Recent content by jshepherd

I’m not too familiar with the retail side in Japan, but from what I’ve seen, the shops in Kobe are mostly small, independent operations, not large chain stores with showrooms. If you're looking for something specific, like a custom tin cup, those smaller shops are probably your best bet. You’ll...

The most pearl shops are definitely in Kobe, as it's the pearl capital of Japan. There are a lot of shops in the Kitano Hill area, and a group of wholesalers on Yamamoto-dori. These companies are b2b, but there are a lot of pearl shops in the same general area.

Looks like a blast! Most pearls are off-round to baroque, but the farmers are always trying to grown rounds. Some of the Indonesian farmers come to Hong Kong to sell their pearls directly, but most seem to go through auction. Golds are so difficult to match, it really takes a large lot to...

Yeah, a few :LOL:

It just looks like organic matter. There is nothing odd or wrong with that. Most natural and baroque cultured pearls will have some organic residue inside them.

These are beautiful and vintage, but they are faux pearls.

I'd steer clear. These look like imitation pearls.

That is definitely one of my all-time favorite pearl books!

That farm (and Akaroa) is still one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited.

And all our windows are bullet proof :) Before Charlton Heston it was a bank, so I imagine the windows were needed for that, not the NRA.

These appear to be shell pearls

This piece is just a momento. It's a decoration and doesn't really have any actual value. It's a sort "thank you for visiting our auction" gift for the participants. The pearl is a keshi, not a natural.

There are no freshwater pearl farms in the Philippines. The freshwater pearls you see in Greenhills have all come from China. All the stories about the farms in Mindanao you heard from the vendors are false. There are no pearl farms there.

This looks like it was used at one of ASBUMI organized auctions. This is the old cultured pearl organization of Indonesia. It's difficult to make out the piece, but it looks like it might be a keshi pearl. It wouldn't have much of any value. This looks like a paper weight or a decoration.