Category: Pearl Jewelry

Mother of pearl is incredibly popular in the Middle East, making it a huge part of many of our most popular Holy Land gifts. That very popularity has done what greed and the desire for profit usually do, however, and encouraged many mother of pearl retailers to begin manufacturing “fake” mother of pearl (iridescent plastic) and market it as the real thing. So how can you tell when it’s real and when you’re looking at a fraud?

What is Mother of Pearl?

Before you can accurately launch a quest to differentiate real mother of pearl from a cleverly disguised fake you should know what mother of pearl is. Mother of pearl (also known as nacre) is, quite literally, the “mother” of today’s pearls. It’s the iridescent layer of material that makes of the shell lining of many mollusks and is made up of plates of aragonite combined with an organic material that strongly resembles silk to make it both strong and flexible and suitable for use in jewelry making.

When an irritant comes into contact with the mother of pearl the organism forms a large bump around it to create an actual pearl.

How to Tell if It’s Mother of Pearl or Just Pretty Plastic

There are many opinions out there on how to differentiate real mother of pearl from fake when you’re shopping in wares from the Middle East. One savvy shopper recommends a bit test (if possible), stating, “If it doesn’t click, its plastic.” Beware, they break. Others say real mother of pearl is usually colder than room temperature. If you happen to be talking about buttons or small accessories you can usually look at the reverse side to get a feel for whether it’s plastic or real mother of pearl.

Go Straight to the Source

Over time you’ll develop a feel for accurately determining which products contain real mother of pearl and which simply clever fakes are. Until then, consider asking retailers for the source of their products. Remember, real mother of pearl comes from mollusks and therefore originates in areas where these organisms can be found. It’s native to the Middle East, but chief sources for today’s products come from the pearl oyster, freshwater pearl mussels and abalone.

Pearl oysters used commercially are found in the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean and parts of the Western Pacific. Some are also harvested in the waters off the Australian coast, particularly the Shark Bay pearl oyster. Certain species are also harvested off the coasts of Fiji, Tahiti, Myanmar, Baja and the Philippines.

Freshwater pearl mussels are listed as an endangered species but are still harvested by permit. They are native to the northern regions of the world, specifically eastern Canada and New England, Russia and Continental Europe.
Abalone is considerably more common and much less endangered and can be found along the coastal waters of every continent, with the exception of certain parts of the eastern Atlantic. Most are harvested in the cold waters off the southern coasts of New Zealand, South Africa and Australia as well as certain parts of western North America and Japan. Inquiring into the source materials of your products should give you a very accurate idea of whether you’re dealing with the real thing or a cleverly disguised piece of iridescent plastic.

Pearls are associated as some of the most impressive and well-framed kind of ornaments that has got their own grace and charm among all the other types of jewellery.

Pearl jewelry is famed as a fabulous type of jewelry that women love to wear apart from gold jewellery. They are the classical pieces and are very stylish. This type of jewelry stands timeless and is associated with some other fantastic adjectives.

Some famous celebrities are seen wearing sparkly pearl jewelry which looks equally graceful as diamond jewellery. This type of Pearl jewelry makes women look influential and more impressive. Pearl jewellery is more into the finest look and boast of a royal style statement in the fashion world.

Women are usually seen wearing stylish pearl ring and other similar jewellery ornaments to flaunt their individual presence of wearing. Many queens and royals used to wear these pearls and used make a fashion stand out. There is a vast range of supply of the costume pearl necklaces in the market. Thus wearing earrings, pearl necklaces, bracelets and other pearl jewelry ornaments inspires one to be a fashion trendsetter and throw a better appeal than the gold jewellery.

The fashionable and designer pearl jewelry sets that are made available these days has got variety of shades and have several colors, styles and lengths just like diamond jewellery. One can wear them so as to match the little black dress and enwrap them in many discrete looks.

Pearl jewellery is the most wonderful and familiar type of jewelry that rests with the wearers of all ages and sections. This type of jewellery is known to be probably the most common and adored type of and is sold in bulks.

This type of jewellery is mostly sold in the normal departmental stores as well as in the other high end jewelry stores. You can find these exclusive pearls range that starts from average sizes to the larger than what rests usually. They have the usual size of 4mm to 11mm and look fantastically graceful and impressive when carried perfectly and teamed with best kind of outfits.

So, dont get surprised if you are going to find more and more pearls as they have all the reasons to be in trend. They never go out of style are known as the timeless pieces. These ornaments always go with traditional wardrobe accessory and never disappoint the wearers. It wont be wrong to say that pearl necklaces are forever.

