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Reading Room
The Truth About Gold Jewelry
by: Sam Serio
Without a doubt, Gold is one of the world’s most precious metals. It is also
a certainty that gold enjoys an unsurpassed popularity as a medium for jewelry
expression. Both jewelry artisans and consumers alike are "in love" with gold.
There seems to be no end to the range of colors, finishes and styles available
and gold remains a perennial favorite setting for gemstones.
Gold can last forever, will not corrode or rust and can be found anywhere. Gold
exists in plants, rivers, oceans, mountains, it’s nearly everywhere but it is
extremely difficult and costly to extract this amazing metal. Did you know that
a single ounce of gold can be pulled into a thin wire that stretches nearly five
miles long? An artisans hammer can work that same ounce into a very thin sheet
that can cover a 10ft x 10ft(100sq. ft.) area. Also, it takes nearly 3 tons of
gold or to extract a single ounce of pure gold. Well if you didn’t now you know!
Gold Basics
The word Gold, used by itself, means all gold or 24 karat (24K) gold. Because
24K gold is soft, it’s usually mixed with other metals to increase its hardness
and durability. If a piece of jewelry is not 24 karat gold, the karat quality
should accompany any claim that the item is gold.
The karat quality marking tells you what proportion of gold is mixed with the
other metals. Fourteen karat (14K) jewelry contains 14 parts of gold, mixed in
throughout with 10 parts of base metal. The higher the karat rating, the higher
the proportion of gold in the piece of jewelry.
Most jewelry is marked with its karat quality, although marking is not required
by law. Near the karat quality mark, you should see the name of the U.S.
registered trademark of the company that will stand behind the mark. The
trademark may be in the form of a name, symbol or initials. If you don’t see a
trademark accompanying a quality mark on a piece of jewelry, look for another
piece.
Solid gold refers to an item made of any karat gold, if the inside of the item
is not hollow. The proportion of gold in the piece of jewelry still is
determined by the karat mark.
Jewelry can be plated with gold in a variety of ways. Gold plate refers to items
that are either mechanically plated, electroplated, or plated by any other means
with gold to a base metal. Eventually, gold plating wears away, but how soon
will depend on how often the item is worn and how thick the plating is.
Gold-filled, gold overlay and rolled gold plate are terms used to describe
jewelry that has a layer of at least 10 karat gold mechanically bonded to a base
metal. If the jewelry is marked with one of these terms, the term or
abbreviation should follow the karat quality of the gold used (for example, 14K
Gold Overlay or 12K RGP). If the layer of karat gold is less than 1/20th of the
total weight of the item, any marking must state the actual percentage of karat
gold, such as 1/40 14K Gold Overlay.
Gold electroplate describes jewelry that has a layer (at least .175 microns
thick) of a minimum of 10 karat gold deposited on a base metal by an
electrolytic process. The terms gold flashed or gold washed describe products
that have an extremely thin electroplating of gold (less than .175 microns
thick). This will wear away more quickly than gold plate, gold-filled or gold
electroplate.
Vermeil (ver-may), a special type of gold plated product, consists of a base of
sterling silver that is coated or plated with gold.
Related Articles:
Gold Jewelry Finder in Specialgifts.com
Silver Jewelry
Exquisite and classic are the middle name of silver that gives a different look
to a person’s overall personality. Simple and plain silver jewelries can
actually give an everlasting effect to your dressing and gives you a
contemporary look.
Finding a
Romantic Gift for Her
People give you clues about what they want continuously in their daily
conversation. It's up to you to pay attention and surprise them later with a
well-chosen gift.
Custom Jewelry, Information And Buying
Tips.
Custom jewelry includes any jewelry that is made according to design details
provided by the buyer. There are various reasons why jewelry buyers opt for
custom jewelry instead of buying standard ready made jewelry.
See Also:
Find Jewelry Gifts
Loose Gems
Find Gifts with your selection of
gemstone
Find Vitamins and Natural Remedies
More Reading
Specialgifts.com Infocenter Home
Sam Serio is an Internet Marketer, musician and a writer on the subject of
jewelry and gemstones. For more information on jewelry and gemstones, we
cordially invite you to visit www.morninglightjewelry.com
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