Lust Pearls

There’s really no easy answer to this one. For a start, it’s not a question of quantity. Most of us have a sense of colour coordination and if we have even one pearl on that doesn’t match our overall outfit colour scheme, then it’s one pearl too many. Another possibility is that sometimes we have a relatively small number of pearls on but they don’t match in terms of colour.  It’s in the eye of the beholder but of course, again, two pearls is one too many if their luminescence clashes one with the other. True, you can’t entirely ignore the quantity question. Here though, it can get very complicated. Let’s talk for a second about something different to illustrate the issue more clearly – diamonds. For more details, please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/80-when-is-too-many-pearls

Yes, of course! Firstly and at the risk of splitting hairs, there are many pearls that aren’t going to be obscured by your scarf.  Assuming we’re talking here of neck as opposed to headscarves, things such as earrings, bracelets and rings, will all still be perfectly visible. You will certainly need to coordinate colour schemes and so on but that should be business-as-usual in terms of your wardrobe management. If we’re speaking of necklaces, then things are a little different. I suppose some would argue that what’s the point of putting your best string of pearls on if you then intend to hide them under a scarf for most of the time you’ll be wearing them. For more details, please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/81-i-wear-a-lot-of-scarves-so-can-i-still-wear-pearls

A female friend of mine once said: “It’s easy to buy for a man – absolutely any toy will keep him happy for weeks”. Well, even many men would agree there’s a degree of truth in that. We all know about “boy’s toys” and “man caves” etc. (!) However, if you want to do something different and buy the man in your life a piece of eternal pearl jewellery, what are your options? Well, it’s a fact that a lot of thought is still required. Things are changing fast and many men ARE now wearing items including necklaces, bangles, and pendants again. So, many of the things you’ll find in the typical woman’s jewellery drawer are also going to be found now in some men’s For more details, please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/79-i-want-to-buy-my-man-a-piece-of-pearl-jewellery

My simple answer is – “No”. Let me explain. Your pearls are soft but with appropriate care they will last several lifetimes. Treat them inconsiderately and they could start to deteriorate rapidly. The first thing to state as clearly as possible is - NEVER swim with pearls on if it’s a chlorinated pool. The chlorine will be very destructive to the pearl’s surface and the results could be catastrophic. No exceptions. Water in itself, in theory, won’t hurt a pearl. After all, it was their natural environment! However, water can be very damaging to the stringing of pearls unless the string is specifically stated to be waterproof.  Another problem is that, typically, if you’re swimming in pearls then there’s a fair chance that you’re doing so in sunshine. Direct sunlight isn’t great for these wonders of nature, particularly when it’s over an extended period. Then there’s the fact that your pearls are likely to be bouncing around against each other as you mo...

Ask the person in charge of a production machine whether or not it can produce 12 widgets an hour in future instead of the current 10 and there’s a fair chance that a clever man or woman will be able to think of a way to “make it so”. Now in the case of molluscs, it’s a very different thing – and we’re speaking here of cultured Australian South Seas pearls. You can’t offer the mollusc pay incentives or make morale-boosting speeches to persuade it to work harder. Nor can you come up with a turbocharge booster to make it go faster. It’s a natural thing and it produces pearls via a natural process in its own time. The reason I’m saying this is to emphasise that producing a pearl isn’t a fast process. It takes a lot of time – in fact, around 2-3 years depending upon the exact techniques used and to some extent, luck. As a very rough yardstick, consider that a pearl perhaps only grows by around 2mm per year. So, you can see the issue. For more details, please visi...

There are so many “old wives’ tales” on this one that it’s untrue! My advice is always the same – wear your pearls whenever you wish, providing that your overall outfit is coordinated and that they’re suitable for the event concerned. You will see and hear lots of advice that differs here. “Only wear Black pearls in the months x-z” or “white is best between a-c” and so on. Even if you agree, it’s worth remembering that the seasons are different in the two hemispheres and a host of other environmental variables mean that such advice, thoughwell intentioned, isn’t always applicable. There is though one important difference between the seasons and that relates to heat and how that affects your pearls.  For more details, please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/77-can-pearls-be-worn-all-year-round-or-only-in-the-winter

Here are some top tips for things to look for when you’re buying pearls. Please note, there is no discussion here relating to increasing in value over time – i.e. an investment. Generally speaking, it is unwise to consider the purchase of any type of jewellery from an investment viewpoint because values can rise or fall over time. Check to see if the pearl has been artificially coloured This isn’t, in itself, necessarily a problem. Typically though, purists will look for naturally coloured pearls and they might well command higher prices. Things that might indicate the pearl has been artificially coloured include:  colour seemingly “wearing off” the outer shell; a very dark core (indication of possible irradiation to change colours); a very visible stratification of colour change on the inside of the pearl. The final two above assume your pearl has a drill hole that you can look into with magnification. Read more about....... Buying Pearls – Top Tips ....

