Pearl cleaning and storage

As I researched other items for the pearl post series, how to care for pearls also kept popping up.  So I thought I would create post of the best tips I found.  Below are the 4 main tips to remember.  See more about the how, when, where, or why in the links list I offer after the tips to get good details.

Pearl kept in pouch.

1. Always follow RULE:  Put your peals on last (after clothes, perfumes, and makeup to prevent damage) and take them off first (so they don’t get stress or residue).

2. Clean your pearls after wearing with a soft lint-free cloth to remove skin oils and sweat before putting them away.  WARNING:  Do not use sonic cleaners or standard jewelry cleaning solutions!

3. Store your pearls flat and separately from other jewelry.  You should use the original packaging, silk jewelry pouches, a soft cloth wrap, or shop for breathable velvet bags to keep each set from getting scratched by other items.  WARNING:  Do not keep in plastic bags or airtight containers!

4.  For often worn or heirloom pearls, consider professional restringing with proper knotting before they break.

Here is a list of links.  Please note that some may be repetitive and I have no control over whether or not they stay on-line.  A few have interesting facts and history.  Others have hints for various jewelry pieces, such as rings or earrings.

• How to Take Care and Store Pearls from Canilli Pearl
• Taking Care Of Pearls - Are You Storing Them Correctly on eZineArticles.com
• All About Pearls from Jewels West
• How to Care for Fine Pearls on Wedding-Resources.com
• Caring for Pearls from Antique Jewelry Investor
• How to Care for Cultured Pearls on RedEnvelope.com
• Identifying and Caring for Your Pearls from Lewis Jewelers
• Jewelry Tips: Storing Pearls on esSortment.com
• Care for Pearls from Gehna Bazaar
• Proper Care and Cleaning Will Keep Your Pearls Beautiful from Fox Lane

For those who love the videos, I found a video on the About.com channel for How to Clean and Care for Pearls by Silverscape Designs, see it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiU7EF3VQ-Q.   

If you have a tip to share or think I left something important out of my series of 6 pearl posts, please add it as a comment on  this post.  To review all pearl posts on OrgThis, use the Pearls option in Blog Labels cloud area.

Not shy about pearl enhancers

Some pearl strands are enhanced by the designer/manufacturer.  These enhancements are more than color/shape/type or rope length as talked about in other posts.  They are typically embellishments hanging from the front of the pearls or some designers use fancier clasps that can be worn in the front of pearls if desired.  If you are not fashion shy and you have plain pearls you want to dress up for special occasions, how can you do this?  You purchase pearl enhancers that can be added to pearls, chains, or other beads as you desire.  

What are enhancers?  The original enhancers have a hinged bale so you can clip them over the pearls rather than slide them on.  Do not confuse these with the latched shortener clasps which are used to make twisted bead sets or a torsade from multiple strands.  Nor confuse it with the new enhancer clasps that open so you can slide a regular pendant onto the clasp rather than over pearls.  Some sites call their large baled items enhancers because you can slide them over large beads or chains.  However, if the bale does not open, so it is not a truly an enhancer but instead a pendant.  However it could still look good on your pearls if you do not cringe at the thought of something sliding over your pearls. Below is a video showing how an enhancer works to go on pearls.

After watching the video, you now ask, “Where do you find an enhancer?”  Sometimes they come in a set with pearls but most often you have to buy them separately.   If you are buying at a store, ask a sales clerk to show you their enhancers.  Then you can see the difference in a pendant verses the enhancer before you make a purchase.  If buying on the internet from a site you do not already know and trust, look for a demo video or a photo view that shows it opening up before placing your order.  On-line you can search shopping sites like JTV for the word enhancer or QVC with an interchangeable enhancer.

See next post for care tips.

Women need ropes of pearls

Ropes and ropes of pearls.

Continuing our celebration of pearl month - Coco Chanel once said “A woman needs ropes and ropes of pearls."  Never has she been more correct than now, when layering necklaces and bracelets is all the rage in fashion.  Not just pearls alone, but mixed with metals or other beads.  We are also seeing pearl combinations in multiple colors and sizes layered or twisted together to fill the décolletage.  Plus pearls are being used as belts around the waist or hips to update the look of pants and skirts. 

