Is white MOP dead?

Jon, the only brown lip I was able to get, were small scales but like you said, Very Colorful.
I have not seen any available for a while now, it is very rare.

Joss, I feel white pearl will make a come back. But it may be after all the black lip is gone :)

I'm speaking of folders here.
 
Funny, but the pearl I *really* like for delicate elegance is the pink 'fresh-water' pearl. Don, I think you are the only maker who has used it that I know.

This isn't the exact shot I was looking for, but this is an example:
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So we have white, gold, brown, black, and pink pearls. Not so sure about brown pearl. Show me? I must have lots, but am not clear.

Coop
 
Interesting - I have seen pink freshwater pearl, but that looks much more irridescent.
 
FWIW at ECCKS i had a couple Richard Rogers knives to flip all with incredible exhibition white pearl..I heard from more than one dealer that they weren't touching white pearl on slip joints..I couldn't believe my ears...doubt it last
 
Coop, this is the brown lip I was talking about. The color is incredible on this one and looks just as good in person.
K03944-HansonDan002.jpg
 
Dellana uses the highest grade Mother-of-Pearl available.
Notice how the hues change in the bottom folder when shown
at a different angle.
In one's hand, her MOP handles glitter as if alive...... Her inlays
of gold dots and diamonds in the MOP are also unique. She also
forges her own Damascus.......

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)

From my book "The Great Collections"
picture.JPG
 
Bruce Voyles auctioned off a beatiful Utica factory showroom collection in white carved pearl several years ago.
Just beautiful. And the examples presented here are equally beautiful. I saw a lovely Steve Johnson piece for sale on Nordic a few months ago (in white); now sold.

From a user perspective, if these are ever used, just how fragile is the handle material? ..one drop.
David
 
2knife said:
From a user perspective, if these are ever used, just how fragile is the handle material? ..one drop.
David
Click to expand...

I love the look of pearl too, as well as abalone, but the fragility is definitely a factor. Seems that it is very rare to find antique/old pearl handled knives without any cracks in the pearl.

A high end maker told me that he prefers to use it for interframe folders to reduce the risk of damage.

I think the white has the most fire of the various types of pearl.

Peter
 
If anyone feels that white MOP is dead, please ship the "bodies" to me and I will inter them with the others in my white MOP sub-collection. :)
 
I'm a big MOP fan because it's super classy and doesn't shrink or crack in dry climates. As for trends concerning the different colors of MOP - I wouldn't know. What I do know is that, as with all natural handle materials, a wide range of quality exists. Best quality MOP in any color always catches my eye while less than top quality MOP in any color will cause me to pass on what might otherwise be an excellent knife. The best MOP has serious visual depth that is lacking in poorer quality MOP. Depth as in this example and some of those posted above:
orig.jpg


I don't think anyone has mentioned Yellow MOP:
orig.jpg


Mixing Black Lip and White MOP can be interesting. Koji Hara won best art knife and best in show with this one at the South Eastern Custom Knife Show in 2005:
orig.jpg
 
I love both, of course the black lip is more impressive at first glance, the colors are so vibrant, the high grade white pearl is more understated, but when it's very good, and you take the time to examine it, it has a depth and beauty I like just as much as good black lip.

I would think the recent demand for black is a fad, not that people will stop wanting black, but the balance between the demand for it, vs. white, will even out in time.

Picture_176.jpg


Picture225.jpg


DSC00480v800.jpg
 
I want somebody to do a knife with mother of pearl and rag mycarta, and call it "Ragmop"

:D
 
I also think some pictures have their saturation & contrast boosted very strongly, something that will make the BLP pop more than the MOP (which is more monotone and ... well ... white.)
 
Joss said:
I also think some pictures have their saturation & contrast boosted very strongly, something that will make the BLP pop more than the MOP (which is more monotone and ... well ... white.)
Click to expand...

You cannot imagine how right you are..... Years ago we had to to work
long hours to get the lighting just right to catch the deep hues of such
materials. Well, then we shot transparencies and the results had to be
perfect...... If not one or two days of shooting went down the drain.

Can you even imagine how people with over 40 years in professional
photography feel when the perfect result is achieved on the screen within
minutes with modern digital technologies? And when I mean perfect, to
me it is way beyond, anything I could ever dream for........

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)
 
Actually I got carried away in the above post.......

What I wanted to show is Dellana's ability to inlay gold dots and diamonds
in perfect gold bezels into MOP handles........

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)

picture.JPG
 
I just like pearl. Jim Treacy

JD Smith MS

J.jpg


JD Smith MS

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Wayne Valachovic Retired MS

Valachovic037.jpg


Wayne Vaachovic Retired MS

Valachovic013.jpg
 
Jim - thank you, I had never seen a Valachovic fixed blade. Very interesting.
 
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