Ultra-Fine Japanese Akoya Nacre Pearl Powder

Give your skin a natural boost and a soft-focus hue. Deeper luster and iridescence than most other freshwater or saltwater pearl powders.

Multi-use and Versatile
Apply directly to skin or as a facial mask. Use as a subtle highlighter or translucent setting/finish powder. Or, mix it — instantly — with your moisturizer, cleanser, liquid or powder cosmetics, sunscreen or sunblock.

For all skin types. Package includes instructions and handy spatula.

Pure • Natural • Cruelty-free

No additives, preservatives, colorings or fragrances. Not tested on animals. Not hydrolyzed and no nanoparticles.

Hand-polished and powdered from Akoya oysters of Uwajima bay.

How to Use

① Mix with Moisturizer, Cleanser and Liquid or Powder Cosmetics

Unlike Akoya pearl powder, the pearl in the ingredient list of typical cosmetics is commonly "hydrolyzed pearl" (also called hydrolyzed conchiolin). It is made by adding chemicals to pearl's proteins to make them water-soluble, plus a preservative such as Phenoxyethanol or Parabens to protect the product from growing bacteria and fungi.

You can avoid these chemicals by mixing Akoya pearl powder with your cosmetics instead — in seconds.

• Mix a small amount with your favorite cosmetic.
• Apply to face, neck, hands or body as you wish.
• If mixing with soap or cleanser, wash and rinse as usual.

One or two scoops with the provided spatula are sufficient for most applications (One scoop of powder weighs about 0.1 grams.)

Try mixing with our Camellia oil, rice bran moisturizer and additive-free soaps.

② Apply as Facial Mask

Akoya will mix almost instantly with almost all powders, oils and other common mask ingredients. Below is a sample recipe.

1. Take 2 grams of pearl powder
2. Add 2 tsp of wheat powder (or Shiro Nuka if you like gluten-free)
3. Add 2 to 3 tsp of water, milk or soy milk
4. Add other ingredients such as honey or moisturizing oil as you prefer
5. Mix well. Apply to face for 10 minutes
6. Rinse with lukewarm water

③ Apply as Mineral Highlighter or Translucent Setting/Finish Powder

• Brush on a small amount over foundation as setting powder.
• Or, apply over makeup as a finishing powder to blur fine lines and control oil and shine. The ultra-fine particle size means it will go on translucent when applied thin. 
• Or, use as a subtle highlighter by applying a little more powder with a highlighter brush or Q-tip.

About Akoya Oysters and Uwajima Bay

Akoya is a saltwater pearl oyster, prized worldwide for its quality. Almost all of Japan's Akoyas come from three seaside bays: Ago Bay (in Mie prefecture), Omura (in Nagasaki) and Uwajima, where we get our supplies.

Akoyas are rare, mainly because they are hyper-sensitive to pollutants and need a clean environment to survive. Japanese Akoyas account for less than 2% of the world pearl market.

Composition, Luster and Hues

The inner layer of Akoya's shell and the outer coating of the pearl itself is nacre, made of minerals and amino acids in intricate crystalline layers.

94% of the Akoya's nacre is calcium (in the form of calcium carbonate,) magnesium, and iron. 5% of the rest is Conchiolin, a complex protein of 17 amino acids which bond the calcium carbonate crystals together. About 1% is pure water.

Akoya nacre crystals have a flatter and more organized microstructure than nacre crystals from other types of oysters.

As a result, Akoyas reflect and refract light in a more organized manner with subtle hues, deeper luster, and iridescence — a fact well-known to gemologists.

Uwajima Bay

Uwajima bay is a natural body of water in southern Shikoku, the smallest of Japanese main islands, covering approximately 30 square kilometers.

South Shikoku is an ecologically important area, with vast stretches of uninhabited coastline, from Uwajima bay to the imposing cliffs of Cape Ashizuri and Shimanto coast.

The historic Uwajima town has a population of about 77,000 who for centuries have cared for the bay, and depend on its bounty of Akoyas and fishery resources for their livelihood.