Old but Fresh ?

[Josh]

Hi Caitlin and everyone else,
Price depends on size, the bigger the keishi the more expensive. As for prices, I suggest you contact DFrey from this forum. Care Ehret can also give you prices. The price of a necklace of keishi would depend on their size. Keishi get inspected and we pay the $2.30/g. We can't export real crumby ones but otherwise there is not a real strict sort on them. They are after all pretty much pure pearl.

 

[knotty panda]

$2.3/g for inspection seems a bit steep, but what's a pearl farmer to do, right? So what happens after the feds do their thing. Do they return them to you? Or do you tell the feds, I have sold this lot, please inspect and send on to my customer?

 

[Josh]

$2.30/g IS fricken' steep. Consider that all keishi have the requisite thickness and you find it hard to make any sense out of it whatsoever. After you pay it you have 10days to export it in a sealed (by them of course) bag. If you don't get your $#!t together in time, you have to have them re-open the package and reseal it again.

 

[GemGeek]

$2.30/g IS fricken' steep. Consider that all keishi have the requisite thickness and you find it hard to make any sense out of it whatsoever. After you pay it you have 10days to export it in a sealed (by them of course) bag. If you don't get your $#!t together in time, you have to have them re-open the package and reseal it again.

That's outrageous! Do they charge less for regular Tahitian pearls, or the same? How can you make money when Cook Islands and other places don't have the same restrictions? It must be very frustrating at times to be a pearl farmer. Maybe you could collaborate with Roger Beattie on his book. The title is something like "Why the Government are SOBs"!

 

[Satine De La Courcel]

Rubies, Garnets, Tanzanite. Saphire, amethyst, Turquoise, beads Etc... I think I saw Caitlyn mention Small balack pearls.. ANd I remember somethign about her making something along these lines. Correct me if I am wrong Okay Caitlyn..

I would use two- 2mm then put a 4 mm gemstone then two 2 mm then a big pearl and repeat that for an added twist...

Not bad for a simple 1500's piece though... I have nto played with a replica of this one yet.. I do not do much wire work I am only now getting my feet wet in that department.. I am still too chicken...


Blaire I really Like your version. simploe and very elegant! so many looks wiht just one necklace you can get.. Very Nice!

Cheers
Ash

 

[GemGeek]

Rubies, Garnets, Tanzanite. Saphire, amethyst, Turquoise, beads Etc... I think I saw Caitlyn mention Small balack pearls.. ANd I remember somethign about her making something along these lines. Correct me if I am wrong Okay Caitlyn..

I would use two- 2mm then put a 4 mm gemstone then two 2 mm then a big pearl and repeat that for an added twist...

Not bad for a simple 1500's piece though... I have nto played with a replica of this one yet.. I do not do much wire work I am only now getting my feet wet in that department.. I am still too chicken...


Blaire I really Like your version. simploe and very elegant! so many looks wiht just one necklace you can get.. Very Nice!

Cheers
Ash

Thanks! I love the ideas -- wish I had the time to try them now, but I will get to them. I like the idea of alternating pearls with gemstones a lot!

 

[Josh]

That's outrageous! Do they charge less for regular Tahitian pearls, or the same? How can you make money when Cook Islands and other places don't have the same restrictions? It must be very frustrating at times to be a pearl farmer. Maybe you could collaborate with Roger Beattie on his book. The title is something like "Why the Government are SOBs"!

Blaire, thanks for feeling our pain. It's not in our government's interest to right a wrong and evolve with our current market situation here in Tahiti. It IS outrageous when you consider the numerous families in Polynesia that can no longer make a living with pearls. Not too long ago I saw a guy I know parking cars here on Tahiti. He used to graft pearls on a farm not too far from mine. For those of you who don't know, the grafter of the farm is at the top of the food chain and is supposed to make pretty good money.
The tax of $2.30USD a gram applies to all pearls and keishi, no matter their size. Also, as the US dollar drops it only gets worse for us.

