Shell Pearls are imitation or simulated pearls. Shell Pearls are not made of wax, plastic, glass, fish scales, or other inexpensive materials commonly used to make imitation pearls.
The creation process begins with pulverizing shells into a mix combining it with a binder and then formed into a perfectly shaped bead. The final step is adding the pearl coating, in which the primary ingredient is often ground fish scales or pearl . The beads closely imitate the precise roundness and shine of oriental pearls, at a fraction of the cost. Their shell center also gives them a similar weight and feel to their expensive counterparts. In fact, the imitation is so fine that if you laid shell pearls next to cultured South Sea pearls of comparable quality and color, you wouldn't be able to distinguish them.