This is an interesting question and one I wonder a lot about. It’s true, of course, that I have no way of knowing how you might feel about them. All jewellery and particularly pearls, is a very personal thing. For example, some people like very bold and statement-oriented pearls. Others prefer much smaller and more discreet examples. Then there are those who like to have different pearls for different occasions or simply to reflect their changing moods from one day to another. All these are perfectly valid sentiments and reasons and others can be added to the list. A good illustration is the ability of pearls to communicate to others that you’re a person of taste, refinement and some financial standing. Pearls have been used for that purpose for thousands of years. For more details, please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/76-how-do-pearls-make-you-feel-when-you-see-them-and-hold-them

Now this is a tricky area because people can get very, VERY obsessed about superstitions. True, this might not only be a superstition issue. It might also be acolour coordination one because sometimesvery white pearls can be a little lost on an equally white background. That’s perhaps not the look you’re intending but let’s assume here that you’ll deal with that through your owncolour coordination and dress designer services. Let’s get back to spooky stuff! In terms of the design impact, pearls can of course be worn in various ways on a wedding dress. In the past they’ve been sown onto the dress or veils, worn as earrings (by men and women) or in conventional strings. It’s really up to you how and in what fashion you wear your pearls on your big day – if you choose to do so. For more details,please visit -  https://www.lustpearls.com.au/lust-talk/75-how-could-i-wear-pearls-on-my-wedding-day

Pearl colour is usually defined as consisting of two components: the body colour   the overtone. Strictly speaking, to this should sometimes be added a third man-made attribute – the dye (or irradiation)! The dye / irradiation Let’s deal with this one first. To begin with, virtually all “black pearls” you see for sale will be dyed. Only pearls from “Pinctada Margaritifera” (the Black Lip Oyster) are naturally black and they’re rare. Rarity, of course, equates to price. No freshwater pearls are ever naturally black. So, if you see cheap black pearls or freshwater pearls that are black, then you know that their colour is almost certainly artificial. A complication here arises because not all dying is done for a radical effect. Sometimes it’s done to make the peals whiter, creamier or more golden etc. Purists would argue that no pearl should ever be dyed and on the whole, the less a pearl has been “tweaked” to make it look better, the higher its val...

This is a question I’m often asked and am very happy to discuss but right at the outset, do remember that the rarity and value of a pearl is made up by many things and size is only one of them! Right, onto business. Nobody disputes that South Sea pearls are statistically the largest in the world. They’re found in Australia and a number of other countries around the world. In terms of size, they can be up to 20mm in diameter though it’s worth stressing that the larger pearls of that size (or close to it) are exceedingly rare. As you’ll imagine, they command premium prices. In a sense, the answer’s easy and one can say “Australia”!  However, life’s rarely quite so straightforward. When one starts talking about the biggest individual pearl, it becomes quite complicated. If you do an online search for the largest pearl ever found, you’ll find multiple sources all providing different information (including claims for one that’s on display in Broome, WA). For more ...

Over many years, clients have given many reasons why they love pearls. Sometimes, the reasons are surprising. At other times, they’re warmly familiar.  It’s also true that there is wide diversity in them. Here are some of the top reasons our clients have given for their near addiction to pearls: they are unique.  You can look at one pearl that’s notionally the same in every respect (size, grade, colour etc.) as another – but they’ll be very different and have different characters too; pearls are natural.  True, cultivation takes place but the processes are entirely natural.  No vast production line machinery is involved, no hazardous chemicals used and above all, nature makes them and not Man; they are rare.  The world’s total pearl production is surprisingly small.  The wearer is expressing their individuality and discerning taste; they are ‘green’ and sustainable.  At least in Australia, all production adopts the highest stands...

