GLOW IN THE DARK: A USER’S GUIDE
By day, glass beads with deep reflections, paired with freshwater cultured pearls. By night, they light up. Phosphorescent Hotaru beads are the signature of our GLOW line. Here is where their glow comes from, how to recharge it and how to wear these glow-in-the-dark beads from morning to the end of the night.
A FIREFLY IN THE GLASS
Hotaru means firefly in Japanese. The name fits. Our Hotaru beads are Japanese glass beads, shaped by hand, one by one. Artisans add silver or gold leaf, which gives them their firefly glint, then phosphorescent particles, which make them glow in the dark.
Each piece has its own recipe. Silver leaf for the GLOW pieces set in 925 silver and for the DAÏQUIRI GOLD GLOW MIDNIGHT. Gold leaf for the DAÏQUIRI GOLD GLOW SUN and the MIMOSA GOLD GLOW SUN. On GLOW BLOOM, a limited edition (Iris, Lotus, Nymphea and Orchid), the beads are also hand-painted with botanical motifs. The colours themselves are developed with our glass artisans.
On the DAÏQUIRI GLOW pieces, the Hotaru beads make up one half of the strand. The other half belongs to freshwater cultured pearls and a mother-of-pearl quatrefoil. Two kinds of light in a single piece: the lustre of the pearl by day, the glow of the glass by night.
FILL UP ON LIGHT
No battery, no button, no settings. Hotaru beads charge in the light, from the sun or from a bulb: a terrace in the middle of the afternoon, the ceiling light at the office, a bedside lamp. In the dark, they light up straight away.
The rule fits in one sentence: the brighter and longer the light they have taken in, the stronger the glow. Then it softens little by little. One more dose of light and it all starts again, as often as you like.
A good habit before a night out: wear the piece during the day, or leave it under a lamp for a while. It will give you the light back with the first drink.
DAY AND NIGHT
By day, a GLOW piece is worn like any other DAÏQUIRI piece. Over a white shirt, a T-shirt or a polo neck, alone or with a strand of cultured pearls. The DAÏQUIRI GLOW MIDNIGHT Necklace, the best-seller of the line, plays the midnight-blue card: white cultured pearls on one side, midnight-blue Hotaru beads on the other. With its 5 cm extension chain, it adjusts from 40 to 45 cm or from 45 to 50 cm, depending on the size you choose.
By night, a change of scene. Concert hall, cinema, terrace at midnight, beach after sunset: as soon as the lights go down, the Hotaru beads take the stage. On the wrist, the DAÏQUIRI GLOW LILAC Bracelet pairs with its necklace, or slips in between your everyday bracelets. It comes in 17, 19 and 21 cm.
Necklace, bracelet, or both: our glow-in-the-dark necklaces and glow-in-the-dark bracelets are unisex, handmade in Paris, and go from the office to the dance floor without a detour via the cloakroom.
A LITTLE CARE, A LOT OF GLOW
Hotaru beads ask for nothing more than the cultured pearls beside them. Your jewellery goes on last, after perfume and cream. Take it off to sleep, work out, shower or swim: the wire the beads are strung on does not like liquids. After a swim, a rinse in clear water. A soft cloth now and then, then back into its velvet pouch.
The glow, for its part, does not wear out: it recharges every time it sees the light. All our care advice, and our 2-year legal warranty, are on the Materials, Care & Warranty page.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is a Hotaru bead at DAÏQUIRI?
A Japanese glass bead, shaped by hand. Silver or gold leaf gives it its firefly glint, and phosphorescent particles make it glow in the dark. It is neither a stone nor a cultured pearl: at DAÏQUIRI, it keeps company with our freshwater cultured pearls.
Where do Hotaru beads come from?
From Japan. They are handmade Japanese glass beads: their story is in Hotaru beads, from Japan to Paris. We then pair them with our freshwater cultured pearls in our ateliers in Paris, where every GLOW piece is assembled by hand.
Phosphorescent or fluorescent: what is the difference?
It is all about timing. A fluorescent material gives light back almost as soon as it receives it, and goes dark when the light goes. A phosphorescent material releases it later, once in the dark. Our Hotaru beads are phosphorescent: that is why they shine when you switch off the lights.
How do you recharge phosphorescent beads?
Put them in the light, from the sun or a lamp. The brighter the light and the longer the exposure, the stronger the glow. No battery and no settings: they recharge as many times as you like.
