Southsea Pearl vs Edison Pearls

I still have the pendant - how do I now take a photo under the same lighting conditions? The shot above was done by a professional photographer some 7 years ago .....
I know that the pearl is not what it once was .....
 
I get that, but why not take a photo as it is today, and then in a few years, take another under similar lighting. It will add to the body of information.


I am now getting off onto a tangent, into broader issues. I have been reading a lot lately about how the younger generation is less interested in accumulating possessions and more desirous of accumulating experiences. There have been studies done that show that people are more likely to have enduring satisfaction from experiences than from material possessions. The Tiny House movement is partly about this. Many people want to be less encumbered, so that they can go out and do more.

Jewelry has traditionally been marketed as something to pass along to future generations. I wonder if the time has come for a change in this concept.

Thoughts?
 
Lovely Baroque, London Pearl.

As for passing down jewellery, I am more a gem person. I will pass mine down to my children.

Thank you for alerting us to the possibility of Edisons not lasting that long. I shall, when my baroques return from the safe, post a picture of it here. I should be sorry if the nacre should fade or peel off or the lustre should wear off. If that does happen, I shall replace them with southsea baroques.

I shall also buy a pair of 15 mm southseas this September, just to compare their nacre with those of Edisons. I won't spend on a strand. Just 2 very big SSPs and then I shall wait and see.
 
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Pearl Dreams said:
I'm 61, and I'll be happy if I last another 20 years! ;)

Not so worried about my pearls. Nothing lasts forever.
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Haha, PD, my thought too! And I hope we get to enjoy your humor for another 20 years! ..while wearing beautiful pearls of course!

LondonPearl, thanks for alerting P-G to this issue. I agree it would be very difficult to duplicate the exact photographic conditions 10-20 years later to document your specualtions. But this is an interesting conversation just the same.

Icyjade, thanks for raising some very interesting questions! I would want to know what are the processes for Edisons that makes them more likely to fade compared to other FW pearls.

Katbran, eager to read to report. Thanks your keeping us informed!
 
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I think it's tough though when other jewelry retains at least some inherent value. Like gold (price per ounce), diamonds, or gemstones. Yes, they fluctuate up or down like any other commodity and what you get in resale is not what you pay in retail, but they don't go to a value of 0 after x number of years. In contrast, even high quality pearls seem not to hold value - the yellowed akoyas are the best example to me. I have to admit that it's made me think twice about how much I might want to spend on a high quality round tahitian or south sea necklace vs spending that money on something that might retain more of its value over time. And if Edison's don't hold luster over time, then I can see a reluctance to sell them to a client who is looking for something that will hold beauty if not value. While Edison's are a fraction of the cost of a round WSS strand, they would still not be inexpensive for most people.
 
LondonPearl, Are you going to be at International Jewellery London September 3-5? If you are, will you bring your pendant to show Pearl Guide members who would like to look at it in person?
 
lilliefuzzysocks said:
LondonPearl, Are you going to be at International Jewellery London September 3-5? If you are, will you bring your pendant to show Pearl Guide members who would like to look at it in person?
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I will be at the London Show (A89), Hong Kong (1E38) and Vicenza (6-225) next month (We are closed on Saturdays). I will take a selection of very early harvest Edison's to all 3 shows for any of you to inspect and discuss. As for the pendant above - I will try to take a photo of it today for you to compare ...but it will be a shot with an i phone not a studio shot like the one above. At this stage I don't know if that particular pendant will be at IJL.
 
London pearl I will be attending the London event. I would love to hear more about this Edison dilemma if that's ok? I will come look for you there. Will you be there on the 3rd?
 
Jwymark said:
London pearl I will be attending the London event. I would love to hear more about this Edison dilemma if that's ok? I will come look for you there. Will you be there on the 3rd?
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I will be at the show on the 3rd .... and every other day!
 
IMG_6238.jpg

As promised - an image taken today. These is strangely quite a lot of sunlight in London today (Rare!) - so this one is much better lit than the original above. My opinion is that the lustre and colour are not what they once were. This particular piece - due to the value tends to be kept in a dark vault! Other pearls in my view which have seen much more daylight have been much more markedly changed over time. Strong light will tend bleach many things over time - especially works of fine art. The rate of change is what bothers me because it speaks to the longevity of the pearl.
 
LondonPearl said:
I agree with you. But there is much more to this story than meets the eye. Having worked with 'Edison' pearls since the very first harvest .... and having had the largest suppliers entire harvest consigned to me a few years ago ... the real issue is NOT lustre. It is longevity. I would be happy to discuss this privately with anyone who has a real interest in this. I will be exhibiting at the London, Vicenza and Hong Kong shows next month if anyone wants to chat about this.
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'Having worked with 'Edison' pearls since the very first harvest'

Which year was this, London Pearl?

'and having had the largest suppliers entire harvest consigned to me a few years ago'

Which year was this, London Pearl, and if I may ask, which supplier? Grace?

Thank you.
 
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The only pearls I've ever had deteriorate were:

1. My grandmother's 7 mm akoya choker. However, she bought inexpensive akoyas with thin nacre and both Nana and I wore them almost every day for 60 years. It took that long for the nacre to wear off, though, and I could still wear them and nobody would bat an eyelash except a pearl expert.

2. My coin pearls. They were very shiny and had amazing orient when I first bought them. I couldn't decide if all my new, really good, pearl purchases from PP, Kojima and Komoka were making my coin pearls look duller. Or if the coin pearls really did get dull! They just seem really blah now. They have really thick nacre, but they don't pop like they used to.
 
EileenK said:
'Having worked with 'Edison' pearls since the very first harvest'

Which year was this, London Pearl?

'and having had the largest suppliers entire harvest consigned to me a few years ago'

Which year was this, London Pearl, and if I may ask, which supplier? Grace?

Thank you.
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Eileen - It was in 2012 and was many millions of US dollars in value. I think most people can guess which supplier it was - it is not really sensible to state ones suppliers on an open forum. By 2012 we had already worked for many years with that supplier with "Edison" pearls.
 
So before 2012, you had worked with that supplier of Edison pearls. Which year did you first start to work with them? It is ok. No need to state supplier. I find Edisons fascinating so it is good ot hear a bit of when they started.
 
I believe the first pearls were in 2005/6 and by 2007 there was already quite a significant production.
 
LondonPearl said:
I believe the first pearls were in 2005/6 and by 2007 there was already quite a significant production.
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Are you sure you are referring to Edison pearls? Although the Chinese pearl farmers were bead nucleating the mollusks during that time frame, it is my understanding that they were not able to produce round pearls. The initial results of their bead nucleating efforts produced baroque pearls known as fire balls.
 
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