Pearl Station Choker Necklace in 14K Gold

Freshwater cultured pearls are solid nacre nearly all the way through. A saltwater pearl is grown around a round shell bead and carries its nacre as a coating over that core, while a freshwater pearl is grown from a graft of mantle tissue with no bead inside it, so the nacre goes deep rather than sitting on the surface. It is the reason freshwater pearls take constant wear well, where a thin-coated pearl can eventually wear through at the drill hole and wherever it rubs a collarbone.

These are round and 6.0-6.5mm, set as stations along a delicate link chain rather than strung end to end. Stationing changes the piece entirely. A strand is a solid band of white at the neck and behaves like one; stations are individual pearls with gold between them, so the necklace stays light, layers under other chains without doubling their bulk, and lies flat beneath a collar instead of forming a rope under it.

It adjusts between 16 and 18 inches, which covers the two positions that matter for pearls at this size. At 16 they sit on the throat and stay above almost any neckline. At 18 they drop to the collarbone, where a second, longer chain can be worn over them without crossing. A spring ring closes it, flatter and lighter than a lobster claw, so no hardware sits proud at the back of a fine chain.

Available in solid 14K yellow gold or white gold, with the DEEVE lifetime warranty.