WSS strand necklace

[septembersapphires]

Hi! Pearl newbie here. I just bought this WSS necklace and I have some questions about it:

1. What would be the approximate grade of the pearls?
2. Are these a good buy at USD1, 500?
3. Are these really SSP? Seller claimed that they were bought from an HK jewelry fair.

Appreciate the help!

 

[KarinK]

Hi and welcome!

We need close-ups and preferably a background of white tissue. Nothern light is good for photographing pearls. I assume they feel gritty? Any blemishes? How would you describe them and can you get some close-ups of those as well?

- Karin

 

[jshepherd]

Definitely need a close up on this to see what you have. One thing is absolutely certain, however. It would have been impossible to buy a strand of what I am assuming is a 13-14 mm white South Sea round of any decent quality at the Hong Kong show, let alone resell a strand. It is either of very low quality or is not a South Sea strand.

 

[septembersapphires]

Hi and welcome!

We need close-ups and preferably a background of white tissue. Nothern light is good for photographing pearls. I assume they feel gritty? Any blemishes? How would you describe them and can you get some close-ups of those as well?

- Karin

Hi! I only have these photos from the seller as the pearls are still with her for restringing. There are quite a few noticeable blemishes and not all are very rounded. Sizes range from 12 to 14mm. Lustre is very good though. Sorry for the poor pictures, I'll post better shots once I get them back from the seller.

 

[KarinK]

Hi Again,

Blemishes on SSP's should look a bit like soft ice Also there should not be any pearls of what you could call potato shaped.

The worry could be if they are freshwater pearls. If Jeremy can't judge from the photo then no one can. You might go to some of the vendor sites listed around here and look at the pictures. SSP's usually have a different kind of luster than large freshwater pearls. I have some large fresh water pearls and their luster is more chalk like than satiny as with SSP's.

- Karin

 

[septembersapphires]

Definitely need a close up on this to see what you have. One thing is absolutely certain, however. It would have been impossible to buy a strand of what I am assuming is a 13-14 mm white South Sea round of any decent quality at the Hong Kong show, let alone resell a strand. It is either of very low quality or is not a South Sea strand.

Hi! I've taken some close up shots. Hope you can see it more clearly.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Not an expert at all (Jeremy will settle it when he returns to the thread) but they look to me like SSPs with a lot of flaws-- but then a few months ago, I was fooled by an imitation strand made to look like ringed SSPs. Closer inspection showed me they were clever fakes.

Rub 2 of the pearls against each other gently; if they are real nacre they will feel a bit gritty. If they slide against each other smoothly, that is an indication they are fake.

 

[GemGeek]

So you had the two necklaces made into one?

 

[jshepherd]

They are definitely South Sea and fine for that price. The quality is indeed very low, however.

 

[septembersapphires]

So you had the two necklaces made into one?

Yes, I prefer a longer strand.

 

[septembersapphires]

They are definitely South Sea and fine for that price. The quality is indeed very low, however.

Thank you for your help. Unfortunately, I can only afford this at the moment.

 

[pattye]

Septembersapphires,

Your pearls are very pretty and what a great size and length to have! Most SS have some blems along with a satiny luster; we forgive Mother Nature and just love our pearls anyway. (Isn't that a life lesson~loving and seeing the beauty in imperfection?)

 

[pinkjewel]

You will enjoy your SS pearls!! As for the quality- I was at Saks yesterday and glanced at some South Sea pearls that they had in their fine jewelry area. I was amazed at the significant blemishes in some of the pearls- and they were asking several thousands of dollars. They did, however, have a glorious pistachio tahitian strand that I was drooling over (sigh).

 

[septembersapphires]

Septembersapphires,

Your pearls are very pretty and what a great size and length to have! Most SS have some blems along with a satiny luster; we forgive Mother Nature and just love our pearls anyway. (Isn't that a life lesson~loving and seeing the beauty in imperfection?)

Thank you for your kind words. Indeed we treasure pearls all the more for their imperfections.

 

[septembersapphires]

Thank you for the encouragement! I feel a bit nervous as this is my first fine jewelry purchase (of course they had to be SS pearls!). My pearls are far from perfect but I'll surely have fun playing with them. Now if only I could get my hands on a matching pair of earrings. ..

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Remember you can always remove 2 pearls from the strand to be used for drop earrings.

Don't concern yourself with the flaws. How many things that we love are perfect, anyway?

 

[septembersapphires]

Remember you can always remove 2 pearls from the strand to be used for drop earrings.

Don't concern yourself with the flaws. How many things that we love are perfect, anyway?

Good idea but I want 16mm studs so they have to be a bit more "flawless"

I agree with you though. We love them anyway, flaws and all.

 

[Artpearl]

I too went into a high end store and looked at their pearl selection for thousands of dollars and saw highly noticable pitting. The sales woman explained to me that the pitting is a sign that they were "real". There is so little pearl knowledge out there particularly in stores.

 

[KarinK]

Now, that's a good sales pitch

- Karin