How are Shell Pearls Made?

How are shell pearls made?

Find out here from Can Phu Company in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam which makes a large variety of man made shell pearls.

There is a place for shell pearls. Designers love them for their large sizes (up to 18cm for drops) and the vast variety of available colors. Beads made out of shells are fun and should be enjoyed.

Several of these steps are the same for making shell nuclei which form the basis for cultured Akoya, Tahitian and South Sea pearls, even some freshwater pearls. The freshwater pearl farm in Tennessee uses shell nuclei for their lovely freshwater pearls. For cultured pearls nuclei the best shells are from USA rivers....even the Mississippi River, which is just a bike ride away from our sheep farm here in Iowa.

Here are the steps with photos:

First proper shells are collected from special shell beds. These are located at the red dots in this map of Vietnam where many shell pearls are made.




Shell pearls raw material is first cut into strips.




Rounding shell pearls mechanically.







Shaping shell pearls manually--watch those fingers!




First quality control for shell pearls.








Drilling shell pearls--one by one.




A second shell pearls quality control.




Stringing shell pearls.








Framing shell pearls.




Protecting shell pearls.




Dyeing shell pearls--many colors available.








Baking shell pearls.




Polishing shell pearls.




Final stringing for shell pearls.








Measuring shell pearls.




Final quality control for shell pearls.




Packing shell pearls.



When making a texture test for real pearls by rubbing two pearls together and feeling the surface resistance or the tooth test when teeth can detect that same minor texture, be aware that these tests will often get the same results for shell pearls. In that regard, shell pearls can often pass for natural or cultural pearls. Just wanted you to be aware of that.

How are shell pearls made? I hope these little photos help explain it.

Go to main artificial pearl page after viewing how are shell pearls made.
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