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The Wide World of Pearls, Our 36th Issue: Just What's So Great About Luster Anyways? June 6, 2021

 Pearls of Joy Pearl Quote of the Week: "Real friendship, like real poetry, is extremely rare and precious as a pearl." - Tahar Ben Jelloun

 

 

Eye Candy

What is the Aurora Effect?

 

THE EASTERN LIGHTS

Not to be confused with an overtone, the aurora is not actually a coloration of the pearl.

This mesmerizing rainbow of colors is caused when white light enters the pearl, and through refraction, is separated into its spectral colors. Similar to how light enters a diamond or prism and reflects back many different colors.

For this to happen, the pearl needs to have very fine nacre quality with a tight crystalline structure. Most pearls do not have sufficient nacre quality to display aurora or orient.

 

Read More At The Pearls of Joy Blog

 

 

You Ask ...We Answer.

What is Pearl Luster?

 

What's So Great About Luster Anyways?

Luster is arguably THE MOST important aspect of a pearl’s value, beating out surface quality, symmetry of shape, size and color by a mile. If a pearl doesn't have nice luster, it just isn't going to be worth much. Luster is one of the famous “Value Factors” that jewelers, pearl specialists and appraisers use to grade pearls.

Pearl luster has three components:

  • Luster measures the rate of light reflecting off the surface of the pearl.
  • Luster measures the sharpness of reflection visible on its surface.
  • Luster also measures how well light beams break up through the nacre layers to refract back at the viewer, giving very fine quality pearls a subtle “glowing” aspect.

All four of the major pearl types require a rating of “High to Very High” luster in order to be graded “AAA Quality”. However, each pearl type plays with light in its own unique way and should be evaluated on a scale that takes that into account.

 

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Weekly Video

 

 

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Featured Pearls

 

18" Natural White Hanadama Akoya Pearl Necklace: 9.0-9.5mm

 

18" Natural White Hanadama Akoya Pearl Necklace: 9.0-9.5mm

A brand-new collection for women that appreciate and deserve the highest quality pearls possible. Natural white Hanadama are Pearl Science Laboratory certified Hanadama pearls, with the added twist of being completely untreated.

Nearly all Akoya pearls are treated to some degree, but these natural white Hanadama are natural in color. That means no bleaching, no treatments and no enhancements. To say these pearls are merely rare, would border on malpractice. 

These are quite possibly the highest quality and rarest pearls available, period. 

Because of the difficulty in sourcing untreated pearls of this quality quantities are extremely limited. 

 

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