PEARLS...Mother Nature at her best; a timeless favorite when we adorn ourselves; a remarkable creation story with a great irony. Natural pearls are formed deep inside an oyster around an irritant, such as a grain of sand, a piece of seashell or coral. Today, NATURAL PEARLS are quite rare and consequently, the most valuable. Many are part of jewelry of antiquity. CULTURED PEARLS are formed the same way as natural pearls except the irritant or nucleus, is introduced into the oyster by man. These oysters are raised in controlled environments on mussel farms. The majority of pearls sold today are cultured pearls. FRESHWATER PEARLS are farmed in freshwater and grown in mussels. The irritants and the oysters used in making freshwater pearls are smaller than saltwater pearls. Freshwater pearls cultivating technique usually produce multiple pearls, 20 or more, in one oyster in one and one-half to two years. SALTWATER PEARLS are grown in oysters farmed in saltwater. One pearl is grown per oyster. More than two and one-half years are necessary for the growth of the pearl to develop a thick nacre. Thus, saltwater pearl are more expensive than freshwater pearls. KEISHI PEARLS are little mistakes with lovely results. When debris enters an oyster while it is open during the harvesting process, the oyster covers the debris with nacre, and the keishi pearl is created. MOTHER OF PEARL, or sometimes called Mother of the Pearl, is not actual pearl, rather the nacre coating on the inside of the shell of the oyster. A great irony of pearl history is that the least expensive cultured pearl product in today's market can rival the quality of the most expensive natural pearls ever found.

Women's Pearl Beaded Jewelry

Bracelets 12 products  Earrings 22 products  Necklaces 27 products  Necklace & Earring Sets 3 products