September 02, 2010
Mai Pearls at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh
We have sent our mysterious model "Mai" to have a look and report back what went on at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival!
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The Edinburgh Fringe Festival sadly ended on Tuesday, but "fret not" as we sent our mysterious advertising girl "Mai" to have a look and report back on what was going on there!
Mai very obligingly put on her ivory white freshwater pearls and took off to the lovely capital of Scotland! Immediately her first impressions of the festival were of amazement! "Everywhere you look there are posters advertising performances. A total of 2,453 shows were available in the city!Bite my pearls if these are not impressive numbers!"
Among other plays, Mai watched 'City & Iris', a delicious drama played by Lecoq-trained actors, that tells the story of a girl trapped in her own insecurities and who uses her glasses as an excuse for hiding from life. Moreover, Mai also put on her pearls and went to see the great one man comedy "Dr Brown Because", whose actor cleverly uses stares, awkward silences and a fearful audience as part of an amusing show!
All in all, the Fringe Festival provides great entertainment and we definitely recommend you put it in your diary for next year! Now, if you have your agendas open, September seems to be "THE month" for vintage fairs in London! Our model, Mai, will definitely bring you some exclusive pics of what went on in some of these fairs as well as great ideas of how to model your pearls! Watch this space!
With love,
Mai Pearls Team
P.S.: You are invited to suggest places where Mai should go and wear her pearls!
Posted: September 2, 2010 12:20 PM
July 19, 2010
3 Good Reasons to buy Pearls!
We have put together an unbeatable list of why you should have some fabulous pearls in your jewellery box!
1 – Pearls are classic timeless jewellery
Pearls never go out of fashion, they are simply timeless pieces that are cherished by every woman. From Anne Boleyn to Kristen Stewart, young and old generations have worn pearls and will keep wearing them for as long as they exist! Every week on Facebook we have updated you on the latest celebrity trend on pearl jewellery, so if you need some inspiration check out our page! Mai Pearls Facebook
Moreover, why not start your own pearl tradition? There is a great game of buying, giving and inheriting pearl jewellery! Basically you can buy a set of pearls, wear it for as long as you fancy, then after a few years you pass it on to a next generation in your family! Recently, a friend of mine got married and as a wedding gift the sisters of the groom gave her a genuine pearl bracelet that belonged to the groom's mother when she was young. Needless to say she won't take it off! Success guaranteed.
2 – Pearls are easy to match!
Those little gems go with everything! You can add a pearl necklace to a dress and look stunningly sophisticated or you can add pearls to jeans and t-shirt and look really cool! So just try it on with different styles and decide how you prefer!
Our tip for Autumn/Winter 2010 is pearls matched with some 1950's clothing style, all because the TV show Mad Men is causing havoc on the high street and most stores are stocking up on some lovely floral cardigans and full circle skirts! Personally, in this blogler's opinion they are bit late, we spotted this tendency long ago! Nevertheless, we are looking forward to wearing this look!
The 50s' tight-waist style worn with a full circle skirt gives women a great hourglass shape and should be a big hit in your wardrobe this season!
3 – Jackie Kennedy, Princess Diana, Grace Kelly and Sarah Jessica Parker
No explanation needed here, these ladies are known for their great fashion style and pearls have always been their best friends. Jackie customarily used pearls of multiple strands and Princess Di loved a pearl choker and matching pearl earrings. Grace Kelly's stunning pearl collection is on show at the V&A museum - for those of you lucky enough to be currently visiting or living in London. SJP has made long pearl strands the coolest thing in our jewellery boxes to be thrown over dresses and suits. Check out some of our amazing pearl strands on our Mai Pearls website.
Remember genuine pearls don't need to cost you the earth, Mai Pearls specialises in affordable freshwater pearl jewellery. In addition, our designer Henrietta Askew visited the production site herself and has made sure work conditions were appropriate to all our amazing team! Futhermore, 10% of profits go to charity.
We told you this was an unbeatable list!
XXXX
Mai Pearls Team
Posted: July 19, 2010 05:44 PM
June 23, 2009
Mother of pearl
I have recently been asked, “How does mother of pearl relate to actual pearls?” Mother of pearl is also know as nacre, an organic-inorganic composite material produced by some molluscs as an inner shell layer. It is strong, resilient and iridescent. This is called “mother of pearl” because it is literally the “mother” or creator of real pearls. Pearls and the inside layer of pearl oyster shells and freshwater pearl mussel shells are made of nacre. Mother of pearl can be shaped into all sorts of things including flower shaped earrings settings such as these as seen above and more found on the Mai Pearls website.
Posted: June 23, 2009 11:05 AM
June 22, 2009
Imitation Pearls
Another question that I have been asked recently is “Do pearls get made synthetically now?” The answer is yes; synthetic pearls do exist and can be found in many high street shops. However, synthetic pearls are not real pearls and they are usually referred to as “imitation pearls”. These “pearls” are made of crushed shell which is then treated with a resin to stabilize and harden it into a solid mass. This mass can then be shaped, dyed and polished to resemble real pearl. Most synthetics are painted on enamelled glass or something similar. An important fact to note is that all the pearls used within the Mai Pearls designs are all Chinese freshwater pearls and no imitation pearls are used.
Posted: June 22, 2009 02:31 PM
June 19, 2009
What is a black pearl?
A black pearl is literally that, a black coloured pearl. If a pearl is naturally black in colour it is because it is a Tahitian pearl formed in a black-lipped pearl oyster. The colour will range from grey to black with green, blue or rose overtones. Tahitian pearls can be cultured or farmed and range from 10 – 18mm diameter. Natural Tahitian pearls can also be found throughout the Indian Ocean and western to central Pacific. Tahitian pearls are a speciality and therefore prices are a great deal higher than for example Chinese freshwater pearls. At Mai Pearls we have some Chinese freshwater pearls that have been permanently dyed black with green, blue and rose tones. For more information please see the website.
Posted: June 19, 2009 02:59 PM
May 28, 2009
Sterling Silver
All of the clasps that you find on the Mai Pearls pearl bracelets, pearl necklaces and pearl pendants along with the hooks and attachments found on the Mai Pearls pearl earrings are made out of either sterling silver or gold plated sterling silver. The sterling silver used is 925 an alloy of silver containing 92.5% by weight of silver and 7.5% by weight of other metals, usually copper. Silver is a soft metal which is why mixing it with other metals creates a slightly stronger metal that can be used for more functional things such as clasps.
Posted: May 28, 2009 12:34 PM