Is this festoon necklace worth saving/restoring? Lots of verdigris.

[eclectic_seller_too]

It must have been a beauty in it's day, but not so much now. There's verdigris in-between each bead and on the caps. Worth saving, and how would one go about getting rid of the verdigris, if at all possible. Thanks.

[christinesclassicjewelry]

This looks very similar to a Miriam Haskell in style, but unless that hook is signed, it is not a Haskell piece. The issues to me would be far too much work to want to deal with, unless you love the piece and want to restore it for yourself. If you were going to get rid of the verdigris, what I would do is unstring the whole piece, soak the findings in vinegar, and restring it on a new cord. If you soak it in vinegar whole, you risk damaging the pearls. But, that is not your only issue. All of those milky beads should have pearl nacre on them as well. So you would have to find some replacement baroque pearls for those too. 

If this were a signed Haskell piece, I may consider going through all the trouble, but if not, then it definitely wouldn't be worth it as far as trying to sell it. It would just take too much time and effort to really make any money in the end. It really is a shame, I'm sure it was such a lovely piece before all the damage. 

[saintsantiques]

If it were me, I would soak the entire necklace in vinegar, and take the rest of the nacre coating off of all the beads, then you are left with lovely white beads.  If reselling it, I would mention that it was originally nacre covered. I have actually sold old pearl necklaces that I removed the damaged nacre from as glass bead necklaces, but of course mentioning what I have done.  I think the white glass beads with the faceted crystal beads, and rhinestone rhondelles would be lovely. But that is just me, I'm not an expert on jewelry at all.

[thirry]

Christine's right about the Haskall "look." Those sqared-looking baroque pearls grabbed my attention. 

She's pretty much right about all the things you'd had to do for a complete rehab. My guess with the bead caps is that they probably can't be saved, but if you want to try you should be prepared for a good bit of work. Vinegar is useful in many cases but it's best to start with a very diluted solution. You can add more but you can't reverse the damage if your solution is too strong. I can appreciate your wanting to reuse the originals. If you can find similar vintage bead caps it would probably be easier.  There are also a lot of other findings on the necklace. 

A frequent suggestion for treating vertigris is to use ketchup. The reason it works sometimes is that vinegar is one of its ingredients. It's rather messy and the tomato ingredients won't do you much good. 

If this were my necklace I don't think I'd have the heart to dispose of it. I'd probably stuff it in a drawer until I'm equal to the task. If it turns out to be marked Haskell you might feel like taking on the challenge, or you might try offering it for sale as a rehab  project. 

Best of luck with it!

A. 

[eclectic_seller_too]

Thanks so much, everyone, for the input and suggestions. There isn't a mark on the clasp, so not Haskell, just some generic, former beauty. I always say I'm going to take the time to restore a piece, but I never seem to get around to it. So, for now, I'll "throw it in a drawer," until I decide what to do with it. Thanks, again. You're all always so helpful, and I sincerely appreciate it.