Handmade Pearls Selection for the Very Best & Unique in Singapore
As the name suggests, this type of pearl is grown inside freshwater mussels as opposed to ocean molluscs. They are the most affordable and common kind of pearl on the market, although the finer specimens can still fetch a hefty price.
Freshwater pearls hail primarily from China and can vary greatly in colour. Typically, they come in pastel shades of peach, lavender, pink, and white. They are often treated with special dyes to enhance or change their colouring.
While a perfectly round freshwater pearl is extremely rare, The Mother of Pearls deals with the roundest, highest quality freshwater pearls available. Their sizes range from small pearls measuring 4 mm in diameter to 15 mm and larger.
The image that comes to mind for most people when thinking of pearls is likely that of the Akoya pearl – the characteristic luxurious white sheen is exclusive to this variety. Akoya pearls are farmed using the Pinctada fucata martensii saltwater oyster found in the colder coastal waters of Japan, Vietnam, and Southern China.
Akoya pearls typically range in size from 2mm to 9mm, with the biggest and most valuable reaching up to 10mm (although this is exceedingly rare)
Tahitian pearls are harvested from black-lipped oysters in the temperate coastal waters of French Polynesia. They are known for being the only naturally occurring “black pearls” – typically sporting a glossy, metallic, grey colouring.
They are prized for their size as well as unique colouring, ranging from 8mm to 15mm. Tahitian pearls that exceed 15mm are quite uncommon and fetch outrageous prices.
These highly sought-after treasures are typically the largest and most expensive variety of pearl. Part of their mystique is the fact that they are grown in the infamous “coral triangle” – a section of treacherous water that lies between Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. South Sea pearls range in size from 8-20mm, with pearls larger than 15mm going for tens of thousands of US dollars. Depending on the type of oyster they form in, they can be a silky white (similar to an Akoya), a sleek silver, pastel pink, or a rich gold.
Baroque pearls are pearls with an irregular, non-spherical shape. Shapes can range from minor aberrations to distinctly ovoid, curved, pinched, or lumpy shapes. Most cultured freshwater pearls are baroque because freshwater pearls are mantle-tissue nucleated instead of bead nucleated. Cultured saltwater pearls can also be baroque, but tend to be more teardrop-shaped due to the use of a spherical, nucleation bead.
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