How many of us fashion enthusiasts know details about 925 silver? I am asking a rhetorical question to raise concerns about the silver jewelry we put on and the money we pay for it. Although buying 925 sterling silver jewelry is not the most expensive item we hide in our wardrobe, it’s still a great investment. And then it’s a matter of keeping healthy. When we choose sterling silver earrings, we get no rash.
What is 925 silver?
There is a slight difference between pure and 925 silver. It has to do with the percentage of silver contained. So when we talk about 925 silver, we actually talk about jewelry containing 92,5% silver. The rest is usually copper.
This mixture is important for the jewelry’s hardness and thus strength. Silver is rather soft and so it needs a metal to make it stronger. The combination of the two enables jewelers to create all sorts of designs and allows you to keep your silver jewelry for years.
How much weight of silver the jewelry contains also sets its value. When it comes to sterling silver, the minimum purity of silver is 925. The system denoting the purity of metals is called millesimal fineness. Instead of using percentage marks (92,5%), the millesimal fineness is a three figure number stamped on jewelry to denote the purity of silver, gold, or platinum.
925 sterling silver is used for making rings, bracelets, earrings, and other jewelry. Jewelry made of silver with greater than 92,5% purity won’t only be too soft but also prone to tarnishing. Not that your 925 silver won’t get oxidized but copper reduces tarnishing.
Why to invest in 925 silver jewelry?
925 silver jewelry is the real thing. Whether you get pendants, rings, charms or earrings, they will be valuable and precious. The good news is that their price is still affordable. Sterling silver jewelry costs less than gold and is as valuable as silver can get. So if you are a fan of silver charms and bracelets, this is the jewelry for you. Since this is real silver and won’t tarnish, you get to keep it for a lifetime. You can clean it easily and can find hundreds of designs and styles to meet your fashion expectations.
Although we all like fashion jewelry and want to buy many rings, bracelets and pendants, nobody wants blisters, red skin, swelling and other irritations. Another good thing about 925 sterling silver is that it won’t cause an allergic reaction. When you are sensitive and prone to develop allergies, you should beware of what you buy. Only sterling silver will protect your skin. Even people with hardly any allergies but inclined to wear lots of jewelry for many hours might develop some allergic reactions if the jewelry they wear are fake. So it’s important to learn how to identify the fakes from the real ones. Besides, when you pay money to get 925 sterling earrings, you want to get 925 sterling earrings – not fake ones.
How to identify real 925 sterling silver?
925 sterling silver jewelry is not very expensive, but it’s not cheap either. So if you find a surprising low cost product, it is most likely silver plated and not a 925 silver jewel. Look closely. Most pieces of silver jewelry will have a 925 or .925 or SSil925 stamp engraved on them. The bad news is that not all countries use this method to underline the purity of silver. In this case, you won’t see a stamp and must test the authenticity of your jewelry alone unless you have a trusted jeweler to check it for you. They can run a nitric acid test with no hesitation if they have sold you the real thing.
How to check your jewelry is made of 925 sterling silver
- 925 silver is not magnetic. So the trick is to bring your jewelry close to a magnet and see if it is attracted to it. It shouldn’t. If it gets magnetized, it is a fake.
- Rub your jewelry with a clean cloth. If you see black marks on the cloth then this is a real 925 sterling silver jewelry. That happens because silver gets oxidized when it is exposed to air and thus gets black overtime. This is also the reason why you need to clean your silver jewelry.
- Check if the jewelry has an odor. If it does, it would mean it contains more than 7,5% copper. Silver doesn’t smell.
- When you check the jewelry for a stamp, see if there is another stamp apart from 925. You might see a “sterling silver” or “ster” stamp signifying this is real.
Always pay attention to what you buy not only to keep your silver jewelry for years but also for the sake of the money you spend and the avoidance of the annoying itching.
