Jewelry 101: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know

Giving jewelry is a wonderful way to express how you feel. Even just a little something will make the person receiving it feel happy and cared for. This is a great article to learn about jewelry from, whether it’s for yourself or if you give it to someone as a gift.

Be cautious of storing all of your pieces of jewelry together. Consider delegating each piece to its own resting place, utilizing compartmental boxes and storage units. Avoiding piling your nice jewelry pieces into one big heap in a box. This haphazard approach can cause damage to the individual components of fine jewelry, and create a tangled mess.

Arm yourself with a magnet and a magnifying glass when shopping for sterling silver jewelry. You can detect fake sterling silver with the magnet, since non-precious metals are drawn to magnets. In addition, sterling silver pieces are always stamped with silver hallmarks indicating such factors as the degree of purity, the manufacturer’s symbol, and the date of manufacture. Some of the most common hallmarks are “925, “ster,” “sterling,” and “sterling silver.” Silver jewelry that lacks a hallmark may be a fake or composed of other metals.

Always be aware of the type of stone you’re buying when dealing with gems. There are three different types: natural, synthetic and imitation. While natural and synthetic stones are the real deal, imitation stones are made to look like a real gemstone, but could be anything from colored glass to plastic. The difference here, however, is that synthetic is man-made in a laboratory while natural is found buried in the earth.

When shopping for a diamond, it’s crucial that you do comparisons. Look at the pieces up close before purchasing them, and be sure to compare them to others. You must be a sharp consumer to avoid tricks that might make a diamond look better than it really is.

Before you buy any new jewelry, you should look around for the latest trends. Purchasing a new trinket to add to your collection is always delightful, especially if you find it on sale.

Costume Jewelry

If you like to buy costume jewelry, make sure that you examine the condition carefully. Costume jewelry can prove to be a good investment, but also a costly one; keep in mind the pieces you wish to add to your collection don’t show too much wear. Investing in quality means that you can enjoy the jewelry for many years to come.

If you wear the piece for 24 hours, then you can be sure that it has been put together correctly and hangs nicely. It will also allow you to see if the item is durable enough.

Costume jewelry needs special care. A lot of the stones in costume jewelery are glued in and not set in. You will need to avoid immersing your jewelry and make sure to stay away from the use of harsh chemicals. Wiping your jewelry off with with a slightly dampened cloth and then wiping it dry is usually sufficient to keep it clean. This will ensure that your costume jewelry looks perfect.

As mentioned earlier, jewelry is a great gift almost any time. It will mean so much to the person receiving it, even if it is the smallest piece. Jewelry also needs to be cleaned and maintained to keep its luster and sparkle. Either way, take the advice contained here so as to enhance the enjoyment you feel about jewelry.