Storage & humidity for FWP

[SarahR]

First off, thanks to everyone for their advice and guidance to me last month on pink FWP. I bought several strands while on my last Beijing trip and have mostly given them away or sold them at cost to my friends. I'm just nuts about them.

Now I'm wondering how to store mine. The necklaces came in black velour-type jewelers boxes, but I really like being able to fondle...errr...look at them at will. Also, I thought I read that they need to be exposed to some degree of humidity to maintain their good color. So I'd like to be able to haul them in & out of the bathroom easily (so I can run a bit of water for some humidity - I'm not planning on drenching them).

Are pearl folders a good choice? They seem to be slightly more open than the jewelry boxes.

I would really like something where I could easily see through it, so that I don't have to open each box to find the pink strand, or the lavender, etc.

Any suggestions? What system do y'all use?

TIA!

Nancy

 

[BeadersSecret]

Hello Nancy

What I do is put my pieces in silk pouches\folders. The colours of the pouches can help you in getting a system going to identify whats in what colour - any normally ventilated room will be sufficient for storing them.

 

[pearlescence]

Too much humidity becomes damp and while damp will not damage the pearls it will start the silk rotting - just like any permanently damp natural fibre.

 

[Sueki]

Hi Sarah,
Re. opening each box or pouch to find a particular item - this is how I keep my jewellery.
In other drawers I have antique pieces in individual clear-lidded boxes so I can still see items at a glance.

 

[BeadersSecret]

Sueki, what a clever chickadee you are.
It really covers all aspects beautifully.

 

[Amrita]

Susan, I had a feeling that you were a well-organised lady! Your picture of the neatly partitioned pearl-drawer just proved it! Thanks for sharing! And the clear-lidded boxes are also a great idea.

 

[GemGeek]

I would be opening my drawers all day long if they were filled with beautiful pearls!

 

[KAC]

Hey Sarah,

My GF keeps an abalone shell in her bathroom and just places whatever pieces she's been wearing lately in the shell. Its looks good and they get some high humidity time when they are in rotation. Plus its got her in the habit of NOT sleeping in your pearl earrings, pendants etc. - we had a problem there for a while

Really I wouldn't worry about the humidity to much unless you live in the desert or feel it really is too dry. In most cases they will be just fine in your bedroom or wherever.

 

[Caitlin]

That desert caveat is so true, esp. in the winter when it is crackling w electricity dry. That shell in the bathroom trick is just what's needed. In fact, since most of my strands are on Powerpro, so I can hang them on a set of little hooks I put up in the bathroom with no ill effects. The Freshwater pearls themselves love water. I put my silk-strung Tahitians in the abalone shell. Don't have any experience w akoyas, but I would worry about too much moisture and too much dryness with those.

 

[barbie biggs]

Lovely storage Sueki,

aren't pearls just divinity?

barbie

 

[Precious Pearl]

I was at the most well-known jeweller in Sweden two days ago to look at a jewellery box and they told me that pearls should be stored in separate boxes/pouches that are "closed"- one strand per "box". I don't know why but that was what I was told.

 

[pearlescence]

...because they wanted to sell you boxes?
In the pearl factories and wholesalers they are kept en masse in plastic bags

 

[Sueki]

I was at the most well-known jeweller in Sweden two days ago to look at a jewellery box and they told me that pearls should be stored in separate boxes/pouches that are "closed"- one strand per "box". I don't know why but that was what I was told.

That'd be absolutely fine for anyone other than a p.g.'er.......
Once your pearl wardrobe grows, it's a pain in the neck trying to find a particular item when all are stored in closed boxes, unless they are clear-lidded boxes, and then those boxes begin to take up a lot of space.

 

[pattye]

That'd be absolutely fine for anyone other than a p.g.'er.......

How true, Sueki!

 

[SarahR]

I agree with you, Sueki! It's annoying to have to open & close boxes to find the right necklace.

But my other concern is that because I travel a lot, I don't want to just leave my pearls in a drawer. I put them in in a few bags and put them in my safe, then remove them when I come home again. I need a system that's fairly portable.

I'm such a whiner, I know! I want something that'll go from bathroom to dresser to safe with minimal hassle. I'm still looking.....still love the idea of that big shell in the bathroom!

 

[Hanaleimom]

pearls

 

[Hanaleimom]

I've tried organza and silk bags but don't like that system much. I had colored bags too. Sometimes the bags really don't show the pearl colors well. So I stopped using them. I bought some fishing tackle boxes with removable dividers ($1.49 each) at a hardware store, similar to this http://www.riogrande.com/MemberArea...565&page=GRID&free_text|1257010463281=storage .

The clear boxes let me see at a glance what I want to pick out. I stack them in the safe. For ropes or larger beads/pearls, I remove the dividers to double the space. This system is better for me. I store nicer strands in satin pearl folders. Each folder can accommodate a couple strands.

PS: Each box has items separated by colors and types. Color FW in one. Whites are by themselves. Tahitians are by themselves.

 

[jerin]

Hi Sarah,

if you got just a few necklaces there is no problem finding the right one. If you, on the other hand start to getting a collection of pearl jewellery it might not be too much of an effort to write down your strands in a order of numbers, colours, types and so on. I do realise that it will take some time but once you get started, it will come in quite handy.

As a kind of "introduction" you could sort your pearls after type, i.e. freshwater, Tahitians, White SS and so on. As I have a lot of strands I also write down if the strand in question is a one-row or double strand or whatever.

For each and every strand I have written down quality, price, length, how many pearls and really important: type of clasp so you always can identify a certain strand. I also make a note if there is a strand that is a favorite of mine but you could hold such an inventory much shorter. It is just that I like to know everything, comes in very handy if something should be stolen, as I have all the facts together... and the insurance companies want to know everything there is to know..

In these computerized times it goes rather fast as I can copy the facts of a certain strand and change only what?s new or different.

 

[Nerida]

...because they wanted to sell you boxes?
In the pearl factories and wholesalers they are kept en masse in plastic bags

ah, but they don't have clasps at that stage so no scratching.