Pearls - Every lady's soulmate

Grey Pearls

Simplicity and elegance are aptly defined by Pearls. If diamonds are a girl's best friend, pearls are every lady's soulmate. Be it evening wear, casual wear, quick sunday brunch, cocktail dinners, informal gatherings, sunday church, office wear, weddings, elite gatherings...pearls can never fail you.

 

One has to have the knowledge of picking out the best and purest quality of pearls as the markets are flooded with several varieties, especially the fake ones. When you want to buy pearls, you will find many different sizes, quality and colors. There are many things to take into consideration apart from price, so do not rush into a purchase. You can compare pearls by size, color, surface quality and pearl type.

 

1. SIZE: Large pearls are usually more expensive. The classic size is 7mm.

2. COLOR: The classic creamy-pinkish white is supposed to be flattering to lighter skin tones. Black or gray is stunning on all skin types and silver flatters darker skin types.

3. SURFACE QUALITY:Make sure it doesn't have bumps, scratches or variations in color.

4.TYPE: the three main types of pearls are; akoya (gorwn in Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Australia and China), freshwater (grown in China), Tahitian or Black South Sea (grown in French Polynesia, The Cook Islands and Fiji), and South Sea (grown in Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia).

5. AKOYA pearls are the classic, round pearls that are predominantly white with overtones of rose, silver and ivory. Akoya pearls are also produced in blue and yellow colors and are often dyed black. Akoya pearls range in size from 2mm to 10mm.

6. Freshwater pearls are known for their off-round shapes except in the highest qualities. They are the world's most prevalent pearls. They come in all pastel colors but primarily in white, peach and lilac. Freshwater pearls grow in size from 2mm to as large as 20mm.

7.Tahitian pearls are large and most often dark, with colors ranging from green to black, and cherry gold. They grow from 7mm to as large as 18mm.

8.South Sea Pearls are produced by the world's largest pearl-producing mollusk, the Pinctada maxima. The pearl's color range from white to silver and pink, to chanpagne and gold.

 

WARNING

Dipped or dyed pearls should be relatively inexpensive compared to pearls with true color.

Before you make your decision ask to see several strands of pearls with different surface qualities to help you understand the benefits and trade-offs.