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pearlFreshwater pearls are one of the most cherished and enticing jewelry accessories in the world. These pearls are the favorite choices of jewelry designers who are constantly allured by their elegance and grace. Are you also fascinated with pearl beads? Do you want to know how are they cultured? If yes, you must read on.

Freshwater pearls take shape either in a natural way or through manual culturing. The natural cultivation of these pearls is very rare, as the climatic conditions must match with the physical state of the oysters to give birth to the freshwater pearls. Thus, in most cases the process of cultivation is initialized manually. The pearls formed out of such human interference are known as cultured freshwater pearls. However, in this procedure the sanctity and authenticity of the pearls is kept completely untouched.

In this process the nuclei of a natural pearl is kept near the genitals of an oyster. This commences the natural process of pearl formation within the oyster. The duration of formation of a single pearl is between three to six years. Once the pearl is fully formed it is surgically removed from the oyster.

As the process of generating freshwater pearls is very long, their price in the market is quite high and sometimes unaffordable. These pearls are, thus, sold together in a large amount through specific reliable dealers. These wholesale pearls could be purchased through various online jewelry retailers.

Pearls are famed for their wonderful beauty and worn by both men and women. Pearls are of different kinds – saltwater and freshwater. They can also be classified as natural and cultured. Natural pearls are obtained without human intervention whereas cultured pearls are produced through human intervention.

Saltwater pearls are created by placing an object called mother-of-pearl into the oyster. The oyster subsequently coats the object with nacre. For making freshwater pearls a small piece of mantle tissue is inserted inside the mussel. Freshwater pearls are created in more volume than saltwater pearls. Hence they are less expensive than salt water pearls.

For producing cultured freshwater pearls (artificial) water must be warm. It was not known for ages of how pearls were made naturally. However in recent times this mystery has being unraveled. When a foreign substance enters an oyster crystalline calcium carbonate is secreted which envelops the substance and subsequently leads to the formation of a natural pearl.

Pearls beads whether natural or cultured are a joy to behold. They are extremely popular and will remain in vogue in the future. The pearls beads are prized assets for anyone lucky enough own them

Chinese Freshwater Pearls

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Chinese freshwater pearls are gorgeous additions to a jewelry-maker’s repertoire.  They are of great quality, rivaling that of expensive natural pearls, yet they are much less pricey even than cultured pearls; in fact, freshwater pearls are available at wholesale prices from jewelry suppliers who import them directly from China.  This means that jewelry artists can make pieces featuring luxurious-looking pearls in earrings, necklaces, pendants, bracelets, and rings available to their customers at reasonable prices.  The pearl is the birthstone for those born in June and pearl jewelry is popular with brides and as a graduation gift.
The first record of pearls in China is from 2206 B.C.  Pearls were used by the wealthy and privileged in many Chinese ceremonies.  In an Imperial funerary rite, a pearl was placed in the mouth of the deceased to keep the body from decomposing.  Additional pearls and other jewelry were placed in the coffin with the deceased.  China now leads the world in freshwater pearl production.  Freshwater pearls take from three to six years to be ready to harvest; farming techniques are constantly being refined to remain competitive in the industry.  Most pearls go to Hong Kong, where they are sold in huge marketplaces amid fierce competition.
Both freshwater and saltwater pearls are fascinating because they are the only gem to come from living animals.  Freshwater pearls occur in mussels and saltwater pearls come from oysters; both types are formed in a similar fashion.  Some irritant enters the mussel and, unable to eject it, the animal coats the irritant with a secretion called nacre (also used for shell-building), eventually forming the pearl.
Freshwater pearls are composed entirely of nacre, giving them a luminous quality comparable to natural pearls.  They can be purchased half-drilled for rings, pendants and earrings, or full-drilled for necklaces and bracelets.  They require no cutting or polishing and since they are made of shells and thus very durable, they do not chip easily or wear down quickly.  They are available in many colors besides the traditional white, including pink, gold, black, green, peacock blue, and orange-pink.  They are also available in many different shapes including the familiar round and smooth to those with rougher, more natural-looking textures in shapes including biwa (a crooked oblong shape), button (round with one flat side), coin, diamond, rectangle, star, teardrop, and many more.  The diversity of colors, textures, and shapes allows for great creativity on the part of the jewelry-maker, and the relatively inexpensive price makes combining different styles in one piece of jewelry feasible.

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