Valentine's Day Sale

2010-02-01T21:25:00.000-08:00

Style 101 USA is having Valentine's Day Sale from now until February 14, 2010! Please use the code "LOVE2010" when you check out and get an additional 20% off the already reduced prices.

Jewelry Materials - Metal

2010-01-28T18:23:00.000-08:00

1. Gold

Gold is considered to be one of the most precious metals in the world. The karat system of gold is used to reveal the amount of pure gold found in an item:

24K - 99.9 %

22K - 91 %

18K - 75 %

14k – 58.3 %

10k – 41.7 %

Gold in ancient times was made into shrines and idols, plates, cups, vases and vessels of all kinds, and of course, jewelry for personal adornment.

2. Gold-Filled

“Gold-filled” is jewelry or other item with a sheet of gold applied to its surface. Newer items contain markings that indicate how much and what type of gold was used in the layer.

Example: a marking of 1/20 12K G.F. means that the piece is at least 1/20th 12K gold by weight. 1/20 or 5% is the minimum amount of gold a piece of gold-filled must contain.

3. Vermeil

Vermeil is made from a base of sterling silver that is coated or plated on its surfaces with gold of at least 10K fineness and at least 2.5 microns thick (100/1,000,000 inch).

It is commonly used as a component in jewelry. In the US, sterling silver covered with a base metal (such as nickel) and plated with gold cannot be sold as vermeil without disclosing that it contains base metal.

The White House has a collection of vermeil tableware kept on display (when not in use) in the Vermeil Room.

4. Gold-Plated

“Gold-plated” is a metal item that has a very thin layer of gold applied to it. The thin layer normally wears away more quickly than gold in a gold filled item. They usually contain 1/30-1/40 of gold.

5. Sterling Silver

Sterling silver is a silver alloy containing 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metal, usually copper. Copper improves the hardness of the metal without affecting the color, and it provides durability and strength since 100% pure silver is too soft. The small amount of copper added to sterling has very little effect on the metals value. Instead, the price of the silver item is affected by the labor involved in making the item, the skill of the craftsperson and the intricacy of the design.

6. Rhodium-Plated

Rhodium is a precious metal, a member of the platinum family. Rhodium electroplating is used, especially on jewelry, to provide a surface that will resist scratches and tarnish, and give a white, reflective appearance.

Rhodium plating is most often found on white gold. White gold plated with rhodium will also keep its good looks longer - rhodium will not tarnish or discolor, and since it is a harder substance, it is much less likely to get scratched.

Sometimes, platinum or silver jewelry is rhodium-plated. In the case of platinum, it is because rhodium is a bit brighter than platinum, so it is used to enhance the shine. For silver, it is a little bit different. Silver is actually more reflective (shinier) than rhodium, but silver is also a much softer metal, and can be scratched very easily. So the owner of a rhodium-plated silver piece is trading a small bit of shine for a longer, scratch-free life.

7. Silver-Plated

“Silver-plated” means that a fine silver film is deposited on a base metal through electroplating. Base metal may be nickel, silver, copper, or brass.

For less demanding applications in electronics, silver is often used as a cheaper replacement for gold. (Although silver is a better conductor than gold it does oxidize and so gold is better for contacts. However, variable capacitors are considered of the highest quality when they have silver-plated plates. In this application there is no make and break contact so gold would not offer any advantage over silver.)

Care should be used for parts exposed to high humidity environments. When the silver layer is porous or contains cracks, the underlying copper undergoes rapid galvanic corrosion, flaking off the plating and exposing the copper itself; a process known as red plaque.

Historically, silver plate was used to provide a cheaper version of items that might otherwise be made of silver, including cutlery and candlesticks.

Welcome to "Style 101 USA" blog!!!

2010-01-27T16:14:00.000-08:00

Hi,

My name is Christine and I run an online business called "Style 101 USA" selling quality handmade fashion jewelries.

In this blog, I will be posting useful information about fashion, style, jewelry, etc.
Hope you enjoy reading!