Pinctada Maculata (Pipi) Pearls

[SteveM]

Two finished pieces dropped off in the care of Jeremy and Hisano at Pearl Paradise yesterday. Fabulous PP photography!

The act of setting a random lot of pearls versus meticulous matching has resulted in a tassel with an organic expression and natural feel. It's almost as though someone snagged and landed a mysterious sea creature on their fishing line (in particular the side view). The pearls appear to have 'Self-Organized' in the manner of all things in nature.

View attachment _PP_7801.jpg

For the strand, species ID is not in doubt given the absolute match in the full range of Pinctada Maculata colors.

 

[CortezPearls]

Two finished pieces dropped off in the care of Jeremy and Hisano at Pearl Paradise yesterday. Fabulous PP photography!

The act of setting a random lot of pearls versus meticulous matching has resulted in a tassel with an organic expression and natural feel. It's almost as though someone snagged and landed a mysterious sea creature on their fishing line (in particular the side view). The pearls appear to have 'Self-Organized' in the manner of all things in nature.

View attachment 470857

For the strand, species ID is not in doubt given the absolute match in the full range of Pinctada Maculata colors.

View attachment 470854

GORGEOUS!

 

[SteveM]

Closure for the Alex Collins Poe Pipi lot project! As a quick reminder, here is an image of the pearl material: 1) 110 carats Poe Pipi collected by Alex Collins in the Tuamotus; and 2) a hank of 3mm Poe Pipi collected years ago for an abandoned project, serendipitously in the hands of our chosen jeweler (who is also among the world's preeminent natural pearl traders).

View attachment TeTaongaMaterial.jpg

The 3-carat perfect drop has become the center of a platinum necklace, taking advantage of several pairs of decently-matched pearls, all excluded from the selection for the tassel and cap. Upon discovery of the hank, it was decided to create a multi-strand in lieu of a gold chain for the tassel. Interchangeable hinged bales for the tassel offer the possibility of wearing with either the multi-strand or a chain.

View attachment TeTaonga.jpg

This golden treasure prompted a return to Maori for an appropriate title. The collection is herewith christened

"Te Taonga"

(In Cook Islands Maori, the word for "the treasure" is "te taonga". "Taonga" translates to "treasure" and encompasses
not just material possessions but also cultural heritage, ancestral items, and things of great importance.)​

 

[BWeaves]

WOWZA! Gorgeous!

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Outstanding Steve!

For a modern assembly, it's scarcely more exceptional than this. Well done, sir!

 

[SteveM]

Outstanding Steve!

For a modern assembly, it's scarcely more exceptional than this. Well done, sir!

Dave, thanks for the compliment! As hinted in a prior post the assembly has been successful in large part as an expression of the pearls themselves, versus following some preconceived notion. The execution is masterful, as the settings remain subservient to the pearls. I can't tell you how many discussions we had regarding a choice of two-sided stone for the platinum piece, an idea we finally discarded as a distraction.

 

[lisa c]

We could call it: the Scientific Corner. But we do have more than enough threads as is!

I don’t think there can be too many threads, or marine science threads, and I like that name. I suppose a search engine will provide subsets to help browsers.

 

[SteveM]

A new forum was indeed created:

PEARL DIVER: SCIENCE AND DIVERSION​

Welcome pearl aficionados!​

This newly-named Forum invites deeper “Dives” into the whys and wherefores of the pearl production process, be it natural or cultured.

It may get technical at times, at others unabashedly esoteric.

No question or comment is out of bounds as long as it relates to pearls. Contributions and advice from members, the pearl trade, and the pertinent specialties of Marine and Material Sciences are most welcome.

Curiosity is the Pearl Diver’s mantra!

This new forum was launched without fanfare and has yet to be discovered or utilized in any significant way. Scientific and what might be called 'existential' posts naturally occur in the course of a thread. But there are times that a subject may merit a thread of its own.

 

[SteveM]

After a year in construction, all the pieces of 'Te Taonga' were received just a couple weeks ago. There is reason to think that the tassel would be best worn on the clasp as an enhancer, with the required adjustments to the findings. Comments welcome!

 

[SteveM]

Here's my idea for the clasp: Discard the lobster. Add swivel push clasps on each end of the strand, each attaching to the center hoop along with the tassel on its hinged bale. Additionally, as the strand is too short at 17 inches and a length of 20-21 inches would be desireable, a chain consisting of an odd number of matching hoops (to retain a center hoop) would serve as an integrated and matching extender.

That's about as imaginative as I can get given the limitations of my jewelry experience. Again. comments welcome!

 

[la_corsetiere]

I LOVE that tassel! You might consider removing the clasp and replacing it with an opening ring from which the tassel could be suspended. This would work as a clasp and allow the tassel to be worn with other strands of pearls, a chain, etc. of any desired length. A little hard to explain, but this photo may give you an idea – I have an opening ring from which I have suspended the cage. My set up is just base metal, a temporary home for a monster I recently purchased in the Philippines, but you can find such things in precious metals. The nice thing about this sort of set up is the interchangeability - you could go for a simple gold ring, something with texture, different sizes, etc…mine in the photo just happens to be in the form of an ouroboros.

 

[SteveM]

I LOVE that tassel! You might consider removing the clasp and replacing it with an opening ring from which the tassel could be suspended. This would work as a clasp and allow the tassel to be worn with other strands of pearls, a chain, etc. of any desired length. A little hard to explain, but this photo may give you an idea – I have an opening ring from which I have suspended the cage. My set up is just base metal, a temporary home for a monster I recently purchased in the Philippines, but you can find such things in precious metals. The nice thing about this sort of set up is the interchangeability - you could go for a simple gold ring, something with texture, different sizes, etc…mine in the photo just happens to be in the form of an ouroboros.

Fantastic that you jumped in here! That contrasts with the two push-clasp idea but achieves the same end. Keep in mind at 17 inches the strand needs lengthening, at least to be worn pearls forward. The clasps would allow for a short chain. I've also gone a bit off the deep end thinking of alternate centers to your ring, such as a medallion (using leftover pipis from this project), a two-sided piece of imperial ammolite that's been gathering dust, etc., ad infinitum…What seems certain is that the tassel bale intended for center strand is not going to be practical, or as elegant.