Pearls are traditional and favorite choice for brides and flower girls who wish to adorn their special ensemble with jewelry. So, it is helpful to understand the basics of pearl jewelry when purchasing or selecting jewelry for your flower girl dress. Here are some very simple terms and explanations that may help you understand the bride’s selection or vision so you can perfectly match it with your flower girl’s own accessories.

Modern day pearls are categorized into three families: deep-sea pearls (oriental pearls), cultured pearls, and freshwater pearls. Deep-sea pearls are naturally created by oysters in reaction to irritants, cultured pearls are created through human intervention and technology whereby the irritant is purposely inserted into the oyster to create a pearl. Freshwater pearls are found in fresh water bodies such as inland lakes and rivers. Only through X-ray technology can a cultured pearl be discerned from a deep-sea natural. Cultured pearls benefit from modern processes by being more resilient to contact with human skin and also showing less color disparity. Cultured pearls are thicker and more durable than deep-sea pearls. Freshwater pearls are usually more rustic in appearance, being irregular in shape and varied in color with an intense luster.

The value of a pearl is determined by its physical characteristics of color, luster, shape, size, surface quality, and translucence. All these assessments are made within the size or weight of the pearl and whether it pairs well with its intended partner or partners in a strand. A spot or blemish reduces a pearl’s value, but as a creation of nature, small imperfections are almost always present and need not detract from the pearl’s beauty when properly displayed.

Pearls are naturally available in many colors and shapes. The prominent colors of pearls can vary from ivory, blue, cream, pink, silver, gold, green, and even black. To flatter most complexions, pearls that are pinkish, silver, and ivory or cream in tone are most popular selections for the bride, bridesmaids, and flower girls. The natural shapes of pearls are the classic spherical round bead, tiny irregular seed pearls, baroque (unique shapes with ridges), and hemispheres which are soft half circles or blister mounds.