Cultured Pearls in Oysters,Cultured Freshwater Pearl Oysters with Pearls Inside Big Oyster Pearls in Oyster Anniversary Decoration for Women(5-7mm)(1 PC)

This was not quite what I expected yet it was exactly as described. The oyster shell came in a vacuum pack. It was somewhat muddy and while it didn’t really stink, it smelled like some kind of chemical.I cut it out of the bag, put it in my sink. I washed the outside with Palmolive.Now, this piece sat in my mailbox for 35 hours in Texas in 100 degree heat, yet it didn’t smell bad when I opened the shell.I took a pairing knife and opened it gently.There were many beautiful pink pearls inside, one almost perfectly round. I removed the inside of the oyster and and then harvested the pearls from the skin by bare fingers.They are lovely, and yes, they are real.I can see the potential for this kind of thing to mold, or smell super bad! I would not leave this laying around— clean it when you get it.Because this is a product of nature, the pearls will vary in quantity and shape/size. One pearl was still growing and stuck to the side.I would not give this as a gift unless someone asked for it, it was already cleaned, or it was a science project for a kid.Dispose of the insides very timely or your garbage can could end up smelling the like the Seaport fish market in downtown Manhattan 😬

Overall it was an interesting and educational experience for kids. The clams are the size of a salad plate. The clams are preserved in formaldehyde, judging by the smell. They were packaged well, no leackage or damage. Dual bagged. They come in a shipping box but if you plan to gift them would need a gift box.It was somewhat difficult to open the clams so be prepared to force it open. Due to the preservation chemicals we treated this as any dissection class and used surgical gloves and masked to help deal with the smell of formeldehyde. Once the clam is opened the chemical smell is somewhat strong, although it did not deter us from the activity. Just be aware and prepared. We simply aired out the room once we were finished. We also used an aluminum tray under it so that the juice and chunks didn't get on the surface of the desk. Cleaned the countertop afterwards.The color and shape of the pearls from each clam varried. On average each clam had about 25-30 small pearls. Overall it was an interesting and positive experience. Would do it again but having instructions or warning about the chemical and how to handle the product safely would be good. My previous lab experience was helpful here but this information may not be so obvious to other customers.

I've ordered these a few times. They're offered at a good price, shipping is prompt, and they always contain plenty of pearls. I withhold one star only because there are few large pearls so far in the ones I've ordered. Most are medium-sized. Some small. Shells are always pretty, and I've mounted a couple of them for display.Initially I hesitated thinking the pearls would be fake, so don't let that stop you from buying. They shells contain real, cultured pearls. I plan to order again.

Worse smell ever. Could not even stand to get what was inside. Waste . Please be careful, although could be fun, if you get a bad one, smell lingers for days. Not worth it. Smaller ones were fine although when the seller took out the pearls to color them and put them back, all the coloring that was left on pearl itself will also dye your clothes and fingers. You have to let soak and wash well and even then coloring comes off a bit making the pearl look really bad. Couldn’t use to make jewelry at all.

This item is a wonderful gift to give all your shell or gemstone obsessed individuals in your life. i bought this as a birthday gift to myself and I absolutely love them. I got lucky getting large amounts on my first not so much on the second and large ones on the third. Seeing how the other reviews that talked about packaging i can see that the company who ship these had taken those complaints to account although i did have one that was not vacuum sealed correctly all shells came in fresh and healthy (Not Rotting). I live in the desert so I knew I had to grab my package before it was sitting out in the heat, luckily I received my package on a nicer day and picked it up when the truck arrived. Some things I would advise before hand it have a bucket or container of water big enough to hold them on the ready and let them be in the water for a good 10-15 minutes just to get rid of the smell. (I've opened some other oysters before so I'm used to the smell). Second, please please please do this outside in an open area because if there still is a stink the smell will be more tolerable outside then in the indoors. Third, for maximum opening efficiency I would use a chisle of a small wedge shaped object to slowly open up the oyster until it gives and opens up. There are muscles holding the mouth shut which is the main reason its hard to open.

After reading a book with my five-year-old about pearls in oysters he became fascinated with them so I ordered these as a fun summer activity. Because of all the mixed reviews I chose to order two oysters. As the photos illustrate, the size, shape, color and luminosity of the pearls **varied tremendously** from one oyster to the other.I was pleased overall with one oyster. The other oyster I was not. The smaller pearls look like actual pearls. The larger grouping look pretty awful overall.One package was slightly open and leaking when it arrived, but it leaked into its outer packaging so no damage or big mess. They did smell horrible and I soaked them in a pot of water in the basement overnight before we opened them.The oyster with the tiny pearls had a total of 28. The oyster with the larger ‘pearls’ had 26.I can’t say that I would order these again …