I did a quick search for pearl layering combinations and found the following blog posts that showed some great examples of current trends:  Relics by Tami, Savvy Mode, Personally Charming by Janet, and Honora.  I also found a 3-part video series on layering with pearls by F.A.I.T.H Company; visit their channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/faithcojewelry to view the 4 to 5 minute videos.

To create layers of pearls, you need to understand the different lengths.  The classic size is around 18 inches.  Choker styles or twisted torsades are shorter than the classic length, although some may include an extension chain on the end so they can be adjusted a little longer.  Then the next longer styles used to be only for special occasions when one went out and are still referred to as matinee or opera length.  Multi-strand pearls are often made of 2 or more strands typically connected with a special special connector/clasp to separate the strands that are between the choker length and the special occasion lengths.  The longest is the rope which can be wrapped around the neck to create layers – I have seen endless strands as long as 100 inches advertised. 

For more on pearls, see my prior pearl post to learn more about pearls and how to shop for them.  You may also want to check out the posted videos on how to tell if a pearl is fake/real and next how a pearl enhancer works.  By using comments, please let me know if you have any pearl questions that I did not cover in 1 of the 6 posts planned to discuss pearl tips. 

A Pearl Girl knows if it is real

Faux vs Real Pearls

In my previous pearl post, you learned the different types of pearls and how to buy.  Now you want to know for sure if what you are buying is real or fake.  The easiest way is the price if it is really cheap, then it is most likely fake.  However, some designer fashion pearls strands using faux cost almost as much as true freshwater pearls from an internet sellers, clearance sites, and others mentioned in different pearl post links.  Of course, you can tell an inexpensive plastic strand by the straight string between the beads rather than a knot. (Caution: the pearl finish will eventually fall of plastic leaving a dull rather ugly bead.)  But what if there are no knots or the faux set is knotted to look more high-end? (See why knot video post.)

Consistency in shape and is often an indicator of fake verse real.  Recently, I heard that you can use your teeth to see if the pearls are real or not.  Do so by dragging the pearls against the front teeth to see if they feel rough or smooth.  I tried this at home but did not feel anything gritty.  However, the real set seemed to drag more and the faux set seemed to glide quickly and smoothly across the teeth.  I would not recommend doing the teeth test in a store, it will not only gross out the buyers and sellers – if may also get someone upset enough that security gets called and you are dragged out of the store.  (Not speaking from experience, just guessing here.)  Below is a “How to tell if a Pearl is Real” video with some other suggestions you might consider while in the store.  Remember to save the teeth test for at home before the return date is passed.

Be on the lookout for the almost real pearl made from crushed mother of pearl from the shells that grew pearls.   The only way to know here is to ask the vendor.  If you want to read tips, check out Antique Jewelry Investor’s article “Is it a Pearl Imitation?”  If you want more ideas, check out the “How to Tell if a Pearl is Fake” video.  Please note Metacafe.com showing this pearl expert may force you to watch 1 to 2 commercials first.  Next, check out my post on different ways to wear pearls.

Girls can not have too many pearls

Jewelry box filled with pearls.

It is pearl month as that is the birthstone for June.  The other day I was shopping with my husband and he said “Look at this neat color of pearls.  Have you ever seen that color before?”  The color was a rich cranberry and my answer was yes.  Color is big in pearl fashion right now so I checked the department store price to se if it was worth adding to my wardrobe.  No, I would not pay that price for dyed freshwater pearls and moved on.  However, I did think it funny that my spouse pointed out the pearls since he had commented the week before, when I was looking at a long strand of black pearls, “Don’t you have enough pearls already?”  My reply was the standard “A girl can’t have too many pearls.”  Whether it is around the neck, wrist, or finger – the pearl is always in style!

