Pearls

June birthdays and third and thirtieth anniversaries are celebrated with the gift of Pearls. Pearl necklaces can be purchased one pearl at a time (an excellent and lasting gift for a little girl!) See our Add-A-Pearl page for more information.

The majority of pearls come from Japan, China and the South Pacific. They come in many beautiful colors, from palest cream and white to rose, lilac, green, gold, gray, and the dramatic Tahitian black.
Cultured Pearls - Enhancements - Care and Cleaning - Lore

Cultured Pearls

Because natural pearls are so rare and difficult to recover from the ocean's depths, man invented the technique of culturing salt and freshwater pearls from mollusks carefully seeded with irritants similar to those produced by nature. The mollusk forms a pearl around this implanted seed.
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Enhancements

Due to demand for perfectly matched white pearl strands, cultured fresh and saltwater pearls are often bleached to achieve a uniform color. They may also be polished in tumblers to clean and improve their luster. Dyes, heat treatment, and irradiation are sometimes applied to produce a wide range of hues such as yellow, green, blue, purple, gray, and black in freshwater and Akoya (saltwater) cultured pearls. Some South Sea cultured pearls are bleached to lighten their hue, but most South Sea and Tahitian cultured pearls are not subjected to enhancements to create or improve their color.
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Care and Cleaning

Produced by a living organism, pearls require special care because they contain calcareous crystals that are sensitive to chemicals and acids. To care for your cultured pearls, avoid using perfume, hairspray, abrasives, solvents, and nail polish removers while wearing them. Like your skin, cultured pearls contain water and may dehydrate and crack if exposed continuously to arid conditions. We carry a delicate jewelry cleaner designed for pearls and other fragile gems.
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Lore

Old Arabian legend says that pearls were formed when dewdrops filled with moonlight fell into the ocean and were swallowed by oysters. According to ancient Chinese legend, the moon holds the power to create pearls, instilling them with its celestial glow and mystery. Pearls have been treasured for their lustrous, creamy texture and subtle iridescent reflections since the dawn of humankind.
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