Pearls, where are you?

[Isabelle35]

Hi everyone,

Need help finding shows/stores or any other significant place in my area were I can pratice my eye and see nice pearls (any kind) in the flesh. I've been doing a little research, but have found very few interesting stores or events. Good quality pearls seem to be hard to find here and the sellers often are not very knolegable . I live in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. So all the suggestions are welcome if you have any!

Isabelle
in desperate search of "pearlicious" stuff

[Marianne]

Try intergem.com. The do some shows on the East Coast (US). There is one in VA this weekend that appears to have some promising vendors. Good luck!

[Kevin Canning]

you would think a city like Montreal would have more options? Mikimoto has the jeweler below listed as one of their retailers, not sure what they carry though:
CHATEAU D'IVOIRE
2020 de la Montagne
Montreal - Quebec H3G1Z7

[Alex]

Tiffany's also

try this link

http://www.canadajewellery.ca/Pearl-Montreal

[Pearl Dreams]

Intergem show sellers tend to carry lower grade pearls. I used to buy pearls at the shows when I was just starting to string but I became dissatisfied with the quality pretty fast.

[pattye]

Did a quick google search for "buy tahitian pearls in montreal" and "buy south sea pearls in montreal" and found a couple of b&m that seem promising, Birks and Jules Perrier.

High end dept stores with a fine jewelry dept may carry pearls also. Good luck with your search. Do let us know what you find! You can always mention you are doing research and will be sharing info on what you find with members of the largest online pearl forum!

[Alex]

like the 'Pearlicious' too, definitely fits with PG vocabulary......

in addition to

Pearlography - GemGeek
Pearlitzer - Caitlin
Pearlitus - Wild Onion
Pearldar - Alex

Have fun

[Isabelle35]

Great! Thank you all for the good ideas! Didn't realize I could find Tiffany's and Mikimoto here.

Pattye- I will go pearl hunting soon and will keep you posted.
Alex- I thought you guys would like the "pearlicious"! Noticed You've got a hole PG dictionnary going on!

[pattye]

Pearl Dreams,

Surprised you didn't find good quality pearls at the Intergem shows. On the west coast the pearl dealers generally have a range of quality; even my fav supplier, John Tu has strands of $2 pearls which can actually be quite nice, though not round AAA, but he also carries SS, Tahitians, top quality CFWP and Akoya.

Are there other shows you prefer? What do you find is the best source for quality pearls? You may have some great options in Connecticut we don't have out here.