 

[GemGeek]

Blaire, thanks for feeling our pain. It's not in our government's interest to right a wrong and evolve with our current market situation here in Tahiti. It IS outrageous when you consider the numerous families in Polynesia that can no longer make a living with pearls. Not too long ago I saw a guy I know parking cars here on Tahiti. He used to graft pearls on a farm not too far from mine. For those of you who don't know, the grafter of the farm is at the top of the food chain and is supposed to make pretty good money.
The tax of $2.30USD a gram applies to all pearls and keishi, no matter their size. Also, as the US dollar drops it only gets worse for us.

That's depressing. I hope your harvest keeps getting bigger and better so you can keep ahead. We need you. By the way, I enjoy seeing Care Ehret promoting your pearls!

 

[Caitlin]

Hi Josh
I am sorry to hear about the thoughtless rigidity in Tahiti regarding "the pearl tax".

Being oldish and having a sceptical eye toward human nature, I would not be suprised if this kind of unyeilding attitude did not result in some smuggling out of Tahiti. Or rather, I am sure it does.

Josh, (in spite of your funny signature) I do NOT intend to put you in that category! You have shown me/us to be respectful, scrupulous, and beyond diligence in your greenness. This is just a comment on human nature and that the gov't of Tahiti is bucking it, if they don't lighten up!

 

[Josh]

Thanks you two.
Caitlin as far as the issue of rule bending is concerned I'm going to hold my tongue this time. The last time I brought it up on this forum I copped a talking to from our pearl promotion board.

 

[Caitlin]

From the Tahiti pearl promotion board? They read this forum? Oh wow! We need to use this forum as a bully pulpit!

heh heh heh Here goes!
Tahiti needs to bend a little, it seems to me from what I have learned. Galatea pearls has stuff being held hostage in Tahiti because the nacre is not thick enough on the pearls he has carved. Obviously, carving is a great solution for thin-nacred Tahitians instead of grinding them up! Thin nacre is exactly what is needed to produce those incredibly creative and beautiful carved pearls.

Tahiti is also cutting itself out from putting a thin nacre layer on gemstones by its rigid inspection bureaucracy and/or requirements. It obviously does a lot more than just inspect the goods. It rigidifies the changing pearl scene into a format that seemed good when it started, but does not meet the realities of a changing market or an artist's need for material.

Charging the same rate for keshis as for perfect pearls seems silly and pointlesss as well. I think Tahiti can come up with a better solution than what I have heard about, so far!

Not to mention that it says a lot to me when a top nucleator has to get a day job to survive in Tahiti!

 

[jshepherd]

The .8 mm nacre requirement was a great decision, but the law needs to be examined. There are several instances where this law makes no sense.

Should a 16 mm Tahitian pearl and a 6 mm pearl fall under the same guidelines? I for one would love to see smaller Tahitian pearls coming out of Tahiti. Why should all those pearls be destroyed. A 7 mm pearl with .7 mm nacre is acceptable to me.

Why should baroque pearls be destroyed if one side boasts 2 mm of nacre, yet the other (the side with the bead) only have .6 mm. This can be beautiful pearl and be made into a stunning piece of high-quality jewelry. But under today's law, that pearl is destroyed. Thanks to the .8 mm law we see so few baroques coming out of French Polynesia, yet we see baroque white and golden South Sea all the time.

 

[Valeria101]

Looks like they need some facilities to increase output, 'cause the price-sustaining policy worked too well! A good problem to have, methinks

No idea how much more sophisticated pearl-herding bureaucracy could get before tearing away from one loophole to the next. It is an intriguing question though.

 

[Valeria101]

Back to the 'Old but Fresh' theme.

What best could happen to some large, very baroque, fine pearls?

