Freshwater Pearls

Freshwater pearls, what are they?

These pearls are completely natural products and their size, color, and shape are completely unique for each pearl.

Freshwater pearls are pearls that grow in freshwater mussels. They are a popular jewelry material and come in a wide variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. Freshwater pearls are usually cultured, which means that a person plants a pearl embryo inside a mussel, and the mussel secretes nacre around it.

How to identify a genuine freshwater pearl?

  • Touch:
    A real pearl feels cool and smooth. You can try rolling the pearl against your teeth. The surface of a real pearl is slightly rough and sandy, while the surface of a replica or, for example, a plastic pearl is completely smooth.
    Looks:
    Real pearls are not perfectly symmetrical and may have slight irregularities. Natural pearls may have small marks or irregularities on their surface that were created inside the shell.
    Properties of freshwater pearls
    Color scheme:
    Freshwater pearls come in many different colors, including white, cream, pink, lavender, and black.
    Lines:
  • The shapes of freshwater pearls vary from round to almost perfectly round and irregular.
  • Sizes:
    The sizes of freshwater pearls vary from a few millimeters to over 10 millimeters.  

    • Freshwater pearls are generally more affordable than seawater pearls, such as Akoya pearls, Tahitian pearls, or South Sea pearls.