14K Gold Japanese Akoya Pearl Necklace for Women - Elegant Gift

Bought these with money from my Aunt who recently passed away. I will think of her whenever I wear them! They are gorgeous!This necklace is gorgeous. The pearls have a beautiful luster and appear to be perfectly round with no imperfections that I can see from a casual examination. I have not thoroughly searched the necklace with a lens, nor would I care to, but I will say that the product is elegant and beautiful and I am extremely pleased.Before buying pearls for my wife, I did some research on saltwater vs. freshwater pearls, as well as the reputations of various sellers. I decided to go with Saltwater pearls (like these) because it appears they are 1) more lustrous than their freshwater counterparts, and 2) generally regarded as being a higher value. I decided against a different vendor's pearls based on reputation. I haven't had direct dealings with the other vendor, so I won't mention them myself, but I encourage you to google various vendor names and read comments. The vendor I ultimately chose, The Pearl Source seemed to please their customers, none of which reported feeling that the pearl grading was misrepresented.This necklace was made of pearls graded AA+, which I admit I mistakenly thought was the highest grade of pearl. I suppose this undermines the value of my research somewhat. (Honestly, I still thought it was the highest grade of pearl after seeing the necklace, and it wasn't until writing this review that I found out AAA was a valid scoring. This fact makes me even more pleased with the quality of this necklace.) Turns out the grading process is a little ambiguous, but I read that grades of AAA+ or AAAA in the context of Akoya pearls should be viewed with suspicion. I am, however, no expert, so I encourage you to draw your own conclusions.Just a little tip for anyone purchasing any necklace: check the split rings on either side of the clasp. If they aren't fully closed, the hook or clamp could slip out and you could lose your necklace. I see this often, as my wife has a superlative talent for losing and/or destroying expensive items of any sort. I did see a gap in the split ring next to the hook on this necklace, and closed it with some needle-nosed pliers immediately. I suggest you do the same with any clamp-containing jewelry you purchase.The item arrived during the time-frame promised and packaged well. It was in a red padded (perhaps vinyl) jewelry box inside of a white box. This was well-protected by bubble-wrap inside an amazon box. This box was delivered by Cedric, our UPS guy, who seems to always be leaving my house in a hurry as soon as I get home. That's funny. I don't order that many packages. My wife seems to like him though.To summarize, I feel that this was an exceptional piece of jewelry at an affordable price, and I'd recommend this purchase to anyone.I was happy would buy again.the pearls came two days earlier than the expected arrival time.I bought this for Christmas for my high school freshman daughter. I will admit I am not an expert on pearls at all but I do know junk when i see it. This isn't junk.First the box they come in is amazing. If your trying to impress someone this is how you do it. It is a solid box that alone is fantastic. The pearls, to my naked eye, have no flaws that i could detect, and they all appeared to be just about the same size. The color is uniform. My biggest worry was the size of the pearls. I wasn't sure what the appropriate size to buy a 15yr old would be. This is perfect. It would look fantastic on any age really.My only con would be the clasp. Although it is your standard pearl clasp, it felt cheap to me.This would make a perfect gift for a girl friend, wife, daughter. I am very pleased with the pearls and was glad I bought them. Given the chance... i would buy the same set again.My wife freaked out....in a good way.She said it was the best Mother's day and best Mother's day gift she has ever had. Thank you.Looks actually like what you see in the picture! Elegant and so beautiful ☺️Bought these for our granddaughter's sweet 16 birthday. They are lovely and well matched in both size and color.