Necklace Length - You can buy pearl necklaces in a number of different lengths. Generally speaking, shorter necklaces flatter long necks, while long necklaces are nice for smaller necks. The lengths and names are as follows.

Collar - 12-13"
Choker - 14-16"
Princess - 17-19"
Matinee - 20-25"
Opera - 26-36"
Rope - 37" or longer

The most popular is the Princess length since it is a good length for both long and smaller necks.

Pearl Color - The pearl color does not affect the value of the pearl, instead it is completely in the eye of the beholder. Most people buy pearls that best match their skin tone. People with light skin usually buy white or pink pearls while people with darker skin tones tend to buy black or lavender pearls. In America, white pearls are the most popular, while in Asia, silver are the most sought after.

Pearl Sets - When buying pearl jewelry you should consider if you want an entire set, or just a certain piece. If for instance, you buy the necklace, and then later decide to buy the bracelet / earrings they may not match as well as if you had bought a set. Even if you buy the same size, and color, the style may not be the same. Some stores will allow you to buy the individual pieces of a set. So if you want to buy the other pieces at a later time, they will still match.

Natural Pearls:
Pearls that were taken from the waters in ancient times were natural. Today they are very rare and extremely expensive. If a pearl vendor tells you it's natural, she probably means cultivated. If it really is natural, it's probably not going to be in one of China's wholesale pearl markets.
Imitation Pearls:
Imitation pearls are made from glass, plastic or shell beads which are then coated. They are usually obvious in their extremely uniform shape and color. Pearl vendors are more than happy to prove to you that their pearls are real by using a scraping test. See "Avoiding Fakes" below.
Pearl Value:
A number of factors determine the value of a pearl.

* Size: The larger the pearl, the rarer and more valuable it is.
* Shape: A critical factor, the most expensive being the perfect sphere (more common in sea water pearls).
* Luster: This is the glow on the surface, not to be confused with the slightly iridescent colors that seem to be under the skin of the pearl.
* Skin: The fewer blemishes, the higher the quality.
* Matching: This is obviously important when determining the quality of a whole strand.

Colors:
Fresh water pearls naturally occur in white, ivory, pink, peach and coral. You'll find an amazing range of colors in the markets from silvers and dark grays, electric blues and greens, firey oranges and yellows, and neon purples and lavenders. Most of these colors are achieved using a special laser-dye process common to mainland China and Hong Kong.

Hello

For any jewelry lover it is important to get some pearl education before buying it. Since pearl jewelry comes in various price ranges, from $1 to over $10,000, one wonders what makes one pearl necklace item more expensive than the other. Well, there are no secrets but the pearl jewelry industry as a whole, both at domestic and international markets, evaluate pearls based on few facts that the customer may like to keep them in mind.

- First and foremost comes the LUSTER, as luster is the king. The brilliant shine and glow in any pearl is top most factor when comes to grading them. Both inner glow and outer surface shine is very important as no customers would like to spend thousands of dollars on jewelry that is less attractive. A very good luster means it has higher pearl value.

- When it comes to pearl outer SURFACE, the less blemishes and very clean surface surely are graded at higher value. Higher quality of pearls have mirror like finish and without any blemishes on their surface.

- Pearls are commonly measured in millimeters (mm) in their diameter. So large SIZE pearls carry higher value but again even small size pearls that are very shining, thick nacre and perfect shape and clean surface often carry more value that the larger ones that are less round, out of shape or have less luminance. Even 1 mm makes the difference.

- Typically, white COLOR is synonymous with pearls but they do come in other attractive colors. The natural pearl colors are white, black, champagne, green, gray, aqua and golden. Most irradiated or dyed pearls have surface colors and are less expensive than the natural ones.

- Since there are many TYPES of pearls, one must keep in mind that each type is priced differently. There are four types of pearls; freshwater pearls, akoya seawater pearls, Tahitian pearls and south sea pearls. Their gestation period ranges from 2 to 6 years. Freshwater pearls are more affordable than others. Akoya pearls are the next category that are very popular and less expensive and have high nacre.

- Then comes the pearl NACRE – the very iridescent internal layer of a mollusk shell. Perhaps most people already know that it is a natural substance pearl oysters secrete to protect its sensitive internal flesh against any irritant that enters their body. The thin nacre is very prone to chipping and peeling. Thicker layer commands more value because of its greater luster depth.

- Finally comes the SHAPE of pearls. The perfect round pearls are very valuable and found in very small quantity. Many designers often play with other shapes as well like irregular baroque, potato, pear or tear shape and some off round ones. Buying quality pearl jewelry often gets money’s worth manifold overtime.


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