I’m sure you wouldn’t want us to start telling you what it is that you find so attractive in pearls! You probably know that yourself. However, what I would like to do is to spend a few minutes talking about one aspect of this wonderful bounty of nature – and that’s its luminescence. We all often speak of a pearl’s lustre and its luminescence. Strictly speaking, this is incorrect. If you think back to those science lessons at school, “luminescence” is defined as the light-emitting qualities of an object. That is, something that emits light or shines other than via heat. So, some old watch hands glow in the dark because they were painted with a radioactive substance. That’s luminescence, as is the light emitted by some sorts of animals when created by chemical reactions in their bodies. You’ll probably be pleased to know that pearls are not radioactive! Yet even so, they seem to glow when looked at. What’s causing that? The scientists tell us that it’s som...

Entire libraries have been filled with books on what exactly “design” and “style” mean. Universities are also full of design lecturers and students discussing the same subject. So, you’ll understand that I’m a bit intimidated trying to cover this topic in a brief blog!  Even so, I’ll do my best - so here goes… These two subjects are highly subjective. We’ve all read newspaper stories criticising galleries for displaying an umbrella tied to two bricks and describing it as “contemporary design” (a made-up example by the way).  Equally though, it’s possible to look at some examples of Victorian jewellery that at the time were considered masterpieces of style and design but which now look dated, sentimental and over-fussy. Tastes change over time and vary from person to person. However, here at Lust Jewellery we believe many things are universal when considering jewellery designs and I’ll list my personal views here: Typically, the pieces need to look ...

The answer is a resounding ‘yes’ but let’s look a little at the history. Earlier centuries If you look at male portraits of the 14th-17th centuries, you’ll often see men wearing elaborate jewellery. This continues for much longer, well into the 20th in non-European societies such as those in North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The men concerned are, of course, almost exclusively royalty or nobility though sometimes also of the rich merchant classes. If you look, you’ll see pearls play a massively prominent part in the masculine jewellery of the time. This includes items such as earrings, brooches, necklaces (none of which were considered exclusively feminine at the time) and rings. In many portraits, the men are as festooned as the women or even more so. The 18th century In Europe and North America, for reasons that aren’t clear, male use of jewellery in general (not just pearls) starts to decline in the later 17th and18th centuries. It may have ...

I’m often asked what I look for when I’m searching for and procuring the exceptional South Seas pearls that are used by  Lust Pearls . Let me be clear – I am not interested in buying cheap or compromising on quality. I have very demanding standards and nothing but the finest quality pearls make it into my possession and the catalogue of Lust Pearls’ creative designs. Now obviously, I don’t want to give TOO many secrets away about how I go about things and where.  I can though state a few general points that catch my eye when I am buying: This is a difficult concept to explain because many people believe that the best pearls are perfectly spherical and very large. Actually, neither of those two things are quite right. It is rarer for real pearls to be perfectly spherical, very particularly as the pearls become larger.  Mostly these items you see impersonating real pearls are artificial or synthetic pearls as they are machine-made. Of course,...

This is a question we’re asked regularly.  There is an extensive background of our founder and company, elsewhere on our site but a quick refresh in the form of a blog never does any harm! It all started many yearsago, when Jill was captivated not only by pearls but the entire culture and mystique that surrounds them.  She was determined to build her professional life around these incredibly beautiful gems and was lucky enough to be able to do so through Lust Pearls. As you’ll see from the more extended history on the Lust Pearls website, she makes no apologies for trying to infect others with a love of pearls. These are beautiful jewels which can express so much about nature and indeed our own inner being too. Of course, we just don’t “sell pearls”.  We are above all an artistic and creative company which seeks to present pearls in a fashion context.  That’s why all our pearls completed by the immaculate finishing’s of in gold, platinum or silver, ...

It should come as no surprise to anyone that personal tastes in terms of colours and colour matching, are highly personal. One person might look at a colour combination and say "marvellous" while another will proclaim "yeech". So, if you're happy with your choice of pearl colour for your skin colour and tone then that's the only thing that counts. So, no help exists? Of course, it's not entirely so clear cut. There are a few generally accepted facts relating to some colours of pearls and their suitability or otherwise some skin shades. What colours do pearls come in? This seemingly innocent question can be controversial. That's because some pearls have natural colours whilst others are dyed or otherwise treated to give them their colour. Some argue that pearls which have been treated to give them a colour are not real in that respect though others would describe such views as nonsense! For more details, please visit ...

