subject: What Are Fresh Water Pearl And How Are They Made [print this page] Freshwater pearls are a type of pearls that are believed to originate from inside the shells of a fresh water creature called the mollusks. These are also commonly termed as mussels in biological terms. They are used to make a number of jewelries like freshwater pearl earrings, rings and necklaces. In the earlier times, there were a number of people who did not value these fresh water pearls as compared to salt water pearls, but in the present times with the advancement of technology used to culture fresh water pearls, have led to a growing demand in the international market. In the present market, majority of the fresh water pearls used for making freshwater pearl earrings and other jewelries, come from China, where different types of techniques are made used of for culturing them, which certainly are very much closer to the natural ones.
A pearl is generally formed when the shell of the mollusk is introduced to some type of irritant. When speaking of nature the irritant is generally in the form of a sand particle, any type of material that is organic in nature or even chunk of rock. When performing this act in the cultured medium, the pearl is generally made by artificially inserting any type of irritant material inside the shell. In most common cases a broken piece from other type of shells are used as an irritant. Before forming freshwater pearl earrings, a mollusk forms a type of protective layer that covers the irritant area, which is termed as nacre. This procedure is performed so that the nacre does not further irritate the mollusk. So this ball of nacre that is luminous in nature is termed as a pearl and is used for making different types of jewelries and Freshwater Pearl Earrings
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You certainly can manage to get freshwater pearls in a wide variation of colors and shapes. There are different methods of dyeing and bleaching that can also enhance the overall looks and color of the fresh water pearl, and so you get these in different range of shades and colors. Perfectly round shaped fresh water pearl is very rare to find and this is also one of the main reasons why they are highly prized. In most cases fresh water pearls are generally irregularly shaped having an ovoid shape or even in the form, of a tear drop. You can also get flattened pearls that are commonly used to make freshwater pearl earrings and rings. There are different jewelers who manufacture Freshwater Pearl Earrings jewelries. Most jewelries are designed to highlight the irregular shapes of the pearl. You can get these freshwater pearls in the form of long strings which is generally cleaned before being used. These pearls are used along with other precious metals like gold and silver and in the combination with other designer stones.
