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Your Complete Guide on Choosing Different Types of Silver Jewellery

Throughout history, silver has always had a significant relationship with value if not style that much. Especially when thinking of building a jewellery collection, silver is considered to be a perfect choice even today. Let’s take a look at its history to see what makes silver jewellery so special and what all types of silverwear are available these days in the market…

1. A Brief History of Silver

Silver was discovered around the period of 5000 BC. The earliest found objects, artefacts and jewels made in silver have been discovered to be of the time ranging from 3000 BC to 4000 BC. To put it simply, the metal silver is thousands of years old.

Silver, being slightly harder than gold, many civilizations valued silver even more than gold while making accessories of various kinds. For instance, in ancient Egypt, the queens used to value silver jewellery even more than the gold ones.

In folklore too, silver was said to cast away the destructive psychic energy surrounding a person, specially a female. The skin of the babies born in the royal kingdoms would be brushed with silver grains to chase off any werewolf or vampire hovering around their chambers.

In the parlours of the palaces, wine was stored in silver bottles to protect it from bacteria in the atmosphere. Also, carrying a tremendous amount of non-toxic properties, silver is preferred in the kitchen as well.

You might have noticed that many Indian food items including sweets are decorated with a layer of thin silver foil known as varak. Throughout history, silver has been used in crafting assortment of mirrors, jewellery, coins and decorative adornments.

Out of these, one most common form of silversmithing shows in the form of silver jewellery. Before we go into the details about purchasing silver jewellery, let’s first take a look at different kinds of silver used in its making.

2. Different Types of Silver

Think of jewellery making, and the first thing which comes to imagination is that there is a metal worker, probably a silversmith in this case. He takes some amount of silver metal and then with the help of various instruments, molds and processes, he shapes and designs the metal into a beautiful piece of jewel.

We all know that it isn’t as simple as it sounds. In fact, as complex as these processes might be, there’s another thing which comes before them. That is, the selection of silver metal in the first place.

The pure silver, that is, the one composing of 99.9% silver is way too soft to create even a fold out of it, let alone a bracelet or a necklace or a jewel of any kind. Our ancient jewellery makers probably recognized this fact.

So, they started mixing other metals alongside silver in order to make a suitable material for making jewellery and objects. So, here are some of these varieties of silver which are most commonly known and used while making jewellery.

So, let’s get started.

Sterling Silver

Sterling silver is the most commonly used type of silver, especially when it comes to jewellery and accessories. Originated during 13^th century, sterling silver is composed of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper.

There is a vast variety of sterling silver jewellery sets available these days in the market. In addition to being affordable, they are well suited for wearing with costumes of all types.

Coming in the form of necklaces, anklets, bracelets, earrings, trinkets and rings, the paparazzi of sterling silver is at the peak today. From highly intricate ornamented pieces to plainly textured accessories, the craftsmen have got it all covered.

Britannia Silver

Britannia silver is an alloy of silver composing of 95.8% silver and nearly 4% copper apart from bits of other precious metals. It carries the Millesimal Fineness Hallmark of 958.

Britannia Silver was used to make wrought plates and jewellery before the popularity of sterling silver took stronghold. Although, its purity of silver was more than sterling silver, its softness caused the jewellery makers to ride back to sterling silver.

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Owing to this softness, even though Britannia silver is not very common for making jewellery these days, you might find some precious handcrafted collections online or offline.

Mexican Silver

Mexicans started working with silver mainly for artistic purposes. Heavy motifs, scrolls and curves were the signature designs seen in the silverwork done by Mexican jewellery artists.

This silver today is known by the name of Mexican silver. It composes of nearly 95% silver which is softer than sterling but quite gorgeous in appearance.

You will find a lot of Mexican silver jewellery collections in the market, often with the addition of gemstones which are used to add hardness to the metal while bringing out the glittery appeal even more!

Alpaca Silver

Also referred as German silver, Alpaca silver is another alloy of silver, which carries properties and display just like that of stainless steel. You will find a huge variety of lightweight earrings, bracelets, chains and anklets designed in this type of silver.

Owing to its apt texture and hardness, it becomes easier for the jewellery makers to marry this silver with other materials such as stones, beads, colours and gems. This is one of the main reasons of the huge variety you’ll find in this category.

3. Points to Consider When Buying Silver Jewellery

Hallmark

To determine the quality of a silver jewel, the Bureau Of Indian Standards has instructed the jewellers to put a stamp on it. This stamp is referred as the ‘hallmark’ of silver. As described above, different types of silver jewellery come with different hallmark standards depicting their quality.

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There are thousands if not millions of cases signed every day in many countries related to the incorrect stamps and illegal hallmarks on silver jewellery items.

Therefore, before purchasing a silver accessory, it’s always a good idea to take a look at its hallmark. A hallmark doesn’t just indicate the purity and composition percentage of silver but also its producer.

Your Personal Style

Following the hallmark, this is the biggest factor one should consider while purchasing jewellery, not just silver but of any metal. Your personal style plays a huge role in determining which piece will suit you and which one not.

Whether you’re purchasing it for your wedding or maybe, as your work wear, this makes a lot of difference. So, choose wisely and look even more fantastic.

Face & Neckline

While purchasing jewellery, the shape of your face, your jaw line and the neck style of your dress are pretty much as important as the quality. Especially for the pieces of jewellery related to the regions around face, arms and shoulders up to the chest area.

A pair of earrings looking great on a diamond shaped face might not suit on a round face. A necklace complementing a V-neck gown might not match the style of a crop top and palazzos.

Therefore, each update on your look requires an update in the choice of accessory too. Oh, and don’t forget the hairstyle. It matters too!

4. Cleaning, Caring & Storing Silver Jewellery

Jewellery items made of silver are some of the favourites among women of all ages. On the other side being non-toxic, anti-bacterial and thermally strong metal, silver offers its own lot of advantages too.

It is surprising to know that even though it’s a delicate noble metal, silver stays quite stable in the company of water and oxygen.

However, at times, when exposed to too much air or particularly the air containing sulphides, silver too is prone to tarnishing which shows up in the form of black material deposited on the silver item.

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In order to protect it from tarnish, the first and the best measure you can take is to wear it often. The oils on the skin are best protector for the metal.

Secondly, a good idea to store silver jewellery is satin lined jewellery boxes which prevent any chemicals in the air to enter the jewel’s skin. Also, if your silver jewellery seems to be turning old and blackish, you can still clean it at home itself.

To clean a piece of silver jewel, you can use various home-ready substance combinations such as lime-and-vinegar, tomato ketchup, baking soda-and-vinegar etc.

Wrapping Up

Its earthy feel and silent sparkles make silver one of the most wonderful metals to be cast into jewellery. Bonus, it is pretty affordable.

Of course, with either kind of silver jewellery, you might not be able to chase off a vampire if you come across one. However, you might surely attract a prince. So live your fantasies, and start building your own silver jewellery collection ladies.