Small Pleasures: Fall for petite pearls

 Hello! I hope you had a marvellous summer! Its pleasures linger; the last peaches with their characteristic September 'redheads' hint at one last tart. Montréalers grab the last slice of outdoor ease, crowding restaurant terrasses despite pesky wasps.


And today is our traditional re-opening pearl post!

I wore pearls day and night, especially a "pearl chain", light and cool on our 30C days. The one below was made from Kojima Pearl Company vintage akoyas, strung by SophieStringsPearls. Sophie recently moved to Montréal; a skilled stringer and designer nearby—I'm delighted.

Vintage akoyas, Kojima Pearl Company

To open the Passage, windows brimming with small pearls to extend a pearl collection year-round.

In the first window, a necklace by Ten Thousand Things (at TwistOnline); price, $US 346. The clusters of 3mm-6mm freshwaters pinned onto an oxidized silver chain, the black/white scattered but balanced design, and the modern hook-and-eye clasp: these details make small pearls sing. The only drawback is that the chain is only 15in./38cm long, which will be too short for some necks.



A similar piece, an inch longer, is on Ten Thousand Things' site.

Another designer to know is Wwake, whose approach to freshwater seed pearls and small rounds is exceptionally elegant. This necklace might inspire you to DIY, because you wouldn't have to knot except for a few pearls at the ends. 

Here, it's worn with a flat gold chain, but has enough presence to hold its own. Price, $US 800 for the 18-20in. size, with 14k recycled gold extender chain. Also made in a shorter length.



The pearls I wore most all summer? A rope of Kojima's grey Tahitian keshi:



Below, glowy little 2mm Kasumi keshi on grey thread are, at 23 inches, perfect for a pendant, or on their own. From Kojima Pearl; price, $US 702—but there's a 20% off sale on now till Sept. 18! The gold vermeil clasp could be worn to the side, too.
  


Thrifty treat

Small pearls elevate casual-wear earrings. Many women in the Passage prefer silver; the open hoops (about an inch long) by Montréal's Annie Lespérance, are made in both 14k gold fill or sterling; price, $CDN 43. 



They are reversible; you can wear the pearl section (3mm freshwaters) to the front or back— 
and what a good gift idea! (Annie Lespérance also makes these earrings in gemstones.) I like to keep a pair like this in my travel toiletries bag, so I'm never stuck for earrings when away from home. 

Finale: Two under $200

In this window, there's usually a luxury showstopper, but today, I'm showing two pairs of earrings that deliver distinct design at excellent value. 

Small silver studs



An Etsy find from Cirer, a Berlin-based jeweller: stud earrings with a tiny 3mm white freshwater pearl floating on a 10mm silver circle. Price, about $CDN 175, with free shipping. 

Subtle details make the difference: One pearl is set on the outside of the circle, the other on the inside—and the outside is matte, the inside polished. (You can also request each earring's pearl set the same way, the "symmetrical" choice in the menu.) 

Available in silver, gold plate or 14k gold; also in blackened silver with black (dyed) akoya pearls. (Black akoya and freshwaters are always dyed or irradiated to get that colour; the only natural blacks are Tahitians.)  If these are s/o, contact Carme Cirer to request a notice when they are available.  

Chic keshi 

For those wishing for more pearl, playful drop earrings (Amy Powney for Monica Vinader) with 7.5mm keshi and gold vermeil 'petals' in a reversed setting. Price, $CDN 180. Prices on the site include customs duty but not local taxes if applicable.

Though bigger than the Cirer pair, they are not too much for everyday; click the link to see them worn. 



Monica Vinader offers one of the best return/refund policies out there: returns within 100 days receive a full refund and no charge for return shipping from US and UK; conditions apply. 


The Passage is pearl-powered! This new season is dedicated to discovering standouts, made by local artisans but available worldwide. If you find these treasures on your wanderings, please let us know.  

Some things remain the same—ad and AI free, no sponsored posts or paid promotions—and some will change. I saw myself described recently as "an older Canadian blogger". It's true—and the older I grow, the pickier, so I'm always grateful for your contributions. 

Let's amble through the Passage together.

(Several days ago, I enabled comments from anyone, and was immediately flooded with spam. I had to change comment permission to persons with Google accounts. Sorry to do that, but life it too short to eat spam every day.)

