When choosing your cultured pearl necklace, you should take into account your personal appearance, personality and style. For example, short necklaces are best with long necks; longer lengths tend to slenderize and elongate the body. Fair-skinned women look best in rose-hued pearls, deeper skin tones are more flattered by cream or golden hues. Let your expert jeweler customize a necklace so its proportions and color are exactly matched to yours. You can use this guide to necklace lengths and terminology to help you find the perfect pearl necklace for you:

 

Bib:

A single necklace with multiple strands of pearls of varying lengths that are worn nested together.

 

Choker:

A necklace 14 inches to 15 inches in length that rests on the collarbone.

 

Dog collar:

A multiple strand pearl necklace that fits closely around the neck.

 

Graduated:

A necklace with pearls of gradually increasing size with the smallest at the back and the largest at the center.

 

Matinee:

A slightly longer necklace than the princess style, usually 20 to 24 inches in length.

 

Opera:

A 30 to 36-inch necklace, this length should fall to the breastbone and can often be worn long or doubled.

 

Princess:

An 18-inch necklace strung with either graduated or uniform pearls.

 

Rope or Sautoir:

Any necklace longer than opera length. Ropes are often worn knotted or with a shortener for added versatility of style.

 

Torsade:

A necklace in which several strands of pearls (usually freshwater) are twisted together and held with a special clasp.

 

Uniform:

A necklace in which all pearls appear to be the same size, although there is usually a slight difference between the center and end pearls.