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I have been a well-known international designer my entire life. You may have seen me on Home Shopping Network, The Shopping Channel in Canada, Jupiter Shop Channel in Japan or perhaps you have worn clothing or jewelry that I have designed for famous fashion houses such as Oleg Cassini, Bill Blass, Rafaella, Colleen Lopez of Home Shopping Network, or
Ivanna Trump of The Shopping Channel of Canadajust to name a few. I am a seasoned designer and an expert in freshwater pearl jewelry. One might say I have my “BLACK-BELT” in shopping!

I have lived in China for many years and have produced jewelry designs in pearl jewelry, freshwater pearl necklaces, pearl earrings, bridal jewelry, and jewelry with semi-precious stones for the biggest and the Best names in the business! Being able to speak basic Mandarin Chinese helped me to develop freshwater pearls with the pearl farmers in the province of Zhuji in Maniland China.

Pearls take 2 to 4 years to grow and develop “nacre” before they can be harvested. One must have patience. However, China has a huge land mass and natural lakes and freshwater ponds which are a perfect habitat for growing freshwater pearls.

Freshwater cultured pearls come from freshwater mussels and are produced by the countries of Japan, China, and the United States. Freshwater shell and pearl mussels are from the species called Unionidae, from which about 20 different varieties are commercially harvested. The tones of the freshwater cultured pearls are dictated by the mother shell. White is the most common color for natural pearls, followed by pink. Other colors depend on the type of mussels.

Freshwater pearls and cultured pearls are one in the same. The pearls are grown in freshwater and cultured to encourage natural nacre and a deep luster. Some people think cultured pearls are fake pearls. They are not. They are real pearls. Farm-raised pearls are real pearls grown in fresh water from mussels while saltwater pearls are grown from oysters. The chemical which creates nacre produced by the freshwater pearl mussel that
forms the pearls is identical to the chemical produced by the saltwater pearl oyster.

When a foreign material such as a piece of shell, a bead, or muscle tissue is inserted into a mussel and cannot be expelled; the live mollusk, in order to reduce irritation, coats the irritant with the a secretion which it uses for shell-building called nacre. Nacre is the pearlized luster surface which covers the pearls.

In order to culture freshwater mussels, pearl farmers slightly open their shells, cutting slits into the mantle tissue. They insert small pieces of live mantle tissue or other irritant shapes into those slits. In
freshwater mussels that insertion alone is sufficient to start nacre production which is similar to tearing. The mussels tear just as a human eye would tear if an irritant were in the eye. Most cultured freshwater pearls are composed entirely of nacre, just like their natural freshwater and natural saltwater shells.

Now China is in what we call the Cultured Pearl Revolution. Starting in the 1990s, China surprised the world gem market with products that are revolutionizing pearling. The shapes, luster, and colors of the new Chinese production often match original Japanese Biwah quality and sometimes even surpass it.

A designers life work is showing people how to do something they have never done before. My experience of living and working in China for many years has given me a unique insight into the world of freshwater pearls. I have watched the pearl industry grown for many years. I have compiled a detailed report of information that can really help you.

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Pearl necklaces never run out of style. They are always classy, elegant and quite flexible as wardrobe accessories. They are one of the most popular gift choices for weddings, being the birthstone of June and they have a lasting, mystical appeal that has been celebrated for thousands of years.

Pearls are rarer when they are produced naturally but while cultured pearls are quite affordable, their quality is in no way inferior to that of natural pearls. To an untrained eye, it is very difficult to tell a natural pearl from its cultured cousin. The only way to differentiate is probably to use x-ray where a nucleus’ will be spotted in the cultured variety.

Some of the more common types of pearls used in necklaces are Mikimoto, Akoya, Tahitian and South Sea Pearls. Mikimoto is the highest quality pearls and come in different colors. Akoya pearls often come in white, cream or silver while Tahitian and South Sea pearls have darker colors. Saltwater pearls are more expensive than freshwater pearls.

Choosing pearl necklace lengths
Choosing the right length of pearl necklace depends upon the wearer’s age, neck size and overall body composition. In general, long necklaces tend to elongate the neck and draw attention away from it, as opposed to shorter-length ones which flatter longer necks. Here are the different lengths of pearl necklaces recommended for every woman’s unique need:

Collar typically 10 to 13 inches long and are quite flexible either for evening wear or casual day wear. These are worn high on the neck, above the base. Another style is the dog collar, which is made of several strands, quite popular in the Victorian era and slowly making a comeback.