Comments

Laura J said…
How good to have you back! I was gifted some lovely pearls this summer. A fabulous 3 strand necklace which is more winter than summer. My go to pearls in summer are pearl studs on exercise class days and a Kojima Keisha bracelet. So tempted by their sale….but…the things I’d really like are $$$! Looking forward to your weekly blog….such a sensible approach to social media. Several folks I’ve followed have moved to newsletters to escape the icky spam.
Allison said…
Oh I was thinking of you in early June, my patron saint of pearls lost and found!
Last fall I misplaced a pretty gold and pearl stud at our cottage. I had looked for it to no avail…this spring my husband was vacuuming and moved the bed. Voilà! He asked me if it was mine ( we rent said cottage during the summer) I cannot tell you how happy I was to see it again. A 14k yellow gold Diamond cut cut halo surrounding a very glowy pearl was heart breaking to lose. Now it is safely ensconced with its sister in my jewelry box, only to be worn with a safe silicone back…the gold butterfly was loose and the reason it fell off. Glad to see you back and the shutters are open once again.
Thank you for no ads or AI intrusions
Duchesse said…
Laura J: Pearl prices have gone up and one of the major factors to pieces being pricey is the associated cost of travel to the major pearl centres like China and Japan.
Duchesse said…
Allison: Isn't that the best feeling? Whew, lucky. I use those silicone extra stoppers in winter (after losing two different earrings while wearing them!) but hearing your story I think I'm gonna automatically add them whenever. (To other readers: you can get a bag of them on Etsy, very inexpensive.) I like 4 mm size, big enough for me to grab hold of.
Jane in London said…
How lovely to see you back! And, as always, a fabulous pearly selection that shows us some imaginative and individual choices. Small can, indeed, be beautiful!
Tom said…
We are in Paris for a few more days, our first experience of the rentree. Thank you for returning with your always wonderful posts! Some of the few blogs I continue to read, more through habit than anything else, sound like AI writing to me--if so, what's the point of reading? I was looking at a kantha patchwork scarf at a market the other day, and read up on them thanks to your post of a few years back. I may go back and get one, so pretty though not sure of the quality (charming
Tibetan seller though). e
Duchesse said…
Jane: Thank you. The small pearls are easily worn with very casual clothes, which many of us now wear most of the time.
Duchesse said…
eva: My favourite time to be there! There are varying qualities of kantha scarves. Look for straight edges and well-made fringe. You can machine wash them in a net bag, or handwash. I use baby shampoo.
Fritinancy said…
I'd love to read your thoughts about the Tiffany pearl earrings Kamala Harris wore during the September 10 presidential debate! And no, I'm not talking about the "secret earpiece" theory. Rather, some people are apparently shocked, shocked that the earrings cost $800. If you're able to see this Bluesky thread, it has a lot of interesting insights. https://bsky.app/profile/amandasmith.bsky.social/post/3l3vo5twswz27 (Btw, the earrings are currently sold out at Tiffany.com and in all Northern California Tiffany stores: https://www.tiffany.com/jewelry/earrings/tiffany-hardwear-double-pearl-hinged-earrings-in-sterling-silver-64048716/)
Pastel River said…
Hi Duchesse, I'm so glad you are back. I love your pearl posts. Can I ask your oppinion on this strand - https://tinyurl.com/3vbp4s85 - I was thinking about the one with crystals as my first ever pearl necklace. I work in an office but dress very casually (small IT firm).
I have been wearing pearl earrings for years, but never anything else.
Duchesse said…
Fritinancy: My shock is that you can buy •any• pearl earring at Tiffany for under $1,000! The pearls are lustrous, the design is clean yet graceful, and any pearl-partisan woman is going to think, Yeah, I could wear those with a lot. In silver, they are, in the lower-case sense of the word, democratic. Vice-President Harris is known to love her pearls. Thanks, Nancy.
Duchesse said…
Pastel River: This piece is fun. It's absolutely on-trend, with its mixed shapes, and I really like the sprinkling of crystals. It's going to be easy to wear. The price is decent. The negative side: These are what in the trade are called "craft pearls". They are not the best quality, but I can't see any pits or spots of dull nacre on the necklaces posted. (Inspect the actual one they send you, though.) Just be aware that those "gold-plated" beads are going to be very thinly plated at this price and will eventually look dull or mottled. But you can always replace them if they do. Just as a comparison for what close to that amount gives you, check out these, on sale—better-quality pearls but I'm not saying you should pick them: https://pilaragueci.com/products/luna-pearl-necklace?_pos=10&_sid=87234991f&_ss=r&variant=45602261696823
At this price, follow your heart and have fun! If you order the Etsy piece, notice the return window is short and they inexplicably levy a $6 restocking fee, which is annoying because it just goes back in a bin, but for me not a dealbreaker.
Pastel River said…
Thank you so much for your answer. :)

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