When these pearl settings were made, hat pins were 'in' and that's what they become. Would imagine that today they would become earrings or pendants - possibly pearl enhancers or stations on a fabulous necklace

LINK TO SOURCE Jugendstil Hat Pin cca. 1900 by Theordor Fahrner at Tadema Gallery.
Ex. Pforzheim Decorative Art Museum, 1991. In gold, steel & pearl. Length: 22cm Width: 1.3 cm.

I cannot quite imagine how these were made, but my jeweler seems to have an idea. To my asking 'how do you close that mesh so close to a pearl' he just answered 'you don't!' with a wink. Apparently, some secrets are only accessed with an admission ticket (and this one would not be cheap!)

 

[Josh]

Sorry for missing this thread. Been busy with our latest harvest.

I think the only way the government in Tahiti will even begin to re-examine pearl export policy is if the pearl buyers who come to Tahiti put pressure on them. If the numerous websites that are represented here on Pearl-Guide one day decide to speak up, I think we will see the beginning of change.

 

[SteveM]

Switching islands…

During current communications with the Cooks we are offered this bracelet of 17 10-14mm keshi. These pearls are from the 2007 harvest on Manihiki, having been 're' discovered in a lost line of oysters at a smaller farm following several years incognito.

I suggested to the seller that a chain/pearl necklace might be a more spectacular and valuable application. He agreed and proposed 18k yellow chain with wire wrapping for the pearls. Upon searching the term 'wire wrap' (yet a jewelry novice) I came upon this thread.

In any case, these seem to be some pretty serious pearls. I also take it from comments in this thread that wire wrap would be more than proper for keshi. Comments…Encouragement?

This little project is threatening to push us into the world of blacks following my focus on golden poe pipi of past months…

Steve
Seattle

 

[GemGeek]

Heavens! Those are monsters! (big and beautiful) I'd put lots of white precious metal beads in between. By wire wrapping, do you mean putting it on a wire with loops at each end to attach to chain? I'd hate to cover any part of the outside with wire. Hours of FUN!

 

[Valeria101]

I also take it from comments in this thread that wire wrap would be more than proper for keshi. Comments…Encouragement?

Wire wrap most often looks cheap... And these pearls are not, I suppose. Perhaps the combination would be compelling through irony. Is that what you intend? Or did yo refe to the Farhnrer construction posted above? (not wire wrap - not sure if it has a name...).

Would they be safer (from wear) in an earring & pendant combination then in a bracelet? Four pearls could be the earrings (stud & drop) and the rest clustered in a cascade-style pendant and chain stations, perhaps.

Even THIS... the pearls look inconventional enough to stand a simple setting. Gem beads at the ends of or between the pearls, the clasp or some other detail might make the piece look serious even to someone who does not know much about the pearls themselves.

I don't know what to say. These, I just want in any form of aggregation !

 

[Caitlin]

Hi

I like those pearls best as a bracelet- just as they are. That is my favorite way to wear pearls I love- so I can see them. Since they are keshi, I think they will stand up to a lot of wear- even as a bracelet.

I have a freshwater bracelet with big (not as big as those) pearls in natural purples. It is my favorite for everyday wear. I only take it off when it is going to get wet and soapy- as in doing dishes or showering. Everytime I look at it, it has slid around and I get to see another side. I have it on a 8mm hemispherical magnet clasp that makes it easy to take off and put on, but is virtually impossible to accidently yank it open.

 

[SteveM]

While 'wire wrapping' got me to this thread on this occasion, I'm as yet unclear about the application. Need to learn more.

Caitlin,

Yes, my suggestion to reposition these pearls to the neck was a selfish one. If I were the wearer, I would certainly want them in full view. And I also like the pure mass of pearls without separation (counting on the durability of 100% nacre). The clasp is magnetic, as yours.


At this point it seems that a consensus on the apparent quality/rarity of these pearls might be the tipping point for acquisition, since reconfiguration can take place at any time.

Thanks to all.

Steve
Seattle