Mikimoto AA vs AAA? And question about color!

[Cantsaywho]

Hey all,

I'm very new to the pearl world and know next to nothing about pearls because of it. I've been browsing the boards and have learned quite a bit about pearls thanks to you knowledgable folk!

I've been hoping to get a pair of plain pearl studs, 7mm. I went to Mikimoto at South Coast and was shown the A, AA, and AAA. Naturally I want to buy the reported highest quality offered, but I couldn't get myself to buy the AAA studs at Miki. Between the A and AA, I noticed a steep contrast in color, with the A being much pinker. The AA and AAA looked noticeably green... It wasn't just a hint of green, but more of the entire pearl is a silver-green color. The saleslady says its probably because I was wearing a blue sweatshirt and the pearl picked up the color from my clothes? Is this right? I had her line up the pearls and the A grade pearl didn't show any hint of the green the AA and AAA did. I noticed someone on here previously posted that she could tell the higher grade pearls apart since they were pinker than the lower grade ones, and am confused as to why the AA and AAA pearls I saw were green. As much as I want the best quality pearl I can afford, I also want a white/pink pearl...

 

[jshepherd]

What you are seeing are different overtones. Higher quality pearls don't necessarily have more pink than lower quality. The pink color is a product of a treatment known as "pinking," and is not naturally occurring. The natural white hanadamas, for example, have very little pink (only the most subtle overtone), but have more of the silver and green undertones.

Another thing you may be seeing in the higher quality goods is something known as orient. Orient is created by thin film interference when light passes through the nacre of a pearl and diffracts, creating a sort of rainbow effect. This definitely gives the pearls a bit of a silver aesthetic, and could also make the pearls appear to have a slight green undertone.

 

[KAC]

basically what Jeremy said - the overtones aren't really part of the quality grade of the pearl, although many like yourself do prefer the pink/rose overtones.