Tagged with 'Fake pearls'

Look closely at this image of these beautiful baroque Tahitian pearls and it is possible to see several small blemishes and imperfections on the surface of the pearl. Although fake pearls are typically very smooth and artificially perfect, a real pearl may often have irregularities such as pits, chips, bumps and scratches on its surface.

Both natural and cultured pearls are formed by a mussel or oyster over months and even years. Because of this slow process, it is rare for the surface of a pearl to be perfectly flawless and instead it can be quite normal for pearls to have blemishes on their surface. Baroque Tahitian pearls such as these pictured are loved for their individual beauty. Some pearls such as colourful freshwater Kasumi pearls from Japan are known for their distinctive wrinkles on their surface.

The surface of a pearl can range from being spotless to being very heavily blemished. Tiny spots of conchiolin or aragonite, two components of a pearl's nacre, can be minor and may even add character to the gem. Other flaws such as cracks, patches of thin nacre or a strong discolouration of the pearl surface are best avoided. We are very careful to select pearls that are not disfigured in this way or where their longevity may be in question.

Due to their rarity in any harvest, the fewer and smaller the flaws that a pearl has, the more valuable a perfect pearl will typically be. When buying pearls, it can be easy to focus on minor blemishes on a pearl's surface and to ignore other important factors such as lustre. Often small blemishes can also be hidden from view by the jeweller in the setting or the drill hole.

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) established one of the leading gemological systems for grading the quality of pearls according to 7 key criteria: size, shape, color, luster, surface quality, nacre quality and matching.

To classify the condition of the surface of a real pearl, an expert will assess and grade the surface of the majority of pearls as:

1. Clean – Pearls are blemish-free or contain minute surface characteristics


2. Lightly Spotted – Pearls show minor surface irregularities


3. Moderately Spotted – Pearls show noticeable surface characteristics


4. Heavily Spotted – Pearls show obvious surface irregularities

As well as having many years of experience with pearls, the team at Winterson is trained in pearl grading by the GIA. A pearl's surface is one of the value factors that we use to describe the pearl jewellery at Winterson. The baroque Tahitian pearl necklace pictured in this image has a surface grading of Clean to Lightly Spotted and this is fully disclosed on the Winterson website.

If you would like to know more about the quality of our pearls, or how we grade them, please do contact us.

Which item of jewellery should be on your wishlist to accessorise with the new Autumn/Winter 2011 fashions?

The pearl choker is set to become one of this season's hottest jewellery accessories. Pearl chokers first became fashionable in the second half of 1800s with the influence of Alexandra, Princess of Wales who wore short necklaces and high necklines to disguise a small scar on her neck.

But this year Chanel, Valentino, Donna Karan, YSL, Bottega Veneta, Hermes, Emilio Pucci and Alexander McQueen… are just a few of the designers and brands that reference the choker with the season’s trend for a revival of Forties fashion.

A pearl choker necklace is a 14 to 16 inch (35-40 cm) necklace that nestles in the hollow of the neck or just above it. There are many variations of this short necklace with materials that include fabrics, gold and diamonds, feathers and pearls. A torsade can be a short necklace, made with twisted strands of white or multi-coloured cultured pearls.

The look of a choker can also be created by wrapping a long pearl rope necklace around the neck in layers.

Among the A/W 2011 season's collections, Donna Karan’s Pearls of Wisdom collection stands out. Its colours are pale, grey, silver and sand, the materials used are tweed, silk, fur and wool, the lines are fitted, luxurious and feminine.

We also love the look of Erickson Beamon’s chokers of matching faux pearls that complement and finish Donna Karan’s glamorous designs, sometimes using large pearls over 1cm in diameter. These are worn in single strands or in torsades and are accessorized with discreet matching earrings.

If you prefer the natural silver and grey colour of Tahitian pearls or the natural lavender colour of Freshwater pearls to the colour of faux pearls, then a real pearl choker will be the accessory to have for this winter.  The complexity of a real pearl's natural lustre, its warmth next to the skin and silky surface would add beautiful detail to the 1940s styling.

Pearl jewellery can be found in a wide range of designs, qualities, and prices. When buying pearls, retail and online shoppers can find pearl necklaces that range from just ten to tens of thousands of pounds in price. For this reason alone, buying pearl jewellery can be a daunting task.

Here are the first 5 of ten simple questions to ask to help find the right piece of pearl jewellery for you.  The second 5 questions are here.

