Mikimoto

[Douglas]

Any pearl connoisseurs out there?

Mikimoto seems to command one hell of a premium for their pearls. Are they worth it?

I'm looking to get a pair of nice, simple pearl earrings as a gift, but the Mikimotos appear to be more than I was expecting to pay. Hoping some of you big-timers have been through this process before.

 

[West24]

You're paying a big premium for the name.

 

[TheFoo]

I'm sure there are better values out there if you are williing to study up on pearls, but I didn't bother and just coughed up the extra dough. Of course, that makes me a giant hypocrit: I would never buy a diamond from Tiffany or Harry Winston.

One advantage to Mikimoto is that you get to see a whole lot of premium pearls in one place, in person. Unlike diamonds, which can be largely judged sight unseen, pearls of the same grade can have slightly different, qualitative differences. Apparently, this can really matter. For example, pearls with a slightly yellow hue, as opposed to a pink one, are more popular amongst white women because they better complement a pinkish skin tone. Also, if your girl already has pearl jewelry, you mgiht want to be careful about matching the new to the old.

 

[Dmax]

I think we discussed this before not too long ago. Here are a couple of threads you may wish to peruse... http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=86114 http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=7858 http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=80523

 

[Douglas]

Originally Posted by Dmax

I think we discussed this before not too long ago. Here are a couple of threads you may wish to peruse...

http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=86114

http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=7858

http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=80523

Thanks for the suggestions. I bought online from a source found in one of those threads.