real ssp?

[annamarie]

are these real SS pearls or freshwater marketed as SS?

i was told colors are not treated except for their green and choco brown pearls, all others have natural color and luster.

1. gritty.

2. loose pearls have some (5) shallow bites. bracelet charms have noticeable marks.

3. champagne gold - loose pair are $300+. bracelets are $1200+ to $1600+ each.

4. bracelet is 14k standard yellow gold.

5. loose pair are 13.9mm. bracelet charms are 12mm.

 

[MSC]

wow! those bracelets are to die for! I'm sure someone who has cultured pearl knowledge will come around to give you some more information

 

[annamarie]

wow! those bracelets are to die for! I'm sure someone who has cultured pearl knowledge will come around to give you some more information

thanks Andrea! i really love the bracelets! and im planning to make one using the loose champagne gold pearls.

 

[pattye]

AnneMarie,

Welcome!
Wow, that is quite a nice selection of pearls! There is no way to tell from a photo whether the golden SS are color treated or not. Sometimes an expert can tell by examining in person, but sometimes only by lab testing can be sure.

The bracelet with 5 dark pearls~I can't make out the color at all, are they brown? please retake the photo on a white paper towel. Were you told these are Tahitians?

Also the bracelet in the orange box, cannot see well enough to give an opinion, please also retake this photo, too, if possible.

The blue silver are probably natural color, just my opinion. Thanks for sharing. Please tell us more about where these were purchased and how you came to love pearls.

 

[dkan 168]

I have seen 12mm+ CFWPs that can pass as SSPs during a recent trip to Hong Kong, and have grown to be more wary about purchasing big ticket items from vendors that I am not familiar with.

The white metal bracelet with 5 drop shaped pearls look like they are Tahitians to me.

The yellow metal bracelet with 5 silver round pearls is the one I suspect to be CFWPs.

The yellow metal bracelet with multi-colour pearls - can't tell as the image is too small.

The loose pair of champagne gold pearls may be dyed CFWPs, as IMHO, the price is way to low for that size and quality to be genuine SSPs.

I could be wrong as I am no expert!

DK

 

[annamarie]

AnneMarie,

Welcome!
Wow, that is quite a nice selection of pearls! There is no way to tell from a photo whether the golden SS are color treated or not. Sometimes an expert can tell by examining in person, but sometimes only by lab testing can be sure.

The bracelet with 5 dark pearls~I can't make out the color at all, are they brown? please retake the photo on a white paper towel. Were you told these are Tahitians?

Also the bracelet in the orange box, cannot see well enough to give an opinion, please also retake this photo, too, if possible.

The blue silver are probably natural color, just my opinion. Thanks for sharing. Please tell us more about where these were purchased and how you came to love pearls.

thanks for the warm welcome, Pattye!

whether dyed or not, do you think the 13.9mm champagne gold loose pearls are SS or freshwater? and how about the 12mm silver pearls?

i just started appreciating pearls. and im loving every single second of learning and appreciating its beauty!

 

[annamarie]

I have seen 12mm+ CFWPs that can pass as SSPs during a recent trip to Hong Kong, and have grown to be more wary about purchasing big ticket items from vendors that I am not familiar with.

The white metal bracelet with 5 drop shaped pearls look like they are Tahitians to me.

The yellow metal bracelet with 5 silver round pearls is the one I suspect to be CFWPs.

The yellow metal bracelet with multi-colour pearls - can't tell as the image is too small.

The loose pair of champagne gold pearls may be dyed CFWPs, as IMHO, the price is way to low for that size and quality to be genuine SSPs.

I could be wrong as I am no expert!

DK

hi dk! thanks for your feedback.

So you think the 13.9 mm champagne gold pearls are freshwater and not SS mainly because of the price? without regarding its price, would you have a doubt if it's indeed SS? how do we differentiate anyway? i know i still need to study more to know my pearls well

and what made u suspect that the 12mm silver pearls are freshwater? do u also think that its color is natural?

 

[dkan 168]

The champagne gold pearls look dyed to me, too solid, too even, too dull, and not natural. That was my initial thought without looking at the details of your post with regard to size and price.

Again, certain markings and the surfaces from what I could see in the photo of the silver pearls suggested they are CFWPs and not SSPs, without reading the details of your posts about size and price. However, I do believe their colours are natural though.

DK

 

[annamarie]

just got the certification from a reputable jewelry maker: the loose pearls are genuine SS with natural champagne gold color. actual sizes are 13.8mm and 13.9mm.

 

[mommyof4]

Natural South Sea Genuine Gold?

Natural South Sea Genuine Gold?



18" 8-9mm Natural South Sea Genuine Gold/Pink Pearl necklace?

Pearls feel gritty when rubbed together
Necklace feels heavy
Pearls feel cool when in your hand
They are double knotted in between each pearl with a 14K gold clasp

 

[pearlescence]

Hi and welcome Mommyof4.
These are probably real pearls but they are not south sea pearls. South sea pearls are never that shade of salmony pink. These look like average quality off round freshwater pearls. Since the description of the pearls is wrong the clasp may be plated.
eBay?

 

[pattye]

Agree with Wendy, not SS pearls but probably cultured freshwater. Pretty color, could be natural color or could be dyed, can't tell from the photo. Did you pay a SS price for these???? I like the color!

