This is an Akoya pearl necklace.

 

 

Generally, the Akoya pearls widely known around the world are round pearls with white or pink tones. However, the pearls in this necklace are baroque in shape and blue in color.

Pearl farmers work tirelessly through both hot summers and cold winters in order to cultivate perfectly round white pearls.

In that sense, blue baroque pearls like the ones used in this necklace could be considered a “failure.”

However, regardless of the intentions of pearl farmers, these blue baroque pearls are beautiful.

In addition to blue, they display silver, green, and pink overtones, creating rainbow-like interference colors. To me, a necklace made from pearls where every pearl is slightly different is simply captivating.

I believe you may feel the same way.

 

 

Interestingly, many people within the pearl farming industry also love blue baroque pearls.

In business terms, the market value of blue baroque pearls has risen in recent years, but the ultimate goal of pearl farming is still to produce round white pearls.

However, once separated from business itself, many pearl professionals seem to become fascinated by blue baroque pearls.

This is because pearl farmers are often drawn to pearls with thick nacre.

In many ways, pearl cultivation itself could be described as the process of forming thick nacre.

 

 

In recent years, however, jewelry manufacturers and pearl wholesalers increasingly demand pearls that are perfectly round, even if the nacre is relatively thin.

Yet many pearl farmers believe that the true essence and beauty of pearls comes from thick nacre.

As nacre becomes thicker, pearls tend to develop more baroque shapes.

In other words, baroque pearls often have thicker nacre.

That was quite a long explanation, but simply put: baroque pearls are attractive because they tend to possess thick nacre, and that is why they have many admirers among pearl farmers themselves.

Round pearls sell for higher prices, while baroque pearls are generally valued slightly lower in the market. However, baroque pearls often possess the thick nacre that creates the deep glow and beauty that define pearls as gemstones.

Even a perfectly round pearl can appear less attractive if its nacre is thin.

 

 

Of course, a pearl that is perfectly round, possesses thick nacre, strong luster, and a smooth surface is truly mesmerizing. However, such pearls are extremely rare.

Now, let us talk about this blue baroque pearl necklace.

As shown in the photographs, these pearls possess deep blue tones and rich, attractive depth created by their thick nacre.

These pearls were selected from approximately 762 blue baroque pearls and became one of fourteen necklaces created from that lot.

The entire process — from sorting the 762 pearls, creating strands, and finally turning them into necklaces — was recorded on YouTube.

 

 

 

Because the videos are almost entirely unedited, they are extremely long. The process from sorting to strand-making alone became sixteen videos, with a total runtime of approximately twenty-one hours and twenty minutes.

For those who wish to examine the quality of these necklaces more closely, the videos may be useful references.

And for those interested in pearl sorting itself, the process may also be fascinating.

Pearl sorting is specialized work, but the process itself is simple. Pearls are sorted by near-round shape versus non-round shape, stronger luster versus weaker luster, darker versus lighter colors, and so on. The criteria themselves are straightforward.

When I worked for a pearl company, during every harvest season around the end and beginning of the year, I spent nearly two months sorting freshly harvested pearls every single day.

It was not until my third or fourth year that I finally became comfortable with sorting and began to truly enjoy it.

Before that, I struggled to judge nacre thickness and often became so sleepy that I would nearly fall asleep while sorting.

I am still far from perfect, but now I can sort pearls reasonably well, and among all pearl-related work, it has become one of the tasks I enjoy most.

 

 

This necklace was also created while enjoying that process of sorting 762 pearls into fourteen necklaces.

Almost all Flower Jem necklaces are all-knotted.

This is because I personally became deeply fascinated by all-knotted pearl necklaces.

Even while working at a pearl company, I loved pearls themselves, but I did not feel particularly drawn to ordinary pearl necklaces.

Traditional pearl necklaces often feel extremely formal and can only be worn on limited occasions.

No matter how beautiful they were, I always felt conflicted that pearl necklaces were mostly reserved for weddings, funerals, and formal ceremonies.

 

 

Then one day, while browsing Instagram, I saw blue baroque pearl necklaces all-knotted with blue and yellow thread, and I felt as though I had been struck by lightning.

After several encounters and coincidences, I decided to personally share and spread the charm of blue pearls.

All-knotted necklaces using colored thread become casual, playful, and charming.

I believe this makes pearl necklaces easier to wear in everyday life.

It feels somewhat like an actress who normally wears elegant dresses and formal clothing casually going shopping on a Sunday in relaxed clothes.

In formal attire, it may feel difficult to casually go buy something simple like plastic wrap at the store. But in relaxed clothing, it feels natural.

Yet even in casual clothing, she remains a beautiful actress.

That is the kind of image I have in mind.

Even as I write this, I wonder whether this comparison makes sense, but I believe someone who reads this positively will understand what I mean.

You may already be tired of hearing this, but among cultivated pearls, 7mm pearls are the most common, followed by 6mm and 8mm pearls. 9mm pearls belong to the larger sizes, so their production volume decreases significantly.

 

 

That said, while they are comparatively less common, they are not impossibly rare. Most jewelry stores still carry 9mm pearl necklaces.

Personally, however, I believe the greatest charm of this necklace lies not in its 9mm size, but in its abundant nacre.

It reminds me of a tomato ripened almost to the point of bursting.

Perfectly shaped tomatoes are nice as well, but the true essence of a tomato lies in its ripened fruit.

Likewise, one essence of pearls lies in thick nacre.

I believe thick nacre is what creates attractive luster and interference colors.

If compared to music, thick nacre may be similar to the bass line.

Piano, guitar, drums, and vocals are all important, but without bass, music can sometimes feel thin and empty.

In pearls, nacre thickness may be that bass line.

 

 

Well, this became quite long again, but thank you for reading this far.

The writing may feel somewhat unorganized and difficult to follow, but ultimately what I want to say is simple:

This is a beautiful blue baroque pearl necklace.

There are other blue baroque pearl necklaces born from these 762 pearls as well, so I hope you will take a look at them too.