"Cornflake", "Petal"-are they Keshis?

[izisjewels]

I know little about pearls but soon will know more after discovering this forum. It's awesome. In the meantime, on my buying trips I have been purchasing pearl strands. I have wanted and coveted what I'm being told are "Cornflake or Petal" pearls. The ones I really like are quite large as in over 13mm and the edges are quite thin. First, can you tell me what these really are and second, where can I find them? Are there suppliers in China someone can direct me to? The resources I find at the shows are quite expensive. I'm sure I can find more true "wholesale" pricing. Thanks for any information you can share. Sincerely, Diane

 

[Zeide Erskine]

Hi Diane,

What you are describing are freshwater pearls of the second generation also referred to as freshwater keshis. In large sizes they can be quite costly especially if they have good water, mirror, and orient and attractive colors.
Zeide

 

[pattye]

Hi Zeide and Diane,
I am seeing less and less of these large size petal pearls on ebay. About 2 years ago I got some for as low as $50 and as high as over $200 per strand for really large, good quality. Are they more of a byproduct, or are the farms actually working to produce them? Is going for the round pearls more lucrative?
Pattye

 

[CortezPearls]

I purchased some for testing at Tucson...be mindful of their variable quality. Some of the ones I purchased started flaking off, then chipping...within 4 months some of their color just faded to a "black" color.

Some photos of these..."corn flake" pearls.

 

[lisa c]

Did these things happen while the pearls sat around, or did you put them into use?

 

[pattye]

Certainly hope you didn't pay much for those pearls. Do they have the piece of plastic film inside them?

 

[CortezPearls]

They were kept inside a plastic bag for months...didn't pay much for them of course (you get what you pay for...so some say). Was looking for a plastic film outside (coating) the pearl but can't see one. The darkened nacre must mean the pearls are irradiated, and was hoping to see if they had been spray-painted on the outside, but I can't tell with my tools.

Anyway, these pearls are being sold here in Mexico and it is fair to tell people that they should really inspect the pearls and ask for a 1-year guarantee at least.

 

[jshepherd]

It doesn't look irradiated, but that is definitely a deep dye job if that's what it is. They dye them in a contraption that looks a lot like a pressure cooker. Some of the smaller factories with poor "technology," as they put it, sometimes burn the pearls.

 

[lisa c]

Burn pearls Deliberately, or because of poor equipment?

 

[jshepherd]

Poor skills.

 

[lisa c]

Okay. I must say, after scraping dye off of a bunch of pearls, I'm very curious about the dye process. It certainly doesn't seem to follow along the lines of 'absorbing' the tints, judging by the results.

 

[Katbran]

How does one tell if a pearl has a plastic coating..and is this a common practice? Is there a particular 'look' to the pearl or does one need to scrape the surface? thanks

 

[Amrita]

Thanks Dave & Wendy. That's good to know.
So these are reborns, right?