I believe that to be true as I agree with the Kyoko Fukada quote "Wearing pearls gives me an air of refinement.”  The College Lifestyles blog even recommends pearls as a classic wardrobe essential.  Besides the classic look of pearl necklaces, they are now fashionable in varying rope lengths (see next post based on Chanel's ropes quote), colors (both natural and dyed) and treatments.  There are so many pearls types, shapes, and sizes to choose from too.  Strands can be found knotted (click here to see how to video post) or unknotted at various costs: fashion (a.k.a. faux, fake, simulated, cheap?), “real” in bridge which may include some freshwater types, or gem-quality pearls with are expensive when bought at a jewelry store. 

You can find a variety of faux pearls at Charming Charlie, Sam Moon, Claire’s, and most department stores in the fashion jewelry section.  If you want authentic pearls, check these sites out for best prices as internet/phone order options: Jewelry Television based in TN and Liquidation Channel based in TX.  If going with a traditional jewelry store, get educated before you buy by checking out the links in paragraph above.  You might also want to review this video with Tips for Buying Pearls at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0Ts97S1r8g.

Knotting Pearls for Safety

I love to wear pearls: faux, mother-of, tin cup, freshwater - it does not matter.    However, with my long hair I do find it easier to wear pearls that are knotted.  When I wear unknotted pearls, I find that I must wear my hair up.  Otherwise it gets caught between pearls and gets pulled on as I move my head.  So I decided I had to find out how to knot pearls.  Another great feature of knotting, is security because if the strand gets broken you are not scrambling to pick-up pearls since only 1 would fall off.  Below is a good 4-minute video I found on YouTube for how to knot pearls and beads. It could be time consuming but seems pretty easy to do.  Also, before starting, you will need to know how to put the clasps on each end of the strand, you can see that in the 2nd 4-minute video below.  For step-by-step instructions outside of the videos, visit ArtBeds' How to Knot Pearls with a Clasp.

If you plan to get into making your own jewelry, check out the neat tool that JTV.com offers called Beadalon Knotter Tool. It should make the job faster. They have a video on the site that shows how to use the tool, but there is no audio with their video.  Watch for my next post on pearls as fashion accessories. 

Brooch bouquet for wedding or display

I was just perusing the vintage jewelry at a local thrift store when another lady shared an amazing idea with me.  Her daughter was planning a wedding and wanted her to start gathering bling for a brooch bouquet for her to carry.  The basis of the bouquet would be a few of her grandmother’s favorite brooches with other vintage or rhinestone pins, beads, and clip earrings. As I was trying to find a unique way to store and display my own fashion pins so they would not be scrambled together or forgotten.  Especially the ones that my aunts gave to me of my grandmother’s and the Sarah Coventry (which was my Mom’s favorite fashion jewelry) that I would like to start collecting. 

Assorted flower pins/brooches.

I was so fascinated by the idea, when I went home I did a search for “Brooch Bouquet” on the internet to find out more about them and how to make them. 

I found a site that claimed to be the Original Creator of the Vintage Brooch Bouquets idea with lots of photos for inspiration.  I also find 2 different methods for building the bouquet on blogs.  If you like the photos then check out the instructions for building with silk flowers on Pre-owned Wedding Dresses blog or using foam tubes on the Offbeat Bride blog.

I think this idea is cool to display the brooches if you do not wear them often.  If you like to wear your pins on a lapel everyday; or use them often in unusual ways like in your hair or pinned onto a hat or purse - then you will need to join me in my search for a different method.  Keep coming back to this blog as I will write about once I find it.  It may even be a revised version of the bouquet idea with an easy remove/reinstall wiring option…

Another hair option, Goody spin pin

I gave some ideas on bundling the hair bun for a dressy look in my last post.  Here is another idea that sounds pretty good if you want to go with the natural look.  The pins it talks about are not as cheap as bobby pins or old fashioned hair pins which are used with hair nets, but they can be found at most drug and department stores that sell Goody hair accessories.  I have not yet tried the new spin pins for making buns (twisted pins that look like springs – see Goody Spin Pin Review and Tutorial video below).  These pins are supposed to take the place of multiple bobby pins, and they really work!  I love mine.