Show us your Mikimotos

[GemGeek]

Nice little pearl collection! I also love the diamond pearl earrings.
The key is saving up to buy fewer finer pieces like yours.

 

[2thdktr]

Thanks Cathykeshi! Lol, wish I was a good photo flipper. I also love anything Ombre. Even just the word ombre rolls off your tongue.
Thanks, PearlDreams-- I love those earrings too, they go with everything and they're relatively modest. I have more Mikis to post, but I'm too tired tonight. Will post tomorrow.

 

[2thdktr]

Nice little pearl collection! I also love the diamond pearl earrings.
The key is saving up to buy fewer finer pieces like yours.

Thank you Gem Geek. When I first started to collect pearls, I knew nothing about Tahitians or South sea pearls-- just akoyas. I was given a beautiful pair of akoya studs for my 21st birthday by my grandmother. They were 8mm and seemed HUGE. My mother told me I couldn't wear them, they were too big (!) Well of course, I was determined to wear them then. And that's how I fell in love with pearls. I also inherited akoyas from my other grandmother and wore them almost daily. Over the years, on my birthday, when I could afford it, I would buy some pearls that appealed to me. Now I am addicted to all! I'll post some more tomorrow.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Haha...I remember when 8mm studs seemed large to me, too.

That's definitely a thing of the past.

 

[BWeaves]

Hahah. Me, too. I just bought 9 mm studs at Ruckus, and they seem small to me now.

Your pearls are gorgeous.

 

[2thdktr]

Haha...I remember when 8mm studs seemed large to me, too.

That's definitely a thing of the past.

I hear you, Pearl Dreams. Pearls are like diamonds...they get smaller with age and you keep on having to buy bigger ones. Now the 8mm in my ears look too small!

 

[2thdktr]

Hahah. Me, too. I just bought 9 mm studs at Ruckus, and they seem small to me now.

Your pearls are gorgeous.

Thank you so much BWeaves, hope you still have power and are hunkered down. I have seen your Mikimoto earrings and they are lovely.

 

[2thdktr]

OK, this is the last of my Mikimoto collection, though I do have more akoya jewelry that I will hopefully post sometime in the future in another thread. These days I am wearing more Tahitians and SSP and GSSP. Taking these out has renewed my interest in them and made me think how to style them differently.
The next three Mikimoto strands I bought at estate sales. I believe two are vintage with silver clasps, and one is more modern with an 18K gold clasp. All three have the clamshell on the clasp. I bought these because for years I wore my grandmother's 18" strand of akoyas and wanted more strands of different lengths to go with different outfits. I probably bought these ~15 years ago and at different times.

 

[2thdktr]

The first Mikimoto strand is 23" end to end, 18K YG clasp, not graduated with 6mm pearls.

 

[2thdktr]

I was told by the dealer that this second strand was a grey baroque Mikimoto. I didn't believe her, I didn't think Mikimoto made those. In the sunlight, these do look grey, but in natural light they are not uniform in color, with grey beige, silver grey and blue grey pearls. They are graduated, 20.5" end to end, with the largest and most blue pearl being~9.25mm and the smallest by the clasp ~6.25mm. They are not dyed, so I think they are natural color and they have nice iridescence. They are baroque, but are the roundest baroque I have ever seen. The clasp is silver and has a round silver blue pearl on it as well.

 

[2thdktr]

My third and last strand, a graduated strand of 20", has a silver clasp and the pearls go from largest ~8.5mm to smallest just under 6mm by the clasp. I put all three together in a picture and realize I could wear them that way! Never have, but I will try.

View attachment 55013


View attachment 55014

 

[dmj]

thought you guys might like these mikimoto for schoeffel pearl tweezers we got from a old jeweller in germany !

 

[Baby-Love]

Here is my Mikomoto earrings I bought from a vintage shop. It's 14K gold and baroque Blue Akoya Pearl.
I don't know how much it worth, but I love it so much.

 

[2thdktr]

Babylove- beautiful! Would love to see a picture of them in your hands facing full on ( or an ear shot).

 

[CathyKeshi]

Baby-Love, those are really lovely, and unusual!

DMJ, wow ... the old pearl tweezers are really cool

 

[BWeaves]

Those tweezers are neat. And I love the double pearls.

 

[CrazyMissy]

Ok, I have a little story here about my "smallies"...

Just this weekend, I found my mom browsing through the Mikimoto catalogue, and she casually said, maybe I should replace my Mikimoto pearls with something bigger. I chuckled and was like, "Ma! I don't own a Mikimoto! They're too pricey!"

"Of course you do! The one I gave you... when you were 7!"

I'm sorry, whuuuut? Did I hear her right? I thought we didn't know where those came from?

So I pressed for more details. Back in the 80's, she saw the pearl set in a shop in the Dubai airport, and she thought that I can wear them, but I was only 3 then. Typical mom, she bought them anyway, used them for a few years until I was old enough to wear them. When she saw the Mikimoto catalogue, she remembered that it was the name of the shop in Dubai.

No box, no papers, she threw them all away. My mom is not brand-conscious, and she had no plans of reselling them.

Off to do research I went. Lo and behold, there were the M markings at the back of the pendant and the backing of the earrings!



So I guess all these years (heck, decades!), my very own smallies are actually Mikis?

 

[amti]

What a wonderful story!! Just goes to tell you that buying quality always pays off!

 

[2thdktr]

They are beautiful, CrazyMissy, and a beautiful set. They look very modern/timeless, still. I don't have papers or anything for mine, either. Doesn't matter. They have the stamp and a great story.

 

[BWeaves]

That's amazing. Maybe if you wrote to Mikimoto and sent photos they could give you more info about the pieces?