Links of London "Hope Egg" earrings

First, congrats to the Cambridges on the arrival of little Prince George!

I'll admit that I had to take a bit of a breather there.  Honestly the media frenzy surrounding the bun in that oven was just a tad much for me, but I'm glad the Cambridge family and more importantly the baby is doing well, and above all that the whole hoopla is finally over.

I decided to come back with a jewelry post update I've been working on, which happens to be appropriately timed.

We come to the subject of Kate's engagement photo earrings, a pair of white topaz pavé drops.  Though she has apparently worn them for a number of  years (as early as 2008) they had a bit of an "official" debut in the engagement photos in 2010 as she wore them for both the formal and casual versions.  I find it interesting how many "neutral" stones she has managed to mix and match with the iconic sapphire and diamond ring.  Not even the Duchess wears diamonds all the time!
Kate has continued to wear these earrings regularly since then, mostly for less formal but still professional occasions such as the 2011 Canadan tour.

The sterling teardrop earrings with pavé white topaz setting are by Links of London.  Named the "Hope Egg" earrings, the shape which is said to symbolize "hope and new life" is actually Russian in origin.  

So as you see, very appropriate given the birth of the little prince.
The Links of London website currently has the "Hope Egg" earrings in plain sterling silver only, retailing for approximately $195 U.S., and the "Hope" white topaz pendant necklace, currently retailing at approximately $375 U.S.
Since I can't find a listing of the exact product my personal price estimate for the earrings lies closer to the pendant's price, slightly higher no doubt.

Links of London - "Hope Egg" white topaz earrings, via DianasJewels.net.

Fortunately a design this classic with plain earwires isn't terribly difficult to locate, with a slight variation in shape of course.

Fossil has a pair of pavé teardrop duplicates at approximately $48 U.S. currently on sale at $29.99 U.S. These are silver-tone with crystal.

Fossil - pavé teardrop earrings.

Next up in scale are these teardrops from J.C. Penny has a pair pf in silver plate and crystal.

These were approximately $26 U.S., currently on sale at approximately $19.50 U.S.

J.C. Penney - silver plated pavé crystal teardrop earrings.

Higher up on the quality totem pole are these diamond and sterling silver teardrops from Kohl's.
While they originally retailed for approximately $275 U.S. they too are currently on sale at approximately $109.99 U.S.

Kohl's - 1/4 ct diamond and sterling silver teardrop earrings.