 

[pandaexpress]

wow the 7.5-8.5 ovals are stunning - I'll have to make a note of picking a strand of those up the next time there is an exotic sale. I really like how they are very intense colors compared to the 8.5-9.5 (which looks like the one I got). Jeremy is in Hong Kong at the moment - I wonder what goodies he is going to get for us - maybe the next monthly special? hmmmm...Or maybe he is there to sell - I can't remember which.