1. Are the pearls natural, cultured or imitation?

Natural pearls are real pearls formed in wild molluscs living in their natural habitat without any human intervention. Their rarity has made natural pearls highly valued and a collector’s gemstone. Cultured pearls are also real pearls, but are grown after a pearl farmer has stimulated the development of the pearl in the mollusc. Cultured pearls are iridescent gems that can be worn and enjoyed every day. Fake pearls are made with a coated glass bead and are fun accessories, but do not have the same organic or luxurious feel of natural and cultured pearls.

Most pearls sold in shops or online will be cultured or imitation pearls. Pearls that are described as being natural will generally not be.

2. Are the pearls freshwater or saltwater cultured pearls?

The majority of cultured pearls available in the fashion market today are Freshwater pearls and are produced in volume in freshwater mussels, mostly in China. Saltwater cultured pearls are produced in a different variety of oysters, chosen for their quality, size, shape and colour. Akoya, Tahitian and South Sea pearls are saltwater pearls. Fewer saltwater pearls are produced each year and their cost is more expensive than that of freshwater pearls.

If the origin of the pearls is not specified, or if the price is comparatively low, then assume the pearls are freshwater or imitation pearls.

3. What is the quality grading of the pearls?

Unlike the diamond industry that uses the GIA’s International Diamond Grading System (the 4Cs), there is no single accepted industry grading system for pearls. Beware of product descriptions that grade a pearl as AAA+ or AAAA as these have no real accepted meaning. Many factors will influence the value of a pearl and some of these are listed below.

Ask your retailer how a pearl is graded and assess their level of knowledge and expertise before buying pearls.

4. Are the pearls dyed?

The colour of a pearl will reflect the type of mollusc that the pearl was cultured in, but may also be as a result of certain dyes, treatments and enhancements. A Freshwater Pearl might be dyed black or peacock so as to mimic the natural colour of a black Tahitian Pearl. A colour treatment may be used to disguise the poor quality of a pearl’s lustre or surface. Pearl jewellery, in which the colour of the pearls is uniformly matched, will possibly be dyed.

Ask your retailer if the pearls have been treated for colour as many dyes will fade or change colour over time.

5. How sharp are the reflections in the pearl?

The intensity of a pearl’s reflections is known as lustre and is absolutely unique to pearls, different to any other gemstone. When grading pearls, highly valued pearls will have a mirror-like, sharp and shiny lustre. Poor quality pearls without lustre will be dull, opaque and lifeless.

Lustre is one of the most important reasons for the differences in price between one pearl and another. Look for pearls within your budget that have the best lustre, as these will complement your skin and the face more beautifully.

Is there an obvious difference between real and fake pearls ? Here are a few tips on how to tell real pearls from an imitation pearl.

It is often said that a factory-made pearl will be very smooth to the touch if passed against a tooth, whereas a natural or cultured pearl is more textured due to its layers of organic matter called nacre. We do not recommend this method as it can be damaging to the real pearl. Never be tempted to bite into the pearl itself.

Although specialist laboratories can provide an accurate assessment of a pearl by performing a range of tests including X-ray examination of the pearl itself, it can sometimes be possible in expert hands to identify excellent imitation pearls through touch and observation.

The density, weight and sound when you click imitation pearls together can be quite different to that of real pearls.

Another simple method used is to examine the drill hole in the pearl.

In contrast to natural and cultured pearls, the layering of varnish in factory-produced imitation pearls can often be readily identified at this point, perhaps by identifying some melting of the varnish at the actual drill hole.

The commercial sale of fake, faux and artificial pearls is quite common and many customers ask us about pearls that they have seen or been offered on holiday. For example, no pearls are cultured in Mallorca.

The techniques for creating imitation pearls were first developed in 17^th century France and the basic procedures are still in use today. A fish paste called ‘Essence of the Orient’ was made from salmon and herring scales, mixed with varnish and used to coat a hard bead such as alabaster or glass.

The resulting ‘pearl’ was dried and polished, before the process is repeated many times to form imitations of the layers of nacre that are found in a natural and cultured pearl.

Typically, these ‘pearls’ are uniform in appearance and don’t have the unique characteristics of colour, shape and blemishes that you will find in natural or cultured pearls that have been grown in a mollusc. More recently, better examples of fake pearls can be found.

We love the deep lustre of natural and cultured pearls. None of the pearls that we sell at Winterson are made using these imitation techniques.

If you have any questions about our jewellery, please do contact us.