[jpacella]

Hi everyone,

What do you think my lady friend would like for her first strand of pearls? She has said in the past she was not into the pearl necklace, but I think it's because she was only thinking white pearls and also that they would be too dressy for daily wear. I think if I found the right necklace/bracelet, she would adore it, because she loves pearls. Alas, I have no idea where to start...

Some background info, she lives in Boston getting her PhD from MIT, planning to be an engineer of sorts. She is of Chinese descent and tends to go for sleek and sexy over bulky and gaudy. Presently she has a couple sets of white pearl earrings, some black with purple overtone earrings & pendant, and a pair of cream earrings with slight pink overtones from Hawaii.

I have so many questions:

Should it be a necklace? A bracelet?
Should they be straight? Graded?
What kind of pearl? Quality?
Should it be round? teardrop? baroque?

There are many others, but I think you get the idea.

There is a long timetable on this though, so no hurry. I already got her some tahitian with green overtone earrings & pendant for christmas, plus some loose peacocks and true blues to play around with during the year. I have worked with the Pearl Outlet as well as Josh (josh) and Elaine (ebwooten) and have been extremely satisfied, especially with the latter tandem.

For all you pearl enthusiasts out there, I'd love to hear about your first necklace/bracelet - Where you got it from, why you got it, would you get that again for your first, etc...

Pictures too! I love the pictures on this site.

Thanks for the help,

J

[jpacella]

Plus some Dark chocolate pearl studs. Damn that Pearl Outlet with their ridiculous sales!

[pattye]

Hi J,

What a nice collection your friend has, a wardrobe of pearls already!
Since the Tahitians are pretty dressy (probably) and she has the earrings and pendant,

Why not a bracelet? You could choose baroque Tahitians with a green overtone, then add to it a special charm that would have meaning for the two of you, or an initial pendant for her name, something like that. It would make it more personal. Being an engineer type, she might prefer rounds over baroques, but the colors on the baroques are so often spectacular, one falls in love in spite of preconceived notions about what one likes.

Or--a strand of graduated white pearls. A bit more unusual and harder to find. Very traditional, but totally wearable with the most basic sweater or blouse.

Always consider quality! However, with all the lovely freshwaters available, there are lots of high quality available without totally ruining the budget.

My first pearl was a gift from my "going steady" boyfriend, a single white pearl pendant on silver chain, back in the late 50's And no, I don't have it any longer.

A fun subject always--pearls, and more pearls, and more pearls--

Pattye
so many pearls, so little time

[pattye]

p.s. How could I forget PINK??!! A set of at least AAA freshwater necklace, bracelet, earrings in pink or lavender--------OR silver blue akoya set??? (this is not helping me get my Christmas decorations up)

[aerinha]

My first strand of real pearls (i.e. not plastic) were dark gray baroque tahitians. I liked them for being colorful and less formal than rounds.

[Acksim]

how fun!! I just got my first pieces (aside from various white studs and a small pendant). I have chosen a multicolor freshwater strand from PP and a baroque akoya strand from TPO. I chose these because they are not your standard white strand and, I think, interesting and versatile. Maybe some mulicolor freshadamas? They look gorgeous in the pictures. Or a solid lavendar strand? My other idea is a South Sea pendant. SS are unbelievable in real life and surely she would love it. Anyway, sorry to ramble, but I hope you find something great!

[GemGeek]

I agree! A South Sea pendant is an excellent idea. It's luminous, but not overwhelming in the way a whole strand might be for someone who has said she doesn't want anything too formal. Just pick out a South Sea pendant in plain gold on a chain or neck cord.

Have fun deciding!

[Raisondetre]

I highly recommend the Venus GSS or tahitian pendant from PP. It's casual enough for daily wear, and yet the luminosity of the pearl gives an air of elegance. You can choose the size of the pearl so it wouldn't be overwhelming. I'm partial to big pearls myself. I'm Asian too and it complements my skintone perfectly as it's not deep golden, more a champagne rose.

[Valeria101]

Interesting, informal, safe bet... that must be a rope

Although, it wouldn't hurt if the said long strand was multicolor. I just couldn't find the right example. Folks mix silvery Tahitian pearls, pink and peach freshwaters, cream and golden pearls quite often now. Strands come with mixed and matched colors and shapes too. Delightful!

Classics are fine. Just keep in mind that some are rightfully labeled 'typical-male-presents'.

THIS is a tame example, and still... One of those 'true blue' pearls could be the focus there. Three or five throughout a choker of silver gray sounds truly fun.

It is so easy to dream up pearl choices!

[SpaceNeedle]

This necklace came to my mind... http://www.tahitianpearls.biz/Jewelr...klace_tnpd.php

[jpacella]

Originally Posted by SpaceNeedle

This necklace came to my mind... http://www.tahitianpearls.biz/Jewelr...klace_tnpd.php

That one is really interesting!

[SpaceNeedle]

Originally Posted by jpacella

That one is really interesting!

You could ask Jose to customize the necklace. May be with more and larger pearls with matching colors instead of multi-colored. May be he could help you creating a similar necklace with the beauties you received from Elaine and Josh. Also, I am sure PearlParadise, ThePearlOutLet, or PearlsOfJoy could also help you with a similar piece.

[olivia24]

I am very into sleek, simple stuff too, and personally I don't see how you could go wrong with a good quality strand of freshwaters. A shorter length (16 inches) would be a little less formal. I think a lot of people tend to associate the classic white pearl necklace with old ladies at the theatre or something. I was at a play the other day wearing the Freshadama set my boyfriend just gave me and found that I was surrounded by older women in pearls. Not that there is anything wrong with that. When I'm old I'm sure I'll be wearing pearls. My point is, why should they get to wear the pearls when they look so beautiful on everyone? If your gf got a beautiful pearl necklace, her idea about them might change. Then again, you could always ask her to find out for sure what she would like. Or if she really likes Tahitians, why not a Tahitian strand?

[olivia24]

Another thought is natural pearl jewelry... take a look at the link

http://www.pearlparadise.com/pearl-p...collection.htm

Some of those rings are really stunning, and since they aren't perfectly round they're a little more casual and unique, while still being really simple. Or if she likes pearl pendants, you could always get her a South Sea pendant.