Pearl Parties Are Taking Over Facebook Live, But Buyer Beware

[jshepherd]

This is the first article going "live" about all those pearl parties happening on Facebook. It came out pretty well. One point it missed was about the pearl kiosks in Hawaii. When I was there a couple years back I watched several shells being opened and ... you guessed it ... freshwater pearls.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/leticiamir...t-buyer-beware?utm_term=.vhEV208vn#.hbq0z2Pa9

 

[mrsadm]

Very good in-depth article. I had not realized the huge swell in popularity that's happened recently, and how much Facebook magnified that popularity. 46,000 viewers of one Facebook party? A single party could yield $17,000?

Thank you so much Jeremy for providing your expertise to the article!

 

[JerseyPearl]

I love your "dark crack somewhere" quote...brilliant stuff! And it gave me quite a giggle too...my mind is always in the gutter, just a tad.

 

[pearlescence]

I didn't know Vantel was a pyramid operation. That's illegal in the UK

 

[lilliefuzzysocks]

Great article. I was so proud of Allison to have the guts to have her video's posted and take a stand against these parties. I hope she doesn't get slammed. She was kind enough to send us a whole box of Vantel party pearl jewelry to see when we were at Pearl Paradise for Cynde's birthday party. Jeremy looked at the pieces and told us about seeing similar jewelry in China in the markets. I was surprised by the metal used in the pieces. It appeared to be silver at first glance, but was some pot metal with a plating of white type metal. You could see how the pieces would break easily by how flimsy the setting were created or turn your hand green , neck break out by the mystery metal used.

Jeremy also noticed (great eye) That the rope of freshwaters were strung as two strands one after another, not as graduated off the temporary strand. This puts small pearls in the front and back with the largest on each side of the neck.

 

[lilliefuzzysocks]

Left to right. Pearl paradise AAA dyed freshwater pearls, AA+ Dyed Akoya and Vantel dyed freshwater rope.

 

[SunSeeker]

Good article, Jeremy! I'm glad you were able to contribute. Although, I wished the author mentioned the health and safety issues with exposing their party consultants to formaldehyde or other dangerous substances.

 

[pattye]

Thank you, Jeremy. Will it ever end, or at least subside????????

 

[JerseyPearl]

Seriously pattye...great question!
And I am still scratching my head about the "fun" of these on-line parties fishing junky pearls out of a dead oyster...wouldn't it be more fun to plop down a tray of really lovely pearls and watch someone make a tin cup before your eyes? Or string a strand for you live? Now that I would tune in to watch...especially if the host is using Beader's Secret. I'd ooh and ahh over the thread colors as much as the pearls.

 

[Marianne]

Thanks for getting the word out again. Hope it will make a big dent (read gaping hole) in this miserable scam.

 

[SpookyAL]

Ive noticed, doing a little research myself, that if you check out ebay's offering of wholesale oysters..you can supposedly not only choose color and size but AA-AAA+++ . Now of course, who knows what the hell THAT description really means ..but it's interesting to me how these plastic sealed oysters are sold in bulk.

 

[jshepherd]

The BBC put something out too. You can't access it from their website outside of the UK, but there is this "hard to watch" snippet I think was filmed with a camera phone.

https://www.facebook.com/758852940941552/videos/pcb.785627768264069/785627611597418/?type=3&theater

 

[lilliefuzzysocks]

It just goes to show you the power of social media. Women who were cheated started a facebook page and helped many to get refunds from this company. Way to go NSPPP. https://www.facebook.com/Not-So-Perfectly-Precious-Pearls-758852940941552/

 

[juliebeth]

i'm sure removing the ick factor by locating sales with someone over the internet rather than having to open your own rancid tinned oyster* was a huge boon. and of course, the entire premise is based on a type of gamble - "oooooh, will i get a $3 pearl? or will i score the $3000 pearl?!?"

this is why education is so important. and i'm off to re-post jeremy's article AND the link lilliefuzzysocks provided! thanks y'all!

*SRSLY have you guys ever seen these in person? my mom bought me one for my birthday a few years back. it was SO GROSS i made someone else open it for me. nasty!

 

[lilliefuzzysocks]

This one actually creates skittle pearls. You get a white one and she uses a Sharpie permanent marker to color the pearl and sets into a pendant.... https://www.facebook.com/PearlyKing...notif_t=video_reply&notif_id=1495138331898586

Juliebeth. The women from the UK who started the NSPPP page are really great ladies. They have taken quite a bit of flack for going after John and Hannah, but have been able to recover quite a bit of money for those where taken or received no jewelry. Apparently the CC laws are different in the UK than they are here in America. Paypal has been the savior for most of the victims.

 

[Abi]

This one actually creates skittle pearls. You get a white one and she uses a Sharpie permanent marker to color the pearl and sets into a pendant.... https://www.facebook.com/PearlyKing...eater¬if_t=video_reply¬if_id=1495138331898586

Juliebeth. The women from the UK who started the NSPPP page are really great ladies. They have taken quite a bit of flack for going after John and Hannah, but have been able to recover quite a bit of money for those where taken or received no jewelry. Apparently the CC laws are different in the UK than they are here in America. Paypal has been the savior for most of the victims.

I watched up until I watched her finish coloring a white pearl with her bright pink sharpie....wow.

 

[JerseyPearl]

Just wow...they claim "not to rip you off" as part of their branding...just wow.

 

[Bailey1856]

Is this for real??? I feel sick to my stomach. Everything about this video is wrong.

 

[pearlescence]

I'm going to see if my technical person can pull the footage from the BBC to post somewhere so you can see it. It featured one buyer who had had problems and one pearl opening company called perf ectly prec ious pearls lid (limited company, two directors formed six months ago) who have a facebook page with nearly 70k followers! (must be some sort of techno jiggery-pokery to get that many?) (I typed it oddly so that google might not spot it)

Yes, our consumer law is much stricter - it is unlawful to make a false trade description of goods (ie claim akoya), plus having looked on their facebook and website I think they are breaking all sorts of EU distance selling regulations about having to state a snail address. In fact I can't see how they actually sell
The fb page is hilarious if you plough through the comments to see a business unravelling by the minute though. Although there are still some who argue in defence - just like trump and may have their supporters even now

The BBC put something out too. You can't access it from their website outside of the UK, but there is this "hard to watch" snippet I think was filmed with a camera phone.

https://www.facebook.com/758852940941552/videos/pcb.785627768264069/785627611597418/?type=3&theater

 

[pearlescence]

This one actually creates skittle pearls. You get a white one and she uses a Sharpie permanent marker to color the pearl and sets into a pendant.... https://www.facebook.com/PearlyKing...eater¬if_t=video_reply¬if_id=1495138331898586

Oh dear, another UK page. And even with just a quick look, so many laws broken!