Well, 2020 is here - Happy New Year, everybody! I have a great feeling that this year is going to be an amazing one, and I hope you all share that vibe with me. Anyways, with every New Year's celebration, I like to look back (like I'm sure we all do) at the year before and examine what went wrong, and what I might just have done totally right.
And that means ... it's time for our annual Custom Design Retrospective, showcasing our very prettiest and coolest collaborations with customers from this past year. I know you all are excited about the eye-candy, so let’s jump right in …
First up is our Tahitian Pearl and Diamond Branch Necklace (swoon!)
First we started with a full-strand Tahitian Pearl Necklace listed on my site, direct from a small farm in French Polynesia:
Tahitian Pearl Necklace she chose measured from 8.0-9.9mm, AAA Quality with a Medium-Dark Charcoal Grey body color and bright Silver and Aquamarine Overtones, kissed with iridescent hints of Rose. We created a small selection of matching Drops for the Custom Center-Section, along with a pair of gorgeous AAA Quality Tahitian Pearl Stud Earrings measuring 9.0-10.0mm.
The matching smooth Drop-Shape Pearls all measure an impressive 12.0mm in size, and are also an eye-clean AAA Quality. She chose the second pearl from the top – an excellent choice!
Once the Drop was chosen, we were ready to get to work with our goldsmith to begin creating the center piece. A few weeks later, and both the Necklace and the hand-forged Centerpiece were given to my stringer for final knotting.
What she gave back to me was this STUNNING necklace that I was seriously tempted to keep for myself haha! The better angels of my nature got to me, and I settled for some good photography to share with everyone. ;)
The Diamond-Studded Centerpiece features sparkling VS1-GH Quality round brilliant diamonds mounted in hand-forged 18K Yellow Gold. Finishing this gorgeous design in a diamond-accented 14K Yellow Gold oval-shaped clasp with additional security latch.
Overall I give this one a 10/10, would make again. ;)
Next up, it’s time to enjoy some luscious Golden South Sea pearls …
We brought in an absolutely gorgeous mixed lot of fine AAA to Near Gem Quality Golden Drops, and was showing them off when I got an email request to customize my Diamond Lily Pendant for a very special Anniversary gift.
His request went to extraordinary when he told me the size of pearls he was looking for … 14.0-15.0mm! A very rare and unique size. I got right to work hunting down the perfect Golden Tear Drop pearl, and found two to fit the bill.
Check out my finds here:
Check out that rainbow Orient!!! YUMMY
The 13.3mm Gem Quality Drop on the right got my vote (and my heart!). Crazily enough, bigger isn’t always better, and I very much liked the intensified Orient and Luster of the slightly smaller pearl.
Happily, my customer felt the same way, and we got to work modifying the Diamond Lily Pendant to accommodate the extra-large pearl. Here it is finished:
Gorgeous, isn’t it? Le Sigh …
Another pretty (and quite colorful!) design that isn’t quite “Custom” in the strictest sense … more of a modification, but we created a lovely Metallic Pink Freshwater Pearl Serenity Solitaire Ring with a large 9.0-10.0mm pearl - usually it's set with an Elite Collection Pink, but we upgraded. ;)
Didn’t catch the finished ring in time to snag any glamour shots, but these were the pearls we had for her to choose from:
She chose the pearl in the middle, which I wholeheartedly approved, and mounted it on our Serenity Solitaire Pearl Ring cast in 14K Rose Gold. Basically you'll have to imagine ...
This Ring ^^^
Mounted with this pearl --->
YEAH BABY!! J Like I said, the ring left the office before I could get a photo of it (so sad!), but the overall effect was romantic, feminine and well, total Eye-Candy. That’s one ring I’m sure will get plenty of love!
Another favorite was this Custom Design Tahitian Pearl Bracelet I created for a special client:
Pulling from the loose, AAA Quality 8.0-9.0mm and 9.0-10.0mm lots that we set aside for Earrings and Pendants, this layout featured some of my prettiest, most colorful Peacock and Rose-Overtone Tahitian Pearls.
The final bracelet was finished with a 14K White Gold and Diamond Clasp from my local clasp supplier, but yet again due to an event deadline, we didn’t have time to get a glamour shot to showcase here (wahhh!!!), but I still really enjoyed creating the bracelet, and it was a pretty happy ending for my customer as well, so we’ll be sure to catch it next time, I promise!
Finally, last but never least, we of course created a new Dark Knight Rises Necklace … it’s become a Pure Specialty! Maybe I should list it on the site finally, eh? ;)
This Dark Knight featured a larger White South Sea center pearl than usual for a more exaggerated graduation effect, and we selected some truly beautiful Silvery-Rose Overtone pearls. Each Dark Knight Rises Necklace is painstakingly matched with a mix of our Gem Quality Elite Collection Freshwater Pearls and AAA Quality White South Sea pearls, pulled from our un-drilled lots used to create South Sea Pearl Earrings, Pendants and luxury Rings.
Every necklace seems to have its own twist and character to it – this one features that eye-poppingly pretty center pearl, and sparkling 14K White Gold and Diamond Clasp for a the perfect finishing touch of glamour.
I made sure to get more than one photo on this gorgeous girl, so here’s another good one of the pearls in their box, just before leaving the office:
That wraps it up for this post – gotta keep it short n’ sweet. ;)
I will say that 2020 is off to a Custom Design BANG though, and I’m working on 3 new projects already!
Here’s a teaser on the biggest one, a 24-Inch Round Tahitian Pearl Necklace that I’m customizing for as a special Birthday gift:
Look at that gorgeous Blue-Green Overtone! This one’s gonna be gorgeous, and I’ll be sure to get some professional photography done once it’s finished this time! ;)
If you’re looking to create a stunning Custom Pearl Design, remember you can reach out to me anytime at Ashley@purepearls.com – I’m always available to work hand-in-hand with you to create something really special.
Talk to you all soon!
XO
Ashley
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