Freshwater cultured pearls are real pearls grown inside freshwater mussels; glass pearls are glass beads with a pearl-like surface. Sera Marea uses both, and the spec list on every product page says which one a piece carries. They look alike from across a room and behave differently in the hand, in water and over the years, so it is worth knowing which you have.
Two pearls on a wooden table by a window. One is faintly uneven, a little heavier than it looks, cool for a long moment. The other is exactly round, lighter, and warms almost at once.
What is a freshwater cultured pearl?
A freshwater cultured pearl forms when a mussel is seeded with a small piece of tissue and, over months to years, lays down nacre around it in thin layers. Cultured means the process was started by a farmer; the pearl itself is grown by the animal and is nacre through most or all of its body. Freshwater pearls come in white, cream, peach and bronze tones and in shapes from near-round to the irregular baroque shapes on the Baroque Pearl Flower Brooch. Our white freshwater pearls sit in the Pearl Blossom Brooch, the Pearl Charm Bracelet and the Woven Pearl Band Ring.
What is a glass pearl?
A glass pearl is a glass bead with a pearlescent surface applied to it. It is uniform, round and consistent in color, which is why it suits pieces that need many identical pearls along a chain, and it costs a fraction of a cultured pearl. We use glass pearls in several sets, including the Silver Star Flower Set and the Coral Bloom Set, and in the Lilac Flower Pearl Earrings. We never call them freshwater, and the product page names them plainly.
How can you tell real pearls from glass?
Four checks in the hand, none of them needing tools. First, shape: real freshwater pearls are rarely identical; look along a strand and the sizes and outlines vary slightly, while glass pearls match. Second, temperature: a real pearl feels cool and stays cool for a moment before warming; glass warms faster. Third, surface: under a lamp, nacre has a soft depth, sometimes with faint ridges or a small pit; a glass pearl is glossy and even. Fourth, the tooth test: real nacre feels faintly gritty drawn gently across the edge of a front tooth, and glass feels smooth. On our pieces you do not need to test, because the spec list tells you, but the checks are useful for pearls that arrive without a label.
Do freshwater pearls peel?
Real freshwater pearls do not peel in normal wear, because the nacre runs through the pearl rather than sitting on a core. What people describe as peeling is usually one of two things: a very thin-nacre pearl of any kind that has cracked, or a glass or plastic pearl whose surface has begun to flake at the drill hole. If a pearl flakes to show a smooth, shiny bead beneath, it was never a freshwater pearl. Nacre can, however, wear dull with perfume, hairspray and acidic sweat, which is why care matters.
Can freshwater pearls get wet?
Freshwater pearls can take a little water without harm, but they should not be worn to swim or shower. Nacre is a soft organic material; chlorine and soap dull it, and prolonged soaking weakens the thread or wire holding the pearl and any glue where a pearl is pegged. Wipe pearls with a soft, damp cloth after wearing to remove sweat and lotion, then let them dry fully before they go back in the box. Perfume and hairspray should never land on them; pearls go on last.
How do you care for glass pearls?
Glass pearls need less, but not nothing. The pearlescent surface can scratch against harder beads or chip at the drill hole if knocked, so store them apart from other pieces and avoid dropping them on tile. Wipe dry after wearing. Water does not harm the glass itself, but the pieces they sit in are plated wire, which should still stay dry; see our note on plated jewelry and water.
Which is right for you?
Choose freshwater cultured pearls for a piece meant to be worn often and kept, where the slight irregularity is part of the point, and glass pearls where you want many matched pearls, a lighter piece or a lower price. Both are honest materials when they are named honestly. Read the materials glossary for every material we use, and the care page for the short version of all of the above.
The two pearls go back into their boxes. One is still cool.