[Sueki]

Hi Ingykiz,
Thanks for your comment; yes, I am afraid that it is an everyday strand, in as much as all my pearls are.
I tend to wear what I like, when I like.
This particular necklace looks as good with jeans and a shirt as it does with the little black dress. But the same could be said for all my pearls.
I can dress up a couple of rows of freshwaters with a brooch or two as enhancers, and it looks a million dollars. Well, o.k., maybe not to the enlightened folk on here, but to most people I meet.....

Hi Knotty,
The pearls feel great - smooth as silk, and tactile. As with all my pearls, I can't keep my hands off them when wearing them.


Hi Nicole,
Yes, it's for me. I love pearls and can't bear to part with them.
Even when making presents for family and friends I have a hard time deciding to part with them.......
Re. knotting - I myself find it not at all difficult; fiddly and time-consuming, and requiring the patience of Job, and frustrating sometimes, especially when I get to the end and the silk breaks aaarrrggghhh.... - but not difficult.
But I was a seamstress for many years and well-used to threads and needles and fiddly, fiddly work that needed endless patience.
I read these forums for months before joining, and used all the tips and advice I found here.
Then bought Henrietta Virchik's book and several strands of beading pearls to practice on.
The crystals - I'm not too sure if I'd risk those - they are, presumably, faceted and the edges may well scratch the pearls.
These silver beads don't have any sharp edges next to the pearls.
You are quite right re. the pearls being semi-baroques.
I checked the info. from the vendor, and these are, indeed, semi-baroques. There are a couple of round / off-round pearls, but the spacer beads give the illusion of the pearls being rounder than they actually are.
Thanks to all of you for your positive comments - I am sitting here with a big grin on my face, and now consider myself to be a lowly beader at last.
Not, you understand, an esteemed beader; but I am confident now that I can make a simple knotted string of pearls as a gift and be fairly sure that the recipient will be delighted.

P.S. And I've solved the problem of silk breaking - don't knot with chapped hands......

[Pearl_dreams]

I would like to buy that book-- the one by Henrietta Virchik. Is is commonly available in bead shops or is there a reliable online source for it?

[Caitlin]

I found it at the Land of Odds.com Also Suzanne Hye of Ebay's Hye on Beads was one of Henrietta's students. I think she has it too. I am sure she has the video by Henrietta.

[Sueki]

Ah, thank you Caitlin - once again you beat me to it.
It's also here - and this is the vendor I bought mine from.
I hope I'm allowed to post the link.....
http://cgi.ebay.com/Pearl-Bead-Strin...QQcmdZViewItem

[Caitlin]

Yes you are allowed to post a link. Advertising is when someone joins only to advertise their wares. Reviews and links to third parties are an important part of our function. We like it when sellers can put up a webpage under their signature, and of course when our growers get something special, we love to see it.

[knotty panda]

I should order tha book. Heard about it for years, but never read it. Bet she's got a lot of neat tricks.

[Pearl_dreams]

Thanks! My knots definitely need some work and this my be just the ticket!

[jerin]

Originally Posted by knotty panda

I should order tha book. Heard about it for years, but never read it. Bet she's got a lot of neat tricks.

I think you might be able to get this book through Amazon.com as well (new and old ones for a good price). I have ordered from Finding King but it took a long time to get the items, so...

Happy knotting!

[Pearl_dreams]

I found it online within our local library system so I put a reserve on it. I like to "try before I buy" whenever I can!

I've been using the tweezer method and I get my knots as close as possible-- but they still aren't as snug as the ones on the strand from PP. So I think I need to try another knotting method-- the one that twists my brain in a knot, LOL! If the book isn't enough to help me make those mental contortions, I'll bite the bullet and buy the video.

*sigh* The more I spend on books and videos, the less I have left to spend on pearls.