Top 10 Things to Know Before Repairing Your Broken Pearl Necklace

What a bummer! You have a broken pearl necklace and it needs repairing. Before you hire us to repair your fabulous pearls, here are the Top 10 Things to Know Before Repairing Your Broken Pearl Necklace.

1) The importance of knotting pearls

Pearls are these precious, sensitive gems and the reason we knot them is to maintain their beauty and reduce the harm that can come from having them rub against one another. But, over time, the silk thread can stretch out and the knots are no longer doing their job. This is why we reknot pearls is to maintain those knots and protect those special pearls.

2) Your pearls will last longer with new knots

Your pearls will last longer and maintain their beauty longer with new knots. Over time, dirt, oils and perfume can cling to the pearl knots and silk thread and they can slowly wear down the gorgeous nacre of your pearl necklace. So, routinely knotting your pearls will prolong the life and beauty of your pearls.

3) Your necklace may feel shorter after the repair

A high quality restringing service will make the knots tight. We hear it all the time... "the strands are so tight." This is music to our ears! Yes, you want your knots to be tight. Within a wear or two, the natural fall to the pearl necklace will return but you can rest assured that your pearls are well strung.

After you have lived with a broken or stretched out necklace for a few years, this reknotted necklace might be shorter.

4)When in doubt, count!

If you have any concerns that the necklace is too short after the reknot or if you do not trust the jewelry store you are working with, count those pearls! We always count pearls when we receive a piece and you should too. That way you know for certain all of your pearls were returned to you!

5) You might want to add knots... or take them away!

Some pearl necklaces were never knotted in the first place. This becomes a big headache when your pearl necklace breaks. No one wants to search the floor for pearls! So, if you have a necklace or bracelet that is not knotted, consider having it knotted. Some pieces, especially pearl necklaces that are graduated or have very small pearls, look better without knots. Feel free to play around with knots or no knots!

6) Know the facts!

Some professionals prefer to knot pearls on nylon. We believe your precious gems should be strung on all natural silk. So, know what you prefer and choose your reknot professional accordingly. Also, we hear the very silly term "double knotted" a lot. I am not even sure what the heck that means. I think some professionals are trying to say they tie their pearls so tight that they add two knots. This is so silly. Double knotting pearls will not increase the integrity of the necklace and it will make it look quite unsightly as knots are not meant to be seen. Pearls are meant to be the focal point of your pearl necklace, not the knots in between the pearl.

7) Glue

Here is an ugly old fact we have learned by reknotting your pearls... some jewelers glue pearls to their thread. Ugh! This is most likely the result of an inexperienced pearl stringer trying to keep the pearls in place. The bummer is that once you glue those pearls, it is difficult to get the glue out of the hole. We try our best but know that if glue is involved, you might lose a few pearls! If some of your pearls have glue in them, we will try our best to simply redrill the existing drill hole.

8) Matching and adding pearls

The Pearl Girls and other pearl professionals can add pearls to lengthen your pearl necklace however know that there might be subtle differences in the matched pearls, especially if the original pearls are older. So far, we have added pearls to everything from classic strands and Add-A-Pearl Necklaces and they look fabulous!

9) A pearl repair is not the same as an appraisal

Your favorite strand of pearls may be the most valuable pearls in the world or they might be imitation pearls however it is not up to the person repairing the pearls to tell you! We advise our staff not to discuss quality or value with our clients because, truthfully, appraisal is a different field altogether. We are just in charge of making your pearls look amazing beautiful. Leave the appraisals to a different professional.

10) You are going to be thrilled!!

Speaking of amazingly beautiful, we know you are going to love your "new " pearls! Without a doubt, every pearl necklace or bracelet that we reknot or repair looks probably a million times better ... no exaggeration ;) You will be amazed at how the dirt and grim can cling to your pearl knots and when you see a freshly knotted necklace that is taut and beautiful, it is truly a work of art. Plus, what good is that broken pearl necklace in your jewelry box? We believe you should love your pearls... reuniting or restringing can make pearls love-able again!

**Every day people from all over the U.S. and Canada send us their pearls or broken pearl necklace to be reknotted, restrung or re-invented into a new piece of jewelry. If you would like to take advantage of our service, order a Jewelry Return Kit today! We will mail you an empty box with a return shipping label! All you have to do is pack your jewelry in the box, attach the return shipping label and mail to us! Order your no obligation kit today or contact us for more information! We cannot wait to make your pearls beautiful again!**