Flowers everywhere!

Well, flowers are in bloom everywhere in wedding accessories!  From petite and subtle pieces to lavish floral accessories, this trend is here to stay for awhile.

Our "Rose Garden" hatinator has been wildly successful, with very large silk, organdy and velvet petals accented by feather wisps floating upon feathered layers of illusion creating a hat effect.

"Eileen" is more demure with a smaller version of the flower in "Rose Garden," yet still dramatic in its own right.

"Dorothy" combines many elements for a fresh take on a floral piece, with French illusion wisps, jeweled centered flowers, and beaded swirl accents.












Whatever your style, there is sure to be a flower accent for you!

Pearl Luster, Overtone and Matching

LUSTER

Luster is the brightness and clarity of the reflection of the light through the many layers of the nacre of the pearl.  If layers are applied uniformly by the mollusk, with few impurities or disruptions to the layering pattern, light can reach more deeply into the pearl and reflect back outwards in a brighter, more coherent (clear) reflection.  The more impurities or broken  layers, the fuzzier the reflection will be.  This is, by most gemologists' standards, the most critical point in judging the beauty, rarity and value of a pearl.

OVERTONE

Overtone is the secondary color of a pearl.  A pearl may have a neutral or silver overtone, as seen in the pearl in the middle in the photo, but oftentimes pearls will have hints of either pink or green, as shown to either side of the neutral pearl.

MATCHING

Matching is a direct indicator of how much time, care and effort was invested in creating a fine piece of jewelry.  Even for simple stud earrings, "true twins" are very rare, simply because between two pearls even slight differences are more visible!

COLOR

SIZE

SHAPE

LUSTER

OVERTONE

SURFACE QUALITY

ORIENT

MATCH FACTORS

Asian Origins of Freshwater Pearls

Chinese historical records dating from 2300 B.C. tell of pearls being given to royalty, although record of the initial discovery is quite unknown. Pearls have been prized throughout both Western and Eastern history as gems of rarity, value and beauty, reserved for high royalty and nobility.

To the left, shell pearls in the image of Buddha can be seen as an example of historical Chinese ingenuity in the practice of pearl culturing.

Image Courtesy: American Museum of Natural Science and Royal Ontario Museum

courtesy Kiyojo