Pearls of a different luster

Anandia specializes in rare gems, including golden pearls. ‘You don’t find grandma’s pearls here,’ owner says. Pearls of many shades, from shimmering white to golden to steel-like black, can be found at Newport Beach’s Anandia Pearls.

“We are all pearls. We specialize in pearls,” co-owner Eric Rautman said.

Rautman and his wife, Erica Lim, opened Anandia Pearls in early August. Lim said she grew up around gems, and pearls were always her favorite. The gems, she said, have an elegant appearance, and she loves that pearls come in a wide spectrum of colors.

The rarest are the golden pearls, Lim said as she held up a sunshine-colored string. Golden pearls are most often found in Indonesia or the Philippines, and the light-golden pearls at Anandia are among the hardest to find, Lim said.

“To get true golden pearls like these, you’re looking at the top 1% of production,” she said. The string of golden pearls would cost a customer about $13,000; a necklace made from steel-colored Tahitian pearls would probably cost about half that amount.

Pearl-lovers who favor the golden variety don’t have to worry if they can’t afford a necklace made exclusively of golden pearls.

Lim said it’s fashionable to craft jewelry from pearls of different shades.

As she showed Anandia’s wares, she wore one such creation -- a necklace made mostly of black pearls but accented with golden.

“The trends are to mix different pearls in different colors so you can wear them with different outfits at different occasions,” Lim said.

Also available at Anandia are designs targeted toward men. Unlike the traditional, feminine designs made from a string of pearls, one of the men’s designs is made with a single gem that hangs like a pendant from a titanium and silicon band.

“I believe that we’re probably one of the first few companies that ventured into men’s jewelry made of pearls,” Lim said.

The store does carry old-fashioned styles, and strings of bright white pearls can be found near the front of the store. Still, the couple want to emphasize new designs.

“You don’t find grandma’s pearls here,” Lim said. “You find pearls for everybody.”

Anandia Pearls is at 377 E. Coast Highway.

* ANDREW EDWARDS covers business and the environment. He can be reached at (714) 966-4624 or by e-mail at andrew.edwards@latimes.com.

20051017ioh01cknMARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Eric Rautman and Erica Lim, owners of Anandia Pearls, display some of the jewelry for sale at their Newport Beach store, which opened in August.