Cultured Pearls And Fresh Water Gems
We have all seen the great marketing programs for pearls. A scantily clad Asian girl dives without masks and air for shelled creatures. She comes to the surface with oysters galore. It is a nice picture, but does not represent what really goes on with most pearls.
Pearls are known as refined jewelry. The process by which they are made, however, is rather more organic. Foreign material gets stuck within a mollusk and the animal reacts. To protect itself, it surrounds the material in nacre.
The outer layer of a pearl is the nacre. It is also known as calcium carbonate. The first layers on the foreign matter are soft, but they harden over time. Getting this process to start can be difficult, so cultivators take matters into their own hands.
Cultured pearls are those that are helped along by farmers. To make sure pearls are being formed, the farmers artificially implant foreign matter into the shells to spur production. They then provide optimal growth conditions as well.
The phrase cultured pearl refers to a pearl that is farmed. It is not an entirely accurate terminology, however. Why? Well, there are really four different types of cultured pearls.
Size matters with pearls. South Sea cultured pearls have it. They are the largest on average, coming in at a whopping 13 millimeters. They are known for being perfectly round, but are priced on their luster.
Tahitian cultured pearls run a close second when it comes to size. They tend to be in the 10 to 12 millimeter range. They tend to be dark green in color with a high luster. They are fairly rare. This makes their price the highest on average among the cultured pearls.
Looking for classic white pearls? Akoya cultured pearls are your best bet. They have a beautiful luster and a fair price. Cultivated in Japanese and Chinese rivers and lakes, these are very popular pearls.
If the name is bland, you know the product is as well. This is the case with freshwater cultured pearls. They are average pretty much through and through. There big advantage is they tend to be affordable.
So, what pearl should you go with? Well, it is largely a matter of taste. Usually, one wants to look for the largest pearl with the best luster. I prefer Akoya pearls myself.
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 Cultured Pearl set in Sterling Silver and S S Chain US $18.33  |
 Elegant white cultured pearl and red jade necklace 18 US $.01 |
 Free Shipping Cute Cultured Pearl And Turquoise Earring US $.99 |
 Noblest Cultured Pearl and Turquoise Necklace Bracelet US $.60 |
 Ross Simons Cultured Pearl and Turquoise 72 Necklace US $25.59 |
 Sterling Silver Cultured Pearl And Ruby Ring Sz 9 US $54.99 |
 Genuine white cultured pearl and red jade necklace 17 US $.15 |
 Cultured Pearl and Diamond Earrings US $300.00 |
 112CT RUBIES AND CULTURED PEARLS 14KT GOLD BRACELET US $24.99 |
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