Take a look at pictures of queens, princesses and members of the blue-blooded set and you’ll invariably find that they’re wearing pearls around their necks. It might be one string, or two, or three, but it’s clear that pearls bestow an aura of elegance and distinction on the wearer.
The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, is often spotted sporting pearl earrings (as shown above).
So why aren’t pearls more popular today, especially amongst younger women? Well, maybe the modern generation thinks that pearls are old-fashioned, that they don’t fit in with current fashion trends and are suitable only for the over fifties.
But what could be more simple, more graceful and more refined than a string of pearls, each one of them perfectly matched for size, quality and color? And pearls are unlike diamonds, rubies and other gemstones for they come from beneath the sea, not from beneath the earth, and they can be made use of immediately without any cutting or polishing. Most pearls on sale today are cultured pearls, pearls from oyster shells raised on sea farms where the growth and water conditions can be monitored.
And pearls don’t only come in white and grey but in other colors too – pink, gold and black. And the luster of a pearl goes deep. Layers of nacre from the mother-of-pearl shell are coated on the pearl as it grows giving it a deep and inner glow. So next time you see pearls in a showcase look at them, study them, and learn to appreciate their real beauty.
Where do pearls come from? Mostly from the South Seas in an arc ranging from Burma to Tahiti, and also from Australia.
Wear too many bits and pieces and you tend to appear over-dressed. Why not keep it simple but elegant by putting a string of pearls around your neck. Then look in the mirror and you will understand why pearls have become royalty’s favorite fashion accessory!
