If you
have a moment, view our Pictures Of
Some Custom Orders.. We have Custom Ordering and are able to create
lots of different styles, colors, shapes, items to match almost any
outfit or theme you choose. Our Custom Orders are very reasonably
priced. It is as easy as using our Custom Order Form
to let us know what you desire.
What
are the precious metals?
The
term "precious metals" means platinum, gold or silver.
Platinum
is
the noblest of the noble metals. Platinum is a white, hard
and very dense metal. Platinum is usually alloyed with Iridium
(90% Plat. and 10% Iridium) and more recently Cobalt is being used in
Platinum alloys. Platinum is the namesake of the Platinum group,
which is a category of five noble metals including Platinum, Palladium,
Iridium, Rhodium, and Ruthenium.
Pure
gold is
24kt, meaning 24, meaning 24 parts out of 24 are gold. 24kt is too soft
to be functional, so it is alloyed with other metals for durability,
cost, and color. 14kt is 14 parts gold out of 24, and the remaining 10
parts are other metals. Depending on the color of gold (which can be
yellow, rose, green or white), the other parts may be copper, silver,
nickel, zinc, tin, palladium, and/or manganese. (People with nickel
allergies should be aware that white gold contains nickel.)
Sterling
silver,
sometimes stamped .925, is an alloy of 92.5% silver, and 7.5% copper. It
is a soft, easy to work with metal, which can be antiqued to a dark
black or given a high polish. Sterling Silver is 92.5% silver and 7.5%
copper. 99.9% silver is called "Fine silver." Sterling
components and jewelry made in the USA are often stamped
"Sterling." Goods made for international trade are often
marked "925" indicating the 92.5% fineness. Other markings may
be seen that are less clear. "Mexican Silver", "German
Silver," "Indian Silver," "Montana Silver," or
simply "silver" do not guarantee any silver content.
"German Silver" is another name for the alloy of Copper,
Nickel and Zinc usually called Nickel Silver. Despite the name, Nickel
Silver contains no silver. In many countries, precious metal must
be stamped with a quality mark such as "925" for sterling.
Some countries require jewelry of precious metal be submitted to a
governmental assay office for destructive testing before being marked
and sold.
Is
the Bali silver you use .925?
The
Bali silver is .925 silver and imported from Bali Indonesia. It is
our preferred choice of silver due the character and intricate designs
each bead has. The Bali beads are hand made and each bead is one of a
kind.
What
is the difference in Gold Filled VS. Gold Plated?
Many
people are not aware of the differences between "gold-filled"
and "gold-plated" jewelry.
14kt
Gold-Filled
jewelry is higher quality than gold plated. It is also sometimes referred to as
"Rolled Gold". All Gold-Filled items are regulated by the
government (as is solid gold) and must be at least 5% gold by weight,
unlike vermeil or gold-plated which contain a lot less gold.
Gold-Filled quality wire and beads are used by professional jeweler's. I
use only 14kt gold and 14kt gold-filled wire and beads,
quality makes a
difference. Gold-filled (also called gold overlay) is made by using heat
and pressure to apply a layer of pure karat gold to a base of sterling
silver or less costly
metal. This produces a surface with karat gold. The minimum layer of
karat gold must equal at least 1/20 of the total weight of the item.
Tubing is usually seamless, so that only gold touches the body. 14kt
gold-filled wire is made by forming a tube of solid 14kt gold that is
"filled". We use gold-filled items that are filled with
Sterling Silver. The gold is bonded to the sterling silver with heat and pressure.
The exterior of
the product is solid 14kt gold and everything you can see or touch is a
solid layer of 14kt gold. This is why it will never tarnish, chip or
wear off. The gold layer on gold-filled wire is approximately 100
times thicker than gold plate as and is bonded with heat and pressure.
"Silver-filled" is the same process, using sterling or
fine silver. The surface layer of karat gold is usually 10kt, 12kt or
14kt. Also, to know the thickness of the layer, look for a fraction,
such as 1/10 or 1/20. It is 1/20 unless otherwise stamped.
Examples:
1/10 10kt GF: 1/10 of the total weight must be 10kt gold.
1/20 12kt GF: 1/20 of the total weight must be 12kt gold.
Gold-filled
jewelry is economical & durable. Making it an excellent choice
for creating jewelry. You will be able to enjoy the look and feel of gold at a
fraction of the cost. We also create items with Solid 14kt gold,
these are normally a Custom Order item.
Gold
Plating
is a microscopic film of gold, electroplated or
electrochemically applied particles that have been adhered to most any
kind of base metal by means of an electroplating (or dipping) process. Gold
plate is a very thin deposit of gold. It is a very small fraction of an
inch thick (about 1/1,000-1/1,000,000 of an inch thick). Heavy gold
electroplate might be 2 or 3/1000s of an inch thick (this can also be
written as 2 or 3 mils). Gold plate vs. gold-filled: gold-filled is 50
to 100,000 times thicker than regular gold plating, and about 17 to
25,000 times thicker than heavy gold electroplate.
It is often difficult to initially see the difference between
gold-filled and gold-plate jewelry. However, due to the gold particles,
gold plate has the tendency to chip, flake, and wear off.
What
does Vermeil Gold mean?
