I recently bought pearl earrings and necklaces and I was amazed at the differences but in the store I could see why one was more than the other due to the roundness of the pearls, how close each pearl was in size to the other, the size of the pearl, the glow of the pearl, the weight of the pearl, the beauty of the more expensive pearls, etc. I ended up paying more on sale for the Akoya Pearl earrings that really looked so much nicer than the salt water pearl earrings but I accepted some flaws in the necklaces I bought as long as the pearls were white and round since I could not afford the ones I fell in love with but I dislike oval pearls or pearls that look and feel cheep. You wife will love the gift! By the way, the necklace I fell in love with was $3,000 so I accepted a shorter necklace with pearls not as nice but round on sale for less than $200 (on sale at 65% off...) that are very pretty to my eyes. But I also found a shorter pearl necklace for $49 out of 30 boxes I opened and looked at until I found one acceptable that looks like quality and had round pearls.

Thanks, BITS. Can't wait to see what you, MEADEL do w/your inheritance. Sounds very interesting. I had a friend many years ago who made a city scape out of scrap wood she got from a carpenter's shop - rectangles, squares and triangles from what my memory tells me were 2X4s , 4X4s, and other sizes. It was fabulous and HUGE. Was a great piece of art on her wall.

Good luck finding that ribbon, Kudzu. Seriously, I have been all over ---JoAnn's, Michaels, Hobby Lobby, all Dollar type stores, Big Lots, etc. No one seems to have it anymore! I have heard it is discontinued and can only be found online.( I don't like to order online) Please let us know if and where you are able to locate any! TIA

@RayeSmith: I don't think I can attach my mirror directly to a hinge, given how it is constructed. (1) the frame is completely round, front and back (2) the back of the frame is not very wide (3) I don't think the construction of the frame is strong enough to stand up to the stresses of movement. @pennydesign, I don't think I'd try to convert the floor mirror to a jewelry mirror--I just think it would be too complicated. But I could make the box/tray that attaches to the wall, and attach a slab door of plywood (size everything so that door fits inside the frame of my mirror), and then remove my mirror from the stand and glue it to the slab door. Maybe the frame would stand up to that simpler stress. I've wanted to hang that mirror on the wall all along anyway; I love how it looks (the design of the frame), but having it on a stand is a PITA.