Written by Carolyn Doyle for customers of
The Dorado Company
and other visitors to the azgem.com website who subscribe.

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Usable Gems... and a little opinion.

June Birthstone Is Pearls

The June birthstone is pearls. Okay, it can be a single pearl, as in a pearl ring or pendant.

This month we continue our series on birthstones that will provide answers to questions like...

"What is my birthstone?"

"What if I don't like the color of my birthstone?"

"What if I can't afford my birthstone?"

If you're female, I have good news on all the above issues. If you're male, you may want to opt for an alternative June birthstone such as color-change alexanderite.

Pearls are the most highly prized organic gems. They are of course, produced by shellfish (oysters, clams), and are not mineral crystals like gemstones.

Pearls come in a wonderful variety of colors. Many colors occur naturally, and some are available with man's assistance. Pearls can be artificially colored by dying them.

Click on the box... and have Google start putting money in your bank account!

 

Modern dying techniques deliver deep, uniform color penetration. Some pearls are dyed to resemble natural colors, and some to produce fashion colors. Hot pink, lemon yellow, and lavender are obvious fashion colors.

Pearls offer a lot of natural color choices. There are two basic types of color... body color and iridescence.

Lets start with body color This is the obvious (or primary) color you see in a particular pearl. These colors are:

	Pink (Rose)
	Cream
	White
	Gold
	Silver (Grey)
	Black (Greenish)

 

Which body color is the best? The one that complements your complexion, and the one you like!

Pearls should also exhibit iridescence. That is the subtle shimmering play of color seen in better pearls. This effect is called "orient" or overtone.

Pearls with a deeper outer layer (nacre) exhibit these beautiful secondary colors more strongly.

 

Pearls are often classified by origin. Akoyas are cultured in saltwater in Japan. Biwas are cultured in freshwater in Japan.

Chinese Freshwater pearls are just that! China is now a large producer of quality, round, freshwater gems.

Pearls known as South Seas are grown in saltwater, and come from remote and pollution-free locations in Indonesia Thailand, Myanmar, Australia, and the Philippines.

Tahitian Pearls are grown in saltwater around the islands of French Polynesia (primarily the Society Islands, including Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora).

Pearls come in a wide range of prices, depending on , color, size, and quality characteristics::

 

	Orient
	Desired shape
	Clean and even surface
	Diameter in millimeters

 

Prices can range from under $20 for a nice, round, freshwater pearl for a ring... to thousands of dollars for a large, natural, Tahitian gem.

This means that price and color considerations shouldn't be a problem in picking your June birthstone.

Pearls are beautiful, classy birthstones. Have you checked our pearls page lately?

Follow this link to learn more about Birthstones, Modern and Traditional.

A Google search for the keyword phrase pearl jewelry  returns a number of listings and ads for vendors specializing in production run jewelry pieces.

Gem Industry News...

Trendy Pearls

The following article is reprinted from the South Seas Pearl Consortium News.

This year seems to herald the return of the white pearl, after visting the European trade show in Basel, Switzerland and the JCK show held in Las Vegas, the dominant feeling is that sales are good for pearls this year. There has, however, been a dramatic change in emphasis towards more exciting pearl designs rather than the traditonal pearl strands. This may well be influenced by the fact that pearls, both real and faux, have been seen on fashion pages and catwalks and show every sign of remaining there. This coupled with celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Michelle Pfeiffer seen wearing cultured white South Sea pearl jewellery, means that the consumer is focusing on the pearl as a "must have purchase."

No one would dispute that pearls are amongst the purest and finest of gems - a gift from nature, but as with all gems, today's consumer requires a certain reassurance over quality. This is an area that the SSPC is very aware of and is keen to both support and provide educational material and training for both the retailer and the consumer. To this end the SSPC will be producing a brochure featuring some of the newer more "trendy" pieces of pearl jewellery this season and giving tips on buying pearls and how to care for them.

The consumer will always aspire to the ultimate white South Sea pearl strand, the classic but most beautiful of all jewellery. A beautiful South Sea pearl strand is a true gift for a lifetime, an heirloom that can be handed down through generations- a jewel forever. However the jewellery designers of today are showing there are more to pearl designs than just these classic strands.

Top European designers and their American counterparts are all featuring pearls in a new light this year. Also the keshi pearl is enjoying renewed popularity, mixed with semi-precious stones to create lighter, younger jewellery designs. European designers in particular are mixing pearls with bright gemstones, turquoise and coral to give the jewellery a brighter, more fashionable feel. Pearls, themselve a gift of nature, are being used as the central focus of nature inspired pieces such as flowers, animals and sea creatures. They are being mixed with diamonds and precious stones for a more sophisticated feel, but even here the result is more design orientated pieces. Rings are more sculptural in design; necklaces have a more fluid feel and are longer in length. In short, pearls are shrugging off their more classic reputation and revealing a sexy new image.

Jewelry Dealers

Father's Day is right around the corner... plus, anniversaries and birthdays are always coming up.

All are good reasons for your customers and their friends to buy jewelry.

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Are you rewarding your customers with discounts or freebies when they send you a new customer? 

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The price of gold is still around $650 per ounce, so if you weren't able to hedge by buying up gold mountings and findings a couple of years ago, you probably should be buying what you need now. It just keeps going up.

Jewelry Dealers Program

Do you enjoy jewelry and gems?

Do you enjoy talking with friends and co-workers?

Take a look at our great Jewelry Dealers Program.

Carolyn Doyle

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