It is often said that nature does not draw straight lines or perfect circles. Nevertheless, sometimes it gets very close to perfection. In our society, we value and pay a premium for this perfection. But what about when nature decides to go crazy and fully random in its designs?

Most people picture a pearl as a sphere, or even shaped as a drop. But there are other shapes of pearls, like baroque, button, ringed, etc. However, there is another special kind of “pearl” called Keshi. Keshi is not considered a type of pearl but more of a shape. The interesting fact about the Keshi shape is that it is entirely random; the benefit is that each “pearl” is genuinely unique. The flat-shaped ones are sometimes called “petal pearls.”

Keshi pearls are formed when the oyster (mussel or clam), in which a nucleus like a bead is inserted in its mantle, rejects and spits out that nucleus before the culture process is complete. At this point, the pearl sacs produce a pearl without a nucleus. The nucleus helps shape the pearls, but without it, “anything goes.” The result is a 100% solid-nacre pearl which has a high lustre and a beautifully shimmering surface. Still, Keshi pearls do not fall under the strict natural pearl classification because their creation is a by-product of the culturing process, not a natural occurrence.

SERAFINO designed an entire petal pearl-based collection called CASCATA. Visit our online store to discover this beautiful set of jewelry.

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