American Pearl Featured in The Wall Street Journal online
American Pearl in the Media
As a premier resource on cultured pearls and the best place to buy pearls online, American Pearl frequently serves as an authority on all things pearl. Whether discussing the history of cultured pearls or how to spot a fake, the American Pearl team is well-equipped to help educate the general public on all things related to this precious sphere. We're happy to provide you with insight on how to buy pearls online and anything else you might like to know about the pearl.
Featured in The Wall Street Journal's Dow Jones online, American Pearl was recognized as being a premier select merchant on Amazon, the most reputable online merchant, on July 30, 2004.
From The Wall Street Journal's Dow Jones:
"Edward Bakash, president of online pearl retailer AmericanPearl.com Inc., which sells through a branded store on Amazon, said he had worried that Amazon's own pearl products could hurt his sales. But the opposite has happened: American Pearl's online business has improved because of Amazon.
More Media Mentions
American Pearl was featured in the Men's Health December Holiday Guide 2001.
Americanpearl.com was recognized by Gemkey magazine as one of the best websites on the internet. December 2000.
American Pearl's products were featured in People Magazine for its celebrity pearls. September 2002. When Mathew Broderick was looking for a pearl necklace to gift to Sarah Jessica Parker for her wedding day, he personally phoned the President of American Pearl, Eddie Bakash.
American Pearl was featured in Brides Magazine and Manhattan User's Guide
Here is what has specifically been written about American Pearl:
"Kokichi Mikimoto developed and perfected the process of culturing and farming pearl oysters at the end of the last century when the supply of natural pearls was already diminishing. Now it's extremely unlikely that you will find anything but cultured pearls. Unlike diamonds, there is no accepted grading system for pearls, though MIKIMOTO, 730 5th (56/57th) has one that other jewelers may use. It classifies pearls as AAA (the best) followed by A+, A and so on. These three grades are the top 3 - 4% of pearl production. The Gemological Institute of America issues reports on pearls only to tell if the color has been enhanced by dyeing or irradiation (more probable in South Sea or black pearls) or to determine if a pearl is natural or cultured (mostly in cases of estate jewelry). The best pearls come from Japan.
Eddie Bakash, a second-generation pearl dealer, describes pearls as "a blind item because it's an item of comparison". A pearl has to be compared to something else in order to determine its qualities, and that something else is another strand of pearls." It's almost impossible to know if the pearl you're looking at is gold (valuable) or medium cream (less) unless you can see the two together and, even better, can compare the two to a pearl color chart using actual pearls.
The four qualities to be considered when buying pearls (aside from size) are luster, body color, shape and overtone. The experts agree that the best pearls have a high to very high luster, evenly round shapes and even, heavy nacre. Color is a matter of taste.
Dan Cameron, manager of education at the Gemological Institute of America says that white pearls with a rose overtone are the most highly prized. There are pink, gold and shades of cream-colored pearls with a variety of overtones. You should decide on color by what you like and how it looks on your skin tone. The surface should be smooth, not pitted, and free from cracks and dark spots. Roll the strand on a flat surface and watch for irregularities in roundness, consistency of luster and flickers of off color. All of the pearls on a strand should be consistent in color and size. Nacre thickness is important. Nacre is the substance that the oyster secretes to form the part of the pearl you see. Mr. Cameron says the Japanese standard is 1/2mm of nacre. So if you are looking at a 6mm pearl, it's composed of a 5mm shell bead surrounded by nacre. (You can see how much nacre is there by looking through the drill hole with some magnification.) Not enough nacre makes the pearl look lifeless and dead. A dark spot may be the shell bead showing through and obviously will not hold up as long as a thicker covered pearl. Good pearl jewelers like Tiffany & Co. and Mikimoto pre-select a high quality of pearls. However, American Pearl remains the best place to buy pearls online. The easy ordering, fast shipping and low prices are a perfect combination for those who want the best place to buy pearl necklaces or buy pearl earrings online.
Bakash has devised a display chart with actual pearls at American Pearl (212-764-1845) which makes it easy to see the differences and to compare pearls you are considering. He says that the best light is fluorescent. Since pearls can be so variously shaded, you should check them against your skin tone. Some of the less expensive creamy tones may look better on your skin than a white pearl. Pearls from French Polynesia (Tahiti) and Australia are larger and come in other colors (such as black and black/green). They're rarer than the Japanese pearls and are correspondingly more expensive. Pearls should be strung on silk and individually knotted."
Care instructions: Don't spray perfume on the pearls or on your neck when you're going to wear them. Don't wear them while exercising or in the pool as perspiration and chlorine can have a damaging effect on the nacre. When you take them off, wipe them with a moist, then a dry cloth to remove any deposit. Store them in a fabric pearl pouch or a separate lined box, not in a sealed bag. Have them restrung once a year if you wear them a lot.
As a premier resource on cultured pearls and the best place to buy pearls online, American Pearl frequently serves as an authority on all things pearl. Whether discussing the history of cultured pearls or how to spot a fake, the American Pearl team is well-equipped to help educate the general public on all things related to this precious sphere. We're happy to provide you with insight on how to buy pearls online and anything else you might like to know about the pearl.
