Only The Best Mikimoto takes its time to create stunning jewellery pieces using pearls.

It takes more effort to create a pearl necklace than just stringing a bunch of pearls together. Even the simplest design takes hours of preparation and years of experience. As each pearl is unique, working with them also calls for immense skill and judgement. The work begins with a rigorous selection process that sorts the pearls, with the objective to gather all of the most perfectly rounded specimens with the highest quality nacre.

The selected ones are then cleaned using specialised techniques and sent for a second round of sorting by an expert sorter.

Each and every pearl is individually examined against northern morning light, which is said to be the day’s most even illumination. Natural light is critical in revealing the pearl’s ‘personality’ and no two pearls are ever alike.

The pearls are sorted and resorted by experienced specialists, who assess their size, shape, colour and lustre; these specialists handle each pearl hundreds of times. This is to ensure perfect symmetry in design, especially for graduated pearl necklaces.

Then the pearls are matched according to their characteristics and personalities, including the subtlest nuances of tone and sheen in their ‘skin’, the outermost layer of nacre, in order to create a strand of perfect flowing harmony

Once sorted, the pearls are drilled with utmost care and precision before being expertly hand- knotted by Mikimoto artisans using the finest silk thread.