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Sterling silver makes beautiful jewelry. From bracelets to earrings and necklaces, sterling silver can be used to create memorable and affordable pieces. The biggest culprit affecting the finish on sterling silver pieces is chlorine. Chlorine is found in our everyday wash water and, more commonly, pools.
Sterling silver, which is a mixture of pure silver and copper, is a sturdy metal often used in silverware and jewelry due to its strength, versatility and ease of use in these applications. Its white-silver color and shine is highly sought after and is commonly used in conjunction with jewels and other metals. Due to its strength, it is used for silverware that needs to stand up to everyday use and the test of time.
Fake silver can be very convincing and, sometimes, appears as beautiful as real silver. Fortunately, there are several clues, mainly derived from your dish's appearance, from which you can ascertain if the dish is sterling silver -- consists of 92.5-percent silver -- or silver plated -- sterling silver plated over a relatively inexpensive base metal. While the process of verifying real silver is time consuming, sterling silver is often worth a great deal, making your labor a potentially good investment.
It has been a tradition for centuries in some cultures to give gifts of sterling silver to baby girls at their christening. Others like to give silver to babies at baby showers or after the baby is born, because silver is a gift that will last a lifetime. Traditional silver gifts for baby girls include a silver spoon which is meant to bring prosperity from the saying: "born with a silver spoon in her mouth."
Jewelry tends to have a stamp of authenticity on it symbolizing the company that made it and/or what it is made of. Pieces of jewelry stamped with "Silver 925 ALE" are produced by the jewelry company Pandora.
The designation 925 silver indicates silver content of 92.5 percent with 7.5 percent other metals. This type of alloy is commonly referred to as sterling silver. The origin of the word "sterling" is not known. The use of silver as a medium of exchange, and of art, goes back thousands of years.
Silver, like other metals, is measured by its purity. The phrase .925 silver refers to an important standard purity or grade of silver.
925 sterling silver refers to an alloy of silver and another metal. The alloy strengthens the silver and results in a more durable product, according to BlueNile.com.
Jewelry and decorative items made from silver and sterling silver have been prized for centuries. Silver's designations can be confusing.
The famous Tiffany symbols: the little blue box, the engraved T&Co., 1837 and 925. But what is 925? The 925 engraving on a Tiffany product represents the item as sterling silver, since the percentage grade of the American Sterling Silver Standard is 925. It's a standard that was pioneered in the United States by none other than Tiffany & Co. itself.
There is plenty of silver jewelry available, but how do you know which is genuine 925 silver, and which is only silver plated or fake altogether? Sterling silver, otherwise known as Italian silver, will have certain markings and properties to let you know whether it is real, 925 silver. A little detective work on your part can reveal to you whether your silver piece is real 925 silver.
Although it's a common misconception that 925 sterling silver is pure silver, it's actually an alloy--a combination of several metals. 925 sterling silver is defined by the amount of pure silver within the alloy, 92.5 percent. Thanks to hallmarks inscribed on silver products, one can easily verify the authenticity of sterling silver products.
