All Tahitian strands, even in the high five figure price range, still will have a few minor imperfections detectable with the naked eye. Tahitian Pearls are absolutely stunning and make gorgeous jewelry. Luster is determined by the thickness of the nacre and is greater if the pearl is left underwater for a longer period of time. The natural color of pearls varies greatly depending on the specie of the oysters. Black Tahitian pearl color varies greatly from black to green to eggplant to different tone of silver.
South Sea pearls color varies from white to light silver to golden.
Akoya pearl color is mainly white with overtones going to cream, to pinkish, to silver. Freshwater pearls also come in an array of different colors. All black cultured akoyas and freshwater pearls on the market today are safely and permanently color enhanced, with beautiful exotic results. Roundness is very important for Akoya pearls, and perfectly round South Sea and Tahitian are very rare. The roundness depends on how long a pearl is left in the oyster underwater because of water friction that can work it into different shapes.