[jerin]

Could the designer have been Jennifer from PP or Ashley from Pure Pearls? I hope I don´t mix the names together here....

[Mikeyy]

Originally Posted by jerin

Could the designer have been Jennifer from PP or Ashley from Pure Pearls? I hope I don´t mix the names together here....

Ha Ha I love it. The designer will have to identify themselves. I ain't talking.....Unless you threaten me with bodily harm. In which case I will roll over immediately. Because I'm a big chicken.

[knotty panda]

Originally Posted by jshepherd

What would you both do instead? What kind of setting would fit a pearl like this? No cap would work... the pearl is too long to be center-drilled (it must be 25 to 30 mm in length), it was clearly drilled just above the nucleus... You can tell the triangle is not a standard bale. It was wrapped from a piece of wire to fit the pearl.

What setting would better showcase the pearl?

The pearl is too compelling to be ignored and working with it's shape, I'm not sure any other setting would work well, which is why I said it may be the best choice.

[pearlescence]

Hmmmm. perhaps if the pearl had been drilled through its top-knot then that could have been wire wrapped with a turn of wire going down the pearl in a spiral to sort of hide the boobs etc, and maybe finishing with another pearl dangling off underneath.

[Heidi]

I like your creativity, Wendy. I've seen some pieces where the pearl is captured in the wire more than just hanging from it and always enjoy the difference.

[pearlescence]

Thank you. I know someone on Manchester markets who winds wire round pearls much better than I do - mine look like a tangle rather than an artistic enmeshment.
I can see what I would like to do, but I don't think I could do it.
I am going to try to remember long dormant silversmithing techniques this weekend hopefully, to put an end blob onto the cut ends of used long head pins so that they can be used (waste not!) - any tips, anyone?

[laurenb]

I think many of the complaints about the triangle could be resolved by setting it similarly, but in white gold. I know I'm in the minority here, but I don't think yellow gold ever flatters light-colored pearls. White gold or platinum has the advantage of being similarly light in color and thus making the luster of the pearl the focal point. Ah well, everyone has a different aesthetic.

[J Marcus]

From Pearlescence:
"I am going to try to remember long dormant silversmithing techniques this weekend hopefully, to put an end blob onto the cut ends of used long head pins so that they can be used (waste not!) - any tips, anyone?"

Sure--affix the pins as absolutely vertical as possible, use the smallest, very hot flame that will reasonably melt the end and bring it up from the bottom at an angle a few degrees off from vertical. It helps if you can grip it by a steel tweezers about 7 or 8 mm above the bottom. It will act as a heat sink and help keep the blob from progressing too far. Too close and they may leave dents in the heat softened silver. Even that small a blob is affected by gravity and certainly is affected by the heat coming from the side rather than underneath. However, a perfectly vertical flame may melt more than you bargained for. Experiment with the amount of angle of the flame to get it right and go easy on that small wire. Use a good flux.

Good luck!
Marc
http://www.flyrodjewelry.com/home.html

[pearlescence]

Thanks - I did just about that and did a few hundred in an afternoon in the garden - the flame plus flux etc set off the smoke alarms. Now I have to get around to polishing them....always the tedious side of silversmithing