Vermeil
gold is the official industry designation for a heavy gold
electroplating over a base sterling silver material. A minimum thickness
of 100 millionths of an inch of gold must be deposited before it can be
marked or sold as Vermeil. Vermeil is 14kt or higher gold layer over
sterling silver with a minimum thickness of 2.5 microns.
Is
there a difference between Gold Vermeil and Gold-plated?
Yes,
Gold Vermeil is usually 14kt or higher gold plated on Sterling Silver. Gold-plated
is usually 12kt gold plated on a base metal.
What
is "base metal"?
“Base
metal” is a catch-all term in the jewelry industry for metals used in
costume jewelry. In metalworking, “base metal” is any metal that is
not one the “noble” or “precious” metals. Examples of base
metals include iron, steel (an alloy of iron and other metals), copper,
brass (an alloy of copper and other metals), nickel, lead, and tin. In
costume jewelry, base metals are often plated with gold, silver, nickel
or rhodium. Many plated items are plated first with copper. Many gold
plated items have a white nickel plate under the final gold plate.
Pewter includes any of the numerous silver-gray alloys of tin with
various amounts of antimony, copper and sometimes lead. None of
our jewelry pieces contain lead. Because of health hazards, lead is
seldom used in pewter today. “Pot metal” and “white metal” are
terms for tin-based alloys used in low temperature casting of costume
jewelry components. “White metal” castings are usually
three-dimensional rather than flat and are often plated. The exact
composition of white metal varies, because each casting foundry and shop
uses its own proprietary formula. Stamped findings are typically made
from brass or copper clad steel sheet. Stamped findings may be plated
and are usually one sided, often flat or slightly domed.
Some years, market the price of gold and silver fluctuate
greatly. In turn an immediate effect will be noticed in sterling,
gold-filled and 14kt wire, sheet, beads and findings. If prices remain
particularly high (or low), there will be a similar (but smaller) effect
in the prices of silver- and gold-plated items.
Information
for people with allergies
Different
people are allergic to different things (or, with luck, nothing at all).
One of the more common metal allergies that your customers may have is
an allergy to nickel. People with slight nickel allergies can usually
wear surgical stainless steel for a few hours, or possibly all day. But
some people are so sensitive that they cannot even wear watches, or have
the buttons on their Levi's touch their skin. For nickel-allergic
people, we suggest niobium, sterling silver, 14kt, nickel-free, or
plastic ear findings.
Surgical
stainless steel, although wearable by the majority of the population,
contains a small amount of nickel, usually 8% in jewelry.
The
term "nickel-free" can be confusing, because items marked
nickel-free are allowed to contain a very small amount of nickel. There
is not yet a U.S. standard. The European standard regulates that items
labeled nickel-free may not contain more than .05% nickel. In other
words, there can’t be more than 1 part in 2,000 that is nickel.
How
Do I Care For My Jewelry?
Frequent cleaning is recommended to maintain its true beauty. Salt
water, chlorine in swimming pools, hairspray, makeup, perfume, aerosols,
soap and perspiration take their toll on all fine jewelry. Wipe your
jewelry carefully with one of our polishing cloths to keep your item clean and free of these
elements, which oxidizes. The best way to clean in places that a
polishing cloth will not reach is very simple and you probably already
have what you need in your kitchen. Take a small bowl that will
hold about a quart of water and line it with aluminum foil. Add
hot water and a tablespoon of Tide washing powder (not liquid or with
bleach) and stir. Place your jewelry in the solution for about 1
minute and rinse with clean water and air dry. This works great on
Gold, Gold Filled, Vermeil & Sterling Silver and it will
not hurt any stones. If you have a build-up of dirt in hard to
reach places, just put a little dish washing liquid (the kind you wash
dishes with in the sink, not the dishwasher - a non abrasive type) in
a bowl of water and soak over night.
Are
there different kinds of Crystals?
Why do you use Swarovski & Czech
Crystals?
Yes,
there are different types of Crystals. Some manufacturers are
better than others. I use Swarovski for the majority of my
creations. They have been the leading manufacturer of Crystals
since 1895. Their quality is always great. I use Czech crystals
from select providers, which provide great quality as well. When I
am unable find a color I would like & Swarovski does not have
the color I use the select providers.
How
do I keep a stretch bracelet from getting over stretched?
Regardless
of where you buy your Stretch bracelets, if you roll them on and
off you will get longer wear out of them than if you stretch them
on and off. Also I would advise you to avoid contact with water, it
will shorten the lifespan of the elasticity of the bracelet.
How
do I measure for a watch or bracelet?
You
want the watch to be slightly loose on your wrist, but not so loose that
it will flip, slid off or rotate easily around your wrist.
Example:
If your wrist is 7", you want a watch or bracelet that is slightly
larger, 7¼" or 7½" should do. If your stretch watch or
bracelet is too tight, it will probably over-stretch and can break in
time, be sure it is slightly loose when you try it on.
There
is a sold sign on an item I really liked. Does this mean I am unable to
purchase one like it?
This
means the item has been sold. Due to the nature of natural beads and
gems each piece of jewelry is one of a kind. This does not mean you are
unable to order a similar item. If I have similar beads and findings in
my inventory I can create you something very similar within 48 hours or
so. If I have to order some items, then it may be 5 days up to 2 weeks.
Many of the pendants, some clasps, earring styles and beads are one of a
kind and I am unable to create the item again. Please contact me if you
are interested in a particular item.
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am nervous about entering my credit card information online.
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