Too many pearls..is that actually possible? Well, it felt like it today, mid afternoon when I just wilted. It’s been a pretty intense six days.

Anyhow, what pearl adventures did I have today? I got some lovely random shapes for pendants, similar to some from last year, which sold out in weeks, plus some white splatts. Flat pearls like tidy ink blots which will make great cuff links.

And, while waiting for my friend Katbran to be de-overwhelmed in the Tahitian supplier’s (only her second day ever of pearl office shopping) I got tempted by some delicious 9mm peacock rounds and made nine pairs for sumptuous earrings.

Tahitian pearls this year seem to be in light tones, no really dark greens or greys, with lots of colour. Very few good circles or big circles. Lots of little and very eccentric circles.

I found this bag of pearls and – reader I admit it -I could not stop myself from sorting out some pairs.

I sort through loose pearls by firstly pulling out all the metallics from a lot and then doing a second sort for quality. Then I start to pair them up if I’m thinking of earrings. It’s a process which, I suppose, demands a level of concentration. I can certainly spend time sorting and pairing up. The feeling when the pairs start to jump out at you is great! It seems to happen all at once. Perhaps there is some sort of critical mass thing going on. Before I started pairing them I had a pretty spectacular multicolour peacock necklace lined up!

There is also a growing shortage of smaller sized freshwater pearls in all shapes, colours and qualities. Prices have short up. Production – arguably over-production – has been cut right back. And pearls dyed in garish colours have all but disappeared. If you want them you’ll have to pay to have a hank at least dyed (20-40 strands)