Featured in The Wall Street Journal's Dow Jones online, American Pearl was recognized as being a premier select merchant on Amazon, the most reputable online merchant, on July 30, 2004.
From The Wall Street Journal's Dow Jones:
"Edward Bakash, president of online pearl retailer AmericanPearl.com Inc., which sells through a branded store on Amazon, said he had worried that Amazon's own pearl products could hurt his sales. But the opposite has happened: American Pearl's online business has improved because of Amazon.
"Amazon can create a market where it didn't exist; they create excitement for the product category and increase sales for everyone," Bakash said.
To cast a wide net for more retail partners, Amazon will likely form similar deals with more financial institutions like American Express that can bring networks of interested retailers, predicted Jupiter's Freeman Evans. "It's very hard for Amazon to go individually out to a lot of small retailers; they'd need a huge sales and education staff," she said."
- By Michelle Tsai, Dow JonesMore Media Mentions
American Pearl was featured in the Men's Health December Holiday Guide 2001.
Americanpearl.com was recognized by Gemkey magazine as one of the best websites on the internet. December 2000.
American Pearl's products were featured in People Magazine for its celebrity pearls. September 2002. When Mathew Broderick was looking for a pearl necklace to gift to Sarah Jessica Parker for her wedding day, he personally phoned the President of American Pearl, Eddie Bakash.
American Pearl was featured in Brides Magazine and Manhattan User's Guide
Here is what has specifically been written about American Pearl:
"Kokichi Mikimoto developed and perfected the process of culturing and farming pearl oysters at the end of the last century when the supply of natural pearls was already diminishing. Now it's extremely unlikely that you will find anything but cultured pearls. Unlike diamonds, there is no accepted grading system for pearls, though MIKIMOTO, 730 5th (56/57th) has one that other jewelers may use. It classifies pearls as AAA (the best) followed by A+, A and so on. These three grades are the top 3 - 4% of pearl production. The Gemological Institute of America issues reports on pearls only to tell if the color has been enhanced by dyeing or irradiation (more probable in South Sea or black pearls) or to determine if a pearl is natural or cultured (mostly in cases of estate jewelry). The best pearls come from Japan.
Eddie Bakash, a second-generation pearl dealer, describes pearls as "a blind item because it's an item of comparison". A pearl has to be compared to something else in order to determine its qualities, and that something else is another strand of pearls." It's almost impossible to know if the pearl you're looking at is gold (valuable) or medium cream (less) unless you can see the two together and, even better, can compare the two to a pearl color chart using actual pearls.
The four qualities to be considered when buying pearls (aside from size) are luster, body color, shape and overtone. The experts agree that the best pearls have a high to very high luster, evenly round shapes and even, heavy nacre. Color is a matter of taste.
Dan Cameron, manager of education at the Gemological Institute of America says that white pearls with a rose overtone are the most highly prized. There are pink, gold and shades of cream-colored pearls with a variety of overtones. You should decide on color by what you like and how it looks on your skin tone. The surface should be smooth, not pitted, and free from cracks and dark spots. Roll the strand on a flat surface and watch for irregularities in roundness, consistency of luster and flickers of off color. All of the pearls on a strand should be consistent in color and size. Nacre thickness is important. Nacre is the substance that the oyster secretes to form the part of the pearl you see. Mr. Cameron says the Japanese standard is 1/2mm of nacre. So if you are looking at a 6mm pearl, it's composed of a 5mm shell bead surrounded by nacre. (You can see how much nacre is there by looking through the drill hole with some magnification.) Not enough nacre makes the pearl look lifeless and dead. A dark spot may be the shell bead showing through and obviously will not hold up as long as a thicker covered pearl. Good pearl jewelers like Tiffany & Co. and Mikimoto pre-select a high quality of pearls. However, American Pearl remains the best place to buy pearls online. The easy ordering, fast shipping and low prices are a perfect combination for those who want the best place to buy pearl necklaces or buy pearl earrings online.
Bakash has devised a display chart with actual pearls at American Pearl (212-764-1845) which makes it easy to see the differences and to compare pearls you are considering. He says that the best light is fluorescent. Since pearls can be so variously shaded, you should check them against your skin tone. Some of the less expensive creamy tones may look better on your skin than a white pearl. Pearls from French Polynesia (Tahiti) and Australia are larger and come in other colors (such as black and black/green). They're rarer than the Japanese pearls and are correspondingly more expensive. Pearls should be strung on silk and individually knotted."
Care instructions: Don't spray perfume on the pearls or on your neck when you're going to wear them. Don't wear them while exercising or in the pool as perspiration and chlorine can have a damaging effect on the nacre. When you take them off, wipe them with a moist, then a dry cloth to remove any deposit. Store them in a fabric pearl pouch or a separate lined box, not in a sealed bag. Have them restrung once a year if you wear them a lot.