Choker 16 to 18 inches long, chokers surround the base of the neck. A good choice for ladies with long, thin necks because chokers can de-emphasize the throat’s length.

Princess at 17 to 20 inches long, this is the most popular length, classic enough to match any outfit or neckline.

Matinee 20 to 24 inches long. These work well worn with dresses, business suits and corporate wear and are a great choice for occasions requiring semi-formal wear.

Opera 28 to 34 inches long, usually worn during formal events and occasions. Because of its length, this pearl necklace may be doubled to form two strands. When worn as is, it should ideally reach below the bust line.

Rope or sautoir the longest, starting at 37 inches, worn best with pantsuits. Rope-length pearls don’t have to hang from the wearer’s neck alone. They could be doubled or knotted for more style flexibility. Some even come with multiple clasps, which allow the wearer to use the necklace in shorter lengths.

Short necks will do well wearing pearl strands that sit at least 2 below the collarbone while thick or heavy necks will look good in graduated chains with lengths beginning at 18. Long thin necks are flattered by shorter lengths, especially those that sit at the base of neck, following the curve of the throat.

Fleshy necks look better in necklaces that lie below the base, especially if the strand is segmented or comes with a square, rectangular or any pointed pendant. Necks that are wide at the base need necklaces that are at least 1 below the collarbone or longer strands.

Other pearl necklace styles
Other styles of pearl necklaces are the bib which, as the name implies, covers the base of the neck and the upper part of the chest in several strands of varying lengths. Another option is the graduated necklace which consists of pearls in graduated lengths, usually with the biggest pearl/s in the middle. A popular style is the uniform necklace where pearls of similar size are strung together.

Choosing pearl colors and size
While white, cream, pink or silver pearls generally will look good on anyone, they can best enhance fairer skin. Gold or yellow pearls will look best on darker-toned skin.

Generally, younger women should wear smaller pearls. At this point in their lives, they could show off their youthful necks with smaller-sized chains and pendants. Older women may want to use longer-length pearl necklaces to draw attention away from their necks. They can also wear bigger pearls with wider, double- or triple-strand chains.

Pearl necklace sets
One of the best ways to buy matching jewelry is to get ones that come in a set. This way, you have a necklace, a pair of earrings and either a ring or bracelet that come in matching styles. However, if you prefer just the necklace, some jewelers will allow you to buy one off a set.

Pearl beads have been adorning people for thousands of years. Natural pearls, made from irritants entering a mollusk, clam, or oyster in fresh or salt water, where prized for their beauty. Various colors come from water substances in the areas where they are found. From white to black, pearls are produced in a spectrum of colors.

As we all know that pearl beads jewelry is elegant and beautiful. Quality is determined by size, luster, shape, nacre thickness, and lack of imperfections. Nacre is the shine in a shell with mother of pearl that produces a depth of color. Pearls are popular craft product as they lend an element of mystery, natural beauty to jewelry designs. You might be sure that there are many providers giving out the right piece of jewelry at very expensive rates which can only be afforded by the rich. There are many designs available for the jewelry and considering these facts pearl beads can be taken as the one that can be used by the people of all age groups. This is mainly due to the simplicity possessed by the pearl jewelry with the passage of time wherein you could definitely come across the facts that most of the pearl jewelry is made out of only pearl beads wherein it definitely look simple. White it the only color that comes to your mind when you think about pearl even though the pearl beads are now days available in different colors in the market, such as pink, black, cream, yellow, green, blue and so on.

In early moments, there were certainly not several kinds of pearls accessible. Yet today, we have alternative to pick from extensive selection of pearls which appears fantastic and vivid. From natural fresh water pearls to the cultivated pearls, you can find several kinds to pink from the accessible pearl sorts. Freshwater pearl jewelry is thought of as a pretty essential and most wanted jewelry merely because of the truth that the freshwater pearls are really barely offered.

Pearl beads are commonly used in pearls necklaces, bracelets, rings, earrings, brooches and so on. These beads in strands for necklaces are sometimes an indication of age and status. Generally, the younger the woman wearing the pearls the smaller the pearls should be. A woman of maturity and wealth can wear the largest of pearls stunningly. Various lengths from short to long or with multiple strands maintain popularity.

Wholesale pearl beads from online wholesale stores can get a wide range of selection. They can offer both loose pearls and unfinished pearl strands, just like PandaHall.com-a China Beads, Findings & Gems Online Market. It can also offer many other jewelry beads, jewelry findings, wires and jewelry tools. You can get one-stop shopping there.