Can someone explain to me why some jewelers call only their akoya pearls cultured? I went looking for pearls the other day and several companies refer to freshwater pearls as freshwater pearls, but akoya pearls are just called cultured. From what I have read here freshwater pearls are also cultured but they told me that only akoya are called cultured.
confusing!

By the way, I printed a picture of Jshepard's freshadama to take with me and every jeweler said there was no way they are freshwater, they must be akoya. I assume it simply must be because they had never seen quality like that because it would not make sense to me that a seller would sell akoya as freshwater when he could just get more money for selling akoya! Anyway, i am really, really tempted to try the freshadamas! I will have to take them back to the same stores to see what they say.

Hi there JoyfulOne,
Those jewelers you visited just don't know much about pearls, which is not terribly surprising. My own experiences have been similar.

I have some of Jeremy's freshadamas and they are wonderful. Once I had a strand, I compared them to my own older akoya strand (which now can never be worn again as it just does not measure up!) as well as to other akoya strands in local jewelry stores. And, just for fun, I also took them to my local independent gemologist/appraiser (not a jeweler, he does a lot of insurance work, appraisals for estates, etc.). He thought they were great. He personally recommends freshwater over akoya to his clients anyway, as he sees them as more durable and a better value for the money. So, give the freshadamas a try, if you don't like them, you can always return them!

youngster

You are correct. Freshwater pearls are cultured pearls as well as Akoya, but most jewelry retailers have so little training in pearls that they can only parrot what they've read on the tag. In your case, they are selling "cultured pearls" because that is what the tag says.

And yes, the freshadamas are freshwater pearls no matter what an uneducated retailer might say.

[purepearls]

It simply comes down to lack of education in pearls. If a jeweler doesn't know that their pearls are cultured then I would definitely move on to the next jeweler. Most people do not realize that the majority of pearls sold today are cultured whether it be Freshwater, Akoya, Tahitian, South Sea, etc. Natural pearls are very rare and typically not found in standard jewelry stores.

Ignorant jewelers, surely not! I can only second all the above. Speaking as a jeweler (please don't tell anyone) I can tell you that, generally speaking most positively glory in their ignorance. And, we wonder why mom and pop jewelry stores are an endangered species.

To quote my friend Fred Ward sic "its not that most jewelers don't read, they can't read." I propose a new jeweler's motto: "If you don't know the answer just make something up."

Unfortunately at times I feel its Its all for the bigger sale. Lots of big name chain jewelry stores need salespeople ot necessarily people who know about what they are selling it all boils down to best selling technique! Sad and unfortunate it is.....

With the attitude why by cheap freshwter whey Akoya are better quality, feed peoples egoes. Jeremy blown this thinking right out of the water! as well as proved it!

I say follow your heart get what you like!

Cheers,
Ash

[purepearls]

I think that is why websites like the pearl-guide are so incredibly important for the industry. Isn't it funny when the customer knows more than the seller of the product? Alarming, yes!

I am going to take my new strand of pearls to the same jewelers I visited to see what they say! I know they are going to be speechless. I am really, really excited today! Thanks everybody!

[purepearls]

Also, often you will find that companies will call their Freshwaters "Cultured Pearls" and not identify them as Freshwaters and then mention all other pearls by their name, Akoya, Tahitian or South Sea. How is a person to know what the difference is between their "Cultured Pearls" and the rest of their pearls when they are all cultured?

[Kevin Canning]

I've seen the term "cultured pearl" to describe freshwater pearls and typical is "saltwater pearl" for Akoya's.

The sad truth is that 99% of all retail jewelers are totally clueless about pearls and couldn't tell a South Sea pearl from an Akoya, even if it was 15mm SSP. Very sad indeed.

[purepearls]

Ha! Luckily, the educated consumers that peruse the pearl-guide will be able to tell the jewelers what they are buying. Isn't that funny??

[Pearls_by_Angela_Carol]

Originally Posted by Joyful One

By the way, I printed a picture of Jshepard's freshadama to take with me and every jeweler said there was no way they are freshwater, they must be akoya. ...

One of the major reasons behind this (besides lack of education) is that most people working in a jewelry store have never seen Freshwater pearls that are round - much less with high luster surface purity. They are only familiar with the low quality, "grains of rice" or "potatoes".