Women Just Love Pearls
Considered the most feminine of gems, pearls are an essential part of every woman’s jewelry wardrobe. They can go day into night, and work equally well with a business suit, cocktail dress or casual blouse.
Nowadays, even a sultry strand of black Tahitians can go with jeans, shorts, summer dresses and skirts. Your jeweler can demonstrate all the beautiful ways to wear pearls by mixing and matching lengths and colors, or by layering, knotting, or adding decorative clasps. Whether classical, whimsical or edgy, pearls always look gorgeous.
Pearls in pink hues made a sublime showing on the runway this year. Also seen were delicate drop earrings, toggle, cluster and illusion necklaces, swingy lariats, brilliant white gold and Tahitian pearl rings, and glorious baroque multi-strand bracelets. You don’t have to be a jewelry expert to select the perfect pearl gift for your special lady. Here’s how experts judge quality cultured pearls:
Luster: A combination of surface shine and a deep glow that radiates from within the pearl.
Surface: Because cultured pearls are natural, expect some irregularities. Note that the fewer blemishes on a pearl, the higher its quality.
Shape: In general, the rounder a pearl, the more valuable it is. However, baroque-shape pearls can be very beautiful because of their irregularities.
Size: The diameter of cultured pearls ranges from 2mm to 10mm, with some varieties, such as South Sea and Tahitian being even larger.