The Colours

Blue pearl colours range from blues, greens, golds to pinks, and some have splashes of red and violet. There are bright vibrant tones and soft subtle hues.

The pearls have a chameleon quality about them; the colours change in the way that they catch the light, liquid colour that almost have a life of their own.

This variation in colour gives each pearl a distinctive character. The number of colour combinations is infinite.

The colours of blue pearls are created by the genetic make up of each individual paua, the colours and iridescence of their shell, their diet and the natural environment in which they live. Paua are grazing animals, feeding on a variety of seaweeds. It is the combination of brown, red and green seaweeds with their amazing array of nutrients that gives each blue pearl its wonderful spectrum of colours

Blue pearl colours are also affected by the compostion of the water, the temperature and the water flow. The greater the variation in water temperature, the more defined the layering and therefore the more intense the colour of the pearl.

Blue pearls are made up of thousands of layers of nacre and conchiolin randomly secreted by each individual paua. The nacre is made up of aragonite and calcite crystals. The conchiolin is dark organic matter. The layers are a combination of biological and mineral bonding

Nacre gives a pearl its lustre and hardness, while the conchiolin “acts as a mirror, reflecting light back through the nacre toward the observer for maximum light return, colour and iridescence.” It is this combination of nacre and conchiolin that gives each pearl its special uniqueness and beauty.