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Pearl Jewelry

Pearl jewelry has always been prized and closely guarded. Ever since pearls were discovered they have been treasured and held in the highest regard. Most civilizations have stories and legends of pearls, and these usually revolve around the rarity and value of pearls.

Nobody is sure who first discovered pearls or who first started wearing them as jewelry. There are many places in the world where pearls can be found, even though they are extremely rare in nature. Before the discovery of how to culture pearls, pearl-producing shellfish in many parts of the world were in danger of being overfished.

Once it became apparent that pearls could be gotten without destroying oyster populations, more were grown and made available. This just made the popularity of pearl jewelry increase even more.

For a few decades pearls fell to the wayside of popular fashion, but they are seeing a renewal in interest now. Many jewelry stores are carrying a selection of pearls, mounted and strung in different ways.

Some of the most popular pearl jewelry is made with colored pearls. Pearls that have a vivid, unusual color are generally considered to be more valuable than plain white pearls. This is because they are not as common as white pearls, and trends in jewelry have demanded these colored pearls.

There is no limit to the colors that pearls can come in. One of the most interesting things about pearls is that the body of the pearl can be any color between black and white. Then a pearl can have “overtones” as well. These are subtle colors caused on the surface of the pearl by the nacre near the surface of the pearl acting as a prism when light hits it.

For white pearls, the most common overtones include rose, cream, and silver. Black pearls often have “peacock,” silver, and rose. Blues, greens, and many other colors are not uncommon on pearls as well.

The biggest trick when it comes to making valuable pearl jewelry is matching all the pearls properly. Not only do the size and colors of the pearls have to match, the grade of the pearls needs to match as well. Matching all of these things is a difficult process and requires a lot of attention to detail.

The larger the pearl and the higher the grade, the more expensive it is going to be. They aren’t much different from diamonds in this sense. So a necklace made of AAA grade pearls that are 9mm in size is going to cost a lot more than a necklace made with AA grade pearls that are 7mm.

If you are buying pearl jewelry as an investment, you want to buy the nicest items that you possible can. If the purpose of the pearls is to be worn often and you just want them to look nice, you may be perfectly happy with AA grade. They are still beautiful and valuable, but many people will find them more affordable.

Once you start seriously shopping for your pearls, you will quickly begin to understand the differences in the pearls and what you are interested in getting. No matter what you choose, you should be thrilled with your pearl jewelry for many years.

 


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