One of the commonest questions we hear relates to the so-called ‘pearl diving girls’ of Japan. Let’s clear up a few mysteries and misconceptions! In Japan, for over a thousand years, natural pearls were sought after and brought to the surface by the ‘Ama’ – a word that very roughly translates to “woman of the sea”. The term used in English is often “girls” but that is fundamentally wrong.  The vast majority of the Ama were mature women andmany continued diving into their 80s and even 90s. Surprisingly, their primary target wasn’t really pearls for pearl jewellery as such but abalone and seaweed. If they came across a mollusc bearing a pearl, that was an added bonus. They would regularly free-dive to depths of around 10 metres or more, holding their breath for up to or even in excess of 2 minutes. When they surfaced, to avoid medical problems, they gently whistled out the air in their lungs slowly as they rose. In many cases, they’d be diving almost enti...

If everything else is equal, such as weight, the higher the carat number is, the more expensive the gold will be. This sometimes leads into questions as to why a jeweller might use18ct not 22ct/24ct and why on some 18ct pieces, there might be fittings of 9ct.  This is easy to explain! Gold is a very soft metal in its natural near 100% pure form (24ct). In fact, it’s so soft that it’s often impractical to make jewellery out of it. Other metals need to be added for strength. Most jewellers consider 18ct to be the highest purity level that is a compromise between getting as much gold in as possible while giving the item enough strength so as to offer day-to-day robustness and longer-lasting durability. That’s why 18ct is often used as an international standard. However, even though 18ct has strength, the metal might still not be quite hard enough to cope with daily use stresses in certain situations. Let’s take a hypothetical example – a brooch with a back pin. ...

If you’re thinking about buying one of our stunningly beautiful pearl rings, here are a few tips about how to go about taking your ring size: buy a ring size gauge. These can be purchased online for as little as $5-$10 but remember there are differences between Australian or US sizes;   if you have a friendly local jeweller, they’ll usually tell you your ring size in a few seconds by using one of their gauges; you can use a piece of string or tape to give you the circumference of your finger and then use online conversion charts to work out your ring size. This can be rather imprecise though and isn’t really recommended; if you’re using the string method, do please remember that the joint in your finger may be wider than where the ring will actually sit. It’s normally sensible to add about a half-size to compensate for that if you’re using the string/tape method; if you have something like a Vernier gauge, you could take the diameter of your finger and again then...

Pearls are relatively strong but they are one of the softer materials used in jewellery. So, it’s important to take care of them and here are a few top tips relating to avoiding damage: don’t clean them in ultrasonic machines;  if you’re using an aerosol or spray perfume, deodorant or hairspray, do so before putting on your  pearl jewellery ;  avoid wearing your pearls when cooking. Some ingredients which have a slightly higher acid content (e.g. vinegar) can be damaging to a pearl’s surface and lustre. The same is true for some stronger household cleaning agents;  don’t expose them to excessive heat – such as hot air blasts when opening an oven door;  try to not store pearls in a box alongside other jewellery – unless they’re in a separate protective silk or similar (but not airtight) bag. They may get scratched otherwise;  a constant exposure to still and very dry air ...

I am a long term and proud supporter and sponsor of the Long Table Lunch and in the earlier years was on the committee for Breast Cancer Care. This Sunday 2nd April, Lust Pearls proudly donates a special piece of pearl jewellery as a fabulous door prize for one lucky winner each year. This year’s lucky door prize winner will receive the elegant Lust Serenity chain pendant of 18ct yellow gold with 0.01ct diamond and a 9-10mm Tahitian South Sea pearl embellished with 0.16ct brilliant cut white diamonds. Congratulations to Jonnene, the lucky winner of the Lust pendant valued at $2,200. Not sure what the Long Table Lunch is? Here’s a bit of a background to it… The Celebration of Women Long Table Lunch was established by Faith Nichols of Comestibles in 2004 to commemorate the life of Pippin Bath, a prominent member of the Perth catering industry who lost her battle with breast cancer at only 37 years of age. 13 years later, it is Breast Cancer Care WA’s signature fu...

                         Australian supplier Lust Pearls has taken to the world stage… having been selected to participate in a jewellery event in New York and subsequently featured in… Rappaport Magazine.. We wanted to share our excitement with you … To have a featured article in Rapaport Magazine is an achievement that we’re very proud of… Not only for the Australian Jewellery Industry but for our own business Lust Pearls. Here’s what they said… “Three pieces from the Lust Pearls range were displayed at a US-based function organised by the Cultured Pearl Association of America and held in October.” Lust Pearls CEO Jill Hansen said the purpose of the event was to showcase international diamond jewellery trends to marketing and media professionals… She added that “The feedback at the luncheon was very strong”… “Those in attendance were impressed with the design, balance and feel of the pieces… … ...