The Ultimate Guide to Personalizing Your Add-A-Pearl Necklace Journey

An Add-A-Pearl necklace is more than just a beautiful piece of jewelry—it’s a cherished tradition, a keepsake that grows alongside life’s milestones. Each pearl represents a special moment, a celebration, or a heartfelt gift, making the necklace uniquely personal to the recipient.

Whether you’re just beginning this journey or you’ve been building an Add-A-Pearl necklace for years, the process is designed to be simple, meaningful, and flexible. In this blog, we’ll explore some of our most popular and helpful features—Pearls on Hold, Necklace Tracking, How Pearls are Added, Shared Trackers, and Saved Gift Messages—to help you create an unforgettable experience for the loved one you’re celebrating.

 1. What is "Pearls on Hold"?

Flexibility for Gifting at Your Own Pace

One of the most frequently asked questions we receive is about our Pearls on Hold feature—what it is, how it works, and why it’s so popular.

Pearls on Hold is a convenient option that allows you to purchase pearls without having them added to the physical necklace right away. If you're gifting pearls for an occasion but don’t need the pearls to be physically presented, you can choose to have them held securely at Add-A-Pearl headquarters.

This feature is especially helpful for:

• Safekeeping of gifted pearls at addapearl.com
• Less frequent shipping back and forth
• Planning ahead for future birthdays, holidays, graduations, or other milestones.
• Building toward a full necklace over time.
• Coordinating gifts with family members or friends who also want to contribute pearls.
• Gifting when the necklace is not immediately available, such as if the necklace is already with the recipient

When you select Pearls on Hold at checkout, the pearls you’ve purchased are stored in your account under the necklace tracker (more on this below) and physically kept at Add-A-Pearl, ready to be added whenever you choose.

There is no time limit—pearls can be kept on hold for months, years, or even until you’ve completed an entire necklace. This allows you to gift at your own pace and ensures that each pearl is perfectly preserved and ready for expert stringing when the time comes.

 
2. Necklace Tracking: Uniquely Yours

Keep Track of Every Pearl with Ease

When you purchase a new Add-A-Pearl necklace directly from addapearl.com, you’ll have the ability to register the necklace to your account for easy pearl tracking. This is one of the most valuable tools for gifters who are planning to grow a necklace over time.

How does it work?

Once your necklace is registered, our system will automatically link all future pearl purchases to that specific necklace-provided you are logged into your account when shopping online. This creates a Necklace Tracker that keeps a complete, accurate record of:

• How many pearls have been purchased
• The sizes of the pearls
• How many pearls are still needed to complete your vision.
• If you are managing multiple necklaces (perhaps for daughters, granddaughters, nieces, goddaughters, or other special girls), this tracker is especially helpful. Each necklace will have its own tracker in your account, allowing you to view and manage progress on each gift independently. No more guesswork or spreadsheets—just one simple, elegant solution.

3. How Pearls Are Added to a Necklace?

The Artisan Touch: Craftsmanship Behind Every Pearl

An Add-A-Pearl necklace is known for its beauty, craftsmanship, and seamless appearance—and that’s no accident. The process of adding pearls is an art, honed through years of training and expertise.

When you are ready to have new pearls added to a necklace (either pearls you’ve kept on hold or purchased specifically to be added), here’s what happens behind the scenes:

1. Expert Pearl Selection & Matching

Our skilled pearl artisans carefully examine each pearl to select ones that will blend perfectly with the existing necklace. Factors such as:

• Size
• Luster
• Shape
• Surface quality
• Color tone

… are all meticulously considered to ensure a flawless result.

2. Hand-Stringing Process

Pearls are then hand-strung by experienced professionals using specialized tools and techniques.

This ensures that:

• Each pearl sits securely and beautifully on the necklace.
• The necklace has an elegant, continuous appearance as it grows.
• The structure and durability of the piece are maintained.

From thread selection to hand-knotting, read more about how pearls are prepared for stringing. How Pearls are Added to a Necklace.

The goal is to make each addition look as though it has always been part of the necklace—a seamless expression of love and tradition.

 
4. Shared Necklace Trackers: Sharing is Caring

Invite Family & Friends to Join the Tradition

At Add-A-Pearl, we know that many necklaces are collaborative gifts, with parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, godparents, and close family friends all contributing pearls for the special girl.

That’s why we created the Shared Necklace Tracker feature.

With this tool, you can share a necklace tracker from your account with trusted family members or friends.

Once shared, they’ll be able to view:

• The current progress of the necklace
• What pearls have already been purchased
• What sizes and quantities are still needed

This ensures that everyone is coordinated and informed when buying pearls. No accidental duplicates, no confusion—just a shared effort to build a necklace that will be treasured for a lifetime.

Why is this feature loved by our customers?

It makes group gifting simple for:

• Baby showers
• Baptisms or Christenings
• Birthdays
• First communions
• Confirmations
• Bar and Bat Mitzvahs
• Graduations
• Weddings

With the shared tracker, all gifters can work together to build something truly special—turning a single necklace into a beautiful symbol of community and love.

5. Saved Gift Messages: A Necklace Diary

Capturing Memories with Every Gifted Pearl

Every pearl tells a story. Often, customers choose to include a personalized gift message when purchasing pearls—expressing their love, commemorating an occasion, or marking a life event.

What many don’t realize is that these messages are automatically saved to your account, creating a necklace journal over time.

This means that for every pearl you’ve gifted (as long as a message was entered prior to checkout), your recipient will have a record of:

• Who gave the pearl
• When it was gifted
• What occasion it celebrated
• The personal message you wrote

Over the years, this journal becomes a precious keepsake—a written history of the necklace’s growth and the life moments it represents. You can print the information at any time or choose to create a physical memory book of your own.

Important note: Gift messages must be added before checkout to be saved. They cannot be added to past orders. Be sure to take a moment to write your message each time you purchase pearls—it’s one of the most meaningful features of the Add-A-Pearl experience.

 6. Custom Name Plates 

Personalize her Signature Add-A-Pearl Box

Add an extra layer of meaning to her gift with our new engraved name plates. Each brass plate is custom-engraved with up to two lines of text—perfect for her name, a special date, or a heartfelt sentiment. The plate affixes neatly to the lid of our Signature Add-A-Pearl Box, turning the presentation into a keepsake she’ll treasure long after the necklace is given.

In Conclusion: An Add-A-Pearl Necklace is a Gift that Grows with Love

We hope this guide helps you make the most of all the wonderful features available on addapearl.com:

✨ Pearls on Hold gives you flexibility to gift at your own pace.
✨ Necklace Tracking makes it easy to manage and grow each necklace.
✨ Expert artisans ensure every added pearl is perfectly matched.
✨ Shared Necklace Trackers help family and friends contribute in harmony.
✨ Saved Gift Messages turn the necklace into a heartfelt journal of love.

At Add-A-Pearl, we are honored to be a part of your family’s special moments and milestones. Whether you’re celebrating a new baby, a birthday, graduation, or simply the joy of watching a child grow, an Add-A-Pearl necklace is a timeless tradition that evolves alongside life’s most meaningful memories.

If you haven’t yet, be sure to log into your account and explore all these features—and if you have questions, our team is always here to help.

Happy pearl gifting!