WannaBeAPearl
Member
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2025
- Messages
- 2
Hi, all - I've been lurking here reading for a while (so much incredible info/photos), watching YouTube vids w/ Jeremy from Pearl Paradise, etc.... and think I might finally be ready to move on from dreaming about pearls to actually owning some. Based on my current style preferences, I think I'd get the most use from a pendant style necklace and earrings in simple yellow gold settings. For the pendant, my favorite is a simple gold bail, like the below Mikimoto pendant, with a 7-8mm round or drop shaped pearl. And for earrings, I would love a simple pair of 6-7mm studs or a pair in a front/back style, like Dior tribales, such as the below ones I found on a website for a company called Gingerberi.
I'm still a bit confused as to color, however, and appreciate in advance any advice you can share with me! So, although I know I should prioritize luster, color is really forefront in my mind, as I have a very strong preference for warmer-toned, ivory/cream colored pearls (and somewhat of an aversion to pinkish ones). I was initially drawn to akoya pearls, but from what I understand, akoya pearls are either "pinked" or natural white, which tend to be a cooler white color - neither of which is my ideal. I briefly looked at white South Sea pearls, but they also seem to largely have cool overtones.... and they're all kind of huge lol. Thus, it seems like freshwater pearls might be my best option?
And my second question - once I've narrowed down the type of pearl most likely to be the color ivory I'm after, what is the liklihood of nonetheless getting pearls that are cooler white and/or with pinkish/blue overtones? Although I do live in a large city (Dallas) and therefore have access to some larger jewelry retailers, shopping for pearls in person hasn't proved very helpful. So far, I made an appointment with my sales associate at Tiffany's, but she had very little stock to show me and was upfront that she doesn't really have much knowledge about pearls, and I also tried Zales and Jared, but they had even fewer pieces. I've also spent hours and hours combing through the websites of all the usual suspects - Mikimoto, Tiffany, Pearl Paradise, the Pearl Source, plus loads I'm not really familar with - and it seems like the vast majority of items are not listed invidually - as in, the earrings/pendants in the listing photos are generic and are not of the actual pieces that I would receive. And I'm certain that my small earrings/pendant are not even close to the price point that would warrant a special order at Mikimoto etc so that I could choose the pearls or at least see them first -and I feel super awkward returning fine jewelry pieces (especially if it might take several tries to get the right thing). However, to be honest, I would be kind of gutted if I ended up feeling stuck with ones that I don't really love... so much so I keep thinking perhaps I should just scrap the whole thing. But, I really, really, really LOL want to add some pearls to my jewelry collection, so again, any and all advice/thoughts are welcome! (Also, so sorry this post is so long, and thank you so much for reading all the way to the end)!
I'm still a bit confused as to color, however, and appreciate in advance any advice you can share with me! So, although I know I should prioritize luster, color is really forefront in my mind, as I have a very strong preference for warmer-toned, ivory/cream colored pearls (and somewhat of an aversion to pinkish ones). I was initially drawn to akoya pearls, but from what I understand, akoya pearls are either "pinked" or natural white, which tend to be a cooler white color - neither of which is my ideal. I briefly looked at white South Sea pearls, but they also seem to largely have cool overtones.... and they're all kind of huge lol. Thus, it seems like freshwater pearls might be my best option?
And my second question - once I've narrowed down the type of pearl most likely to be the color ivory I'm after, what is the liklihood of nonetheless getting pearls that are cooler white and/or with pinkish/blue overtones? Although I do live in a large city (Dallas) and therefore have access to some larger jewelry retailers, shopping for pearls in person hasn't proved very helpful. So far, I made an appointment with my sales associate at Tiffany's, but she had very little stock to show me and was upfront that she doesn't really have much knowledge about pearls, and I also tried Zales and Jared, but they had even fewer pieces. I've also spent hours and hours combing through the websites of all the usual suspects - Mikimoto, Tiffany, Pearl Paradise, the Pearl Source, plus loads I'm not really familar with - and it seems like the vast majority of items are not listed invidually - as in, the earrings/pendants in the listing photos are generic and are not of the actual pieces that I would receive. And I'm certain that my small earrings/pendant are not even close to the price point that would warrant a special order at Mikimoto etc so that I could choose the pearls or at least see them first -and I feel super awkward returning fine jewelry pieces (especially if it might take several tries to get the right thing). However, to be honest, I would be kind of gutted if I ended up feeling stuck with ones that I don't really love... so much so I keep thinking perhaps I should just scrap the whole thing. But, I really, really, really LOL want to add some pearls to my jewelry collection, so again, any and all advice/thoughts are welcome! (Also, so sorry this post is so long, and thank you so much for reading all the way to the end)!