 

[mommyof4]

Pattye, I ended up paying $29.00 for the strand, and Wendy yes I bought them on Ebay. I guess I have alot of learning to do still...lol

 

[mommyof4]

what about this one? 17x12 undrilled

 

[pattye]

Mommyof4,

If the pinky coral strand looks that good in person, you did fine for $29.00! Still, it is fraudulent to describe it as SS.

As for the large white drop, not very good luster~who is going to drill it? Is there a photo showing the other side? (thinking about blemishes.)

 

[mommyof4]

I am still learning about Pearls, when buying on Ebay what should I look for? Everyone I have bought from has been selling for at least 4 years and has no less than 98% good feedback.

 

[pattye]

Honestly, 98% feedback is VERY poor! Even some sellers with 100% feedback are blatantly dishonest and misrepresent their pearls, especially when it comes to South Sea, Tahitians and Akoya. Sad to say, especially sellers from China, well, they are selling cultured freshwater pearls grown in China! So when you do a search on ebay for South Sea pearls, sadly, you will get page after page of freshwater pearls purposely mislabeled.

Mostly you are seeing a stock photo, not the item you will receive. The most trustworthy sellers will state that you will receive the item in the photo. LUSTER is the most important quality in a pearl, and that is difficult enough for any of us to judge when seeing the photo of an actual item.

What is it you are looking for? We can point you in the right direction if you'll ask! And it is great that you are asking questions about specific items. You will have to know pearls really, really well to recognize a real bargain on Ebay from a photo and they are few and far between and more likely in vintage pearls, imo, not in loose, unfinished strands.

There are a FEW trustworthy pearl sellers on ebay that I know of and hopefully others will chime in with ones they know of. You can use their photos and descriptions as a learning experience! Each of these sell a variety of pearls, including South Sea.

Agustus

Ehret Design Gallery

RainbowIslandPearls


For freshwater pearls only,

Pearllunar

Lei Family Jewelry-2


Please also check the online sellers who post here on the forum, committed to proper descriptions and disclosures. Below the names of posters you will see links to stores. Check them out. You will become familiar with the range of prices for various sizes, shapes, quality of the types of pearls. Check out the bigger online stores, such as Pearl Paradise, Pearlescence, The Pearl Outlet, Harmony Pearls and MORE. Sign up for their email list so you get notices of their sales.

Many of us have small shops, check those out too, to LEARN, see photos, accurate descriptions, etc.

Most of us have spent hours reporting the fraud on ebay, nothing happens and I've pretty much given up. Not saying you shouldn't shop there, but it is very easy to spend $25-30 here and there, realize the pearls are mediocre or poor quality, not worth returning and not pearls you are proud to wear.

We purposely don't have a list of "approved" sellers; the ones I've mentioned have a variety of pearl types for you to view~South Sea, Tahitians, Freshwater, Keshi, Akoya.

Much still to be said, but I'll get off my soap box for now and let someone else have a turn!

 

[KarinK]

I think we've all tried our hand at eBay and I agree that it is mostly a lottery with very bad odds. One important thing to do, though, if you are a gambler (as most of us are from time to time ) is to check a sellers feedback at toolhaus.org. This site gives you the neutral and negative feedback plus what the sellers reaction was. I find the percentage on eBay utterly useless but Toolhaus gives you a general idea in most cases.

Here are the few eBay sellers I check in on at times looking for good deals but I agree with Pattye that most of us have learned to drop the deals and save the money for what we really want or for a genuine sale or a once in a lifetime opportunity.

- http://stores.ebay.com/AGUSTUS-Collection?_rdc=1 (Sven is a member here and I have only heard good things about him. Occationally I have gotten good deals on single, unset SSP's up for auction)

- http://stores.ebay.com/auctionpearls?_rdc=1 (This seller has been mentioned on PG with reasonable goods. I have not bought from them myself. I have not noticed pearls being misrepresented but I have a feeling you get what you pay for here.)

- http://stores.ebay.com/PEARL-SOCIETY-ONLINE?_rdc=1 (I've bought from this seller twice, a large SSP enhancer and a pair of unset, slightly baroque but well matched SSP. The pair was $55, can't remember the enhancer. It is my experience that the items are well and accurately described. I would not pay Buy it Now prices, though.)

- http://stores.ebay.com/pearlluna-pearlsonly?_rdc=1 (Sells reasonable freshwater pearls. I don't quite trust their other categories, though)

- http://stores.ebay.com/RainbowIslandPearls?_rdc=1 (Comes recommended by several on this forum. I haven't bought from her but it looks fine)

If you can make your own jewelry you save a lot. I also suggest you have fun following all the links from the signatures here. You'll learn a lot about what different pearls look like and cost. Sign up for newsletters to get first hand info on deals and discounts - and of course keep following PG

- Karin

 

[mommyof4]

Thank You so much Pattye and Karin I have been wanting to take them to get an appraisal to resell but it is so expensive and I have alot of pearls right now. Its probably not even worth it to get them appraised. I have looked online in my area and have only found one GIA certified jeweler close by. Should I just maybe take my pearls to him and see if he thinks any of them are worth having appraised?

 

[KarinK]

What is the appraisal for? Insurance purposes? Identification? Keep in mind that a GIA jeweler may not know anything about pearls.

- Karin