Opinion: 24G v 26G for Wire Wrapped Pearl Necklace

[MSC]

Great suggestions, Beatriz! Asheville is *only* 9 hours from me! That's 4 hours less than Wayne, NJ. I love Asheville, but I've always wanted to visit Maine and Acadia NP ��

 

[JerseyPearl]

I am definitely going to look into these classes in NJ...a lot easier and closer than Asheville or ME!

 

[Katbran]

Wow this is good to know...I have a good friend in Asheville plus my brother is in Davidson (N of Charlotte) so I go to Asheville almost every year! In fact I may be going to NC in October....I'm going to have to look into this !

 

[MSC]

Oh, I'm planning a fall trip out to Asheville and the smokies, Kat! I've got friends in Chandler ��

 

[Katbran]

Hmmmmm I've been trying to work out when to go and my sister suggested October as a few birthdays fall around there.. so I'll go to S Cal , Michigan and NC ..... hmmmm I do love Asheville ...

 

[pattye]

So hope all this will come to pass for some P-G'ers!

 

[MSC]

24G (left) v 26G (right)
I like 26G better for a necklace like this one. I think if I was going to use chain or components between pearls I'd go with 24G or if I was going to make a bracelet.

 

[CathyKeshi]

I like the 26G much better, Andrea ... I'm surprised at how drastic the difference is! The focus on the pearls is much sharper on the thinner wire, and the wraps look neater too.

 

[MSC]

LOL Cathy, I wasn't too careful making the wraps, but I do think the thinner gauge does look neater overall.
24G is too distracting without a ring or other component inbetween the eyelets. Which is what I would do for a bracelet.

 

[baby nurse]

This is going to be beautiful, the colors and luster are wonderful! You may have already mentioned this-- what size are the pearls?

I'm also impressed with the difference between the 24G and 26G. 26G is so much more pleasing to the eye.

 

[JerseyPearl]

Beautiful pearls! And I agree. I like the proportions of the thinner wire with the small pearls.

 

[CathyKeshi]

Andrea, I meant to cast no aspersions on your wire wrapping skills! Sloppy phrasing on my part ... I should have said what I thought, which was that the thinner wire wraps look neater because they're more delicate and smaller in profile than the heavier wire!

 

[MSC]

Lol Cathy, no worries, I'm my own harshest critic anyways, even when I'm rushing through something purposefully! Perfectionist for life!
Glad I'm not the only one who found the 26G more pleasing! BN the pearls are 3-4mm so it'll be a petite necklace

 

[FrenchPearl]

It's beautiful Andrea !
Are those the pipi pearls you drilled yourself ? I think I recall a thread where you discussed pearl drilling tools.
This is going to be quite a necklace, and those pearls are not so petites !

 

[MSC]

Sophie, Laurent drilled these for me. I had to leave many of my tools at my moms when I did the last move, along with most of my belongings. I will say that in my limited pearl drilling experience, I would buy one of the expensive Japanese double sided drilling machines because the tools I've tried were difficult at best.

 

[Katbran]

It's all in the size of the pearls..for the tiny ones like that the 26 is the right size I think..the other looks out of proportion. However if you had 8 mm pearls the larger size would be fine. And as long as you're careful with it there shouldn't be any problem with it breaking. Well done!

 

[MSC]

Thanks, Kat!

 

[MSC]

Just scored this 18kt white gold and diamond deco clasp for this little project; not as extravagant as I would have liked, but very significantly more budget friendly, plus upgrades are always a far into the future option

 

[amti]

I can't believe the difference the wire size makes! So glad you posted photos! And your new clasp is perfect for your necklace!

 

[Katbran]

I do like that clasp !