[olivia24]

I'm learning so much! Thanks Ashley!

[Valeria101]

Originally Posted by GemGeek

If only I had a swan-like neck so I would look as good in a choker as that high fashion model...

Man! I can't stand to wear those either! So uncomfortable... Never knew how a human's neck moves when eating and drinking until I tried such a thing. Cannot imagine how one would get used to them. Even if anyone did look good in them...

Add a small pearl or two in the back, and I'm game It was the idea of a graduated short choker ('Ras de cou' - in English?) that appealed.

[Valeria101]

Originally Posted by Ashley

Hi Olivia,

Actually, graduated pearl necklaces got their start due to the fact that jewelers were using Natural pearls...

Just to add one bit of argument for graduated in naturals - it certainly was also a matter of rarity and cost. Much as it happens for diamond necklaces today - non-graduated ones with large stones are never done. And I suspect that there are more diamonds available today then there ever were natural pearls

[aerinha]

I love the look of the one very graduated choker (or is it a longer strand twisted to look like 2 chokers?) on the woman in the big hat. I have a similar look with a 16 inch baroque golden SS strand from Pearl Paradise that I love, but it rests at the collarbone instead of on the neck. I may have to look into getting it in white, probably in CFWP. I would also probably stick with the 16 inches as I’m not a fan of tight stuff on my neck.

I think my SS strand is 8-9mm to 11+mm in the center pearl. I’m guessing the ones in the photo are pretty big, but to get the same look today with let’s say 11-12mm as the largest pearl, what do you think the smallest should be?

[Valeria101]

Originally Posted by aerinha

I love the look of the one very graduated choker (or is it a longer strand twisted to look like 2 chokers?)

Hm.. I've been wondering the same, but if it was one strand doubled onto itself, there should have been a clasp right infront. And there is none. Invisible clasps are a rather recent invention.

'Guess we have the same preference against tight things... The shortest I still find effortless rest at the base of the neck, with the largest pear lodged in the nook. Google pictures produced a reference for the precise look, just not in pearls: HERE. No difference in how they feel on then any other length - only if there is effectively pressure on the neck I'm starting to feel claustrophobic

The strands tend to fall rather well that way, I believe: if the front per has support, the clasp tends to fall down in a soft downward curve rather then climb up the neck and pull.

Originally Posted by aerinha

... to get the same look today with let’s say 11-12mm as the largest pearl, what do you think the smallest should be?

I would think that 12mm for the largest pearl would fit the look in the picture well. Would guess that the strand starts with 5-6mm, and there is a jump towards the largest few pearls in the middle.

A drawing might help planning the distribution of the pearls. What length should a chain be for you to have it fall at the length where the pearls should be (in inch or centimeters)?

[aerinha]

Originally Posted by Valeria101

A drawing might help planning the distribution of the pearls. What length should a chain be for you to have it fall at the length where the pearls should be (in inch or centimeters)?

16 inches puts most necklace right at the hollow of my throat, I could probably stand a 15 inch as the smaller pearls around back would take up less room then my larger strands do around the neck.

[Valeria101]

Finally got to work out the 'graduation factor' of the pearls in the choker. As well as I could.

For starters, the picture came from HERE.

Took te picture, got it magnified about 6X, measured and counted the pearls, and the result goes something like this:



The circles give the relative size of the pearls from the section of the choker visible in the picture.

A little experiment concluded that about 60% of a tight choker like that would be visible in the mirror (or in a photo) from that position. The rest remains hidden in the back of the neck.

What that means, is that if you need 15 inches, the graduated section infront has to be 9 inches of pearls ging down from 15mm. The rest of the strand could be going down to seed sizes, or just continue with the smallest size from the graduated section, as you wish.

The series of real life sizes matching the picture would be for half a strand:

15mm - 12,5mm - 11mm - 10mm - 9.5mm - 9mm - 8,5mm - 8mm - 7,5mm - 7mm ->
plus a six inch section of 5 - 7 mm pearls ito complete the back of the strand.

N.B. This little arithmethic considered knots to be ~2mm each.


And there's something else... these numbers are guessed starting with the 15in length of the strand you suggested. The choker in the picture must have been shorter as it sits higher on the neck of a dainty model, which maks the same aritmetic to guess smaller pearls as everything is scaled to the length of a strand - pobably not the way pearl strands are composed in real life. I would estimate that the strand in the picture had the largest pearl of ~13mm.

The picture is not good enough to show the individual shapes of the peals well, as much as visible, they appear semi-baroque safe for the largest one that is clearly round.

I've recounted the thught process here for you beaders to find the mistakes! In particular, I wasn't sure at all how to account for the length of the knots.

Hope this was fun for you too

[GemGeek]

Valeria - I enjoyed your deconstruction for reconstruction of the graduated pearl choker! I also enjoyed the Golden Age of Couture photos. If I ever need help finding something on the web, I'm going to YOU!

[Perle]

Wow, Valeria, that is fantastic! Now, if we could only get Jeremy to make us some (Freshadama, of course, though I don't know about that 15mm center pearl - might be impossible to find!).

Perle

[Valeria101]

Originally Posted by Perle

15mm center pearl - might be impossible to find!

Well, they certainly get that big, round and without bad blemishes. but I wouldn't know if any would fit in with the top grade of smaller pearls... Perhaps one SS would ?

I'd be happy with 12mm for the largest, no problem.

[aerinha]

If I hadn't just ordered a baroque multi SS from P. Paradise I would consider contacting them about special ordering a choker like this. I'd settle for 12mm as my larget pearl too.

[Perle]

Originally Posted by Valeria101

I'd be happy with 12mm for the largest, no problem.

Me too!

Very pretty look, but for the proportions to work out the back section would have to be about 4mm (graduation from 12mm to 4mm - did I calculate that right?). The ones Jeremy put together for fun went from 10mm (or maybe the center pearl was around 11-12mm?) to 6mm:

3-Row Necklaces, 8mm-12mm

I wonder if those smaller sizes can be sourced in the higher grades?

Perle