Pearl Renaissance

My favourite 1930’s fashion designer ‘Coco’ Chanel made pearls fashionable for all occasions; wearing both genuine and fake pearls.  She was so seduced by their beauty she wore them in every circumstance, only taking them off when she went to sleep!

This has given today’s jewellery designers much more scope to create interesting jewellery to meet modern lifestyles and suitable for any event.  So, I’ve picked a mixture of styles and you may notice the focus is on design and wearability.

Undoubtedly, the classic row of pearls will always epitomize elegance and glamour. But sometimes, pearls can be cleverly re worked into a simple graduated pearl necklet using a lesser amount of beads and can prove to be just as effective. To finish off, you could add a single stud or drop to complete.

I’ve featured this pearl design before made in white gold and there have been many requests to make this in yellow gold and finally here it is! It is such a simple elegant design with a single pearl paired with a small diamond – works every time….

Following the on-going clover flower themed jewellery, this is the 9ct gold version set with mother of pearl. The bracelet also comes in other stones, black onyx, lapis or malachite and looks great for a layering effect which is very on trend.

Pearls are a favourite choice to compliment wedding dresses or outfits and we are often asked to find a small pendant and earring set to complete the look.  If there is already lots of detail such as beads and lace, a delicate piece of jewellery with floral elements is a lovely final touch, as illustrated by this delicate white gold pearl and diamond leaf design.

All the pearl designs that we are looking at here are using the freshwater pearl, however, pearls can either be salt or freshwater. Freshwater pearls are great to use in contemporary jewellery design as they can create a fantastic look but without the price. The reason for this is that these are grown in a mussel shell that can produce up to fifty pearls at a time in comparison to one or two grown in a saltwater oyster shell.

The term baroque pearl refers to its interesting irregular shape and unlike the traditional round pearls gives a designer the imagination to use this as the main focal point on a necklace. This new paper clip chain design uses a large baroque pearl along with a T bar and toggle.

I love this model wearing this large fresh water pearl swinging from a textured silver and gold plated hoop. She can really carry this stylish look along with the trilby!

For minimalist allure or making a beautifully bold statement pearls are having a 2026 renaissance…….

Sally x