Native Americans of the Atlantic Coastal areas and the Mississippi River Basin were the first to collect and use U.S. freshwater mussel pearls and shells. Pearl pendants and ear pendants were worn by both sexes and both pearl and shell were used for decorative purposes on articles of clothing. Some of the tribes used pearls as tributes, reportedly Powhattan (Pocahontas' father) had large stores of pearls received as tribute. Additionally, armlets, pendants, and gaming pieces were made from mussel shell.

Natural freshwater pearls are seldom perfectly round or even nearly round, more often than not they are baroque, slugs, or wings. Many pearls, both natural and cultured, have beautiful colour and luster. Freshwater pearls are noted for their wide range of colour, they can be found in white, silvery white, pink, salmon, red, copper, bronze, brown, lavender, purple, green, blue, cream, and yellow. Although white is the most common colour, the most desirable are the pastel pinks, roses, lavenders, and purples. The different colours are a function of the mussel species, genetics, water quality, and the position of the pearl in the shell. Generally, pearls assume the colour of the shell in which they form. Problems can arise in putting together matched strands because of the wide range of pastel colours.

The shape of the nucleus and its position in the mussel determines the shape of the cultured pearl. The shapes recovered include rounds, pears, eggs, drops, buttons, domme, and baroques. In turn, the baroques include many recognized shapes such as, nuggets, dog tooths, wings, hammers, twins, barrels round-a-circle, and rosebuds. The baroques are becoming popular for use in the manufacture of rings, earrings, and pendants. Cultured pearls come in all of the same colours as natural pearls.

Look for items with Freshwater Pearls

South Sea Shell Pearls are synthetic pearls, though they differ from the low grade synthetic products in that they are not made from inexpensive glass, plastic, or wax like many other synthetics. They are instead lab-created from genuine South Sea oyster shells, such as the fluted giant clam shell, and this is often called mother-of-pearl. This is then pulverized and shaped into perfectly round shell beads which then undergo a complex high-tech coating and heating procedure until its characteristic high gloss is achieved. These beautiful and luxurious beads can be acquired for a fraction of the price of genuine South Sea Pearls, yet look every bit as beautiful!

Look for items with South Sea Shell Pearls