How to Clean Jewelry
At Silver City we are always happy to offer free jewelry cleaning if you stop by during regular hours. However, if you need to clean your jewelry at home, it’s a simple and easy process. First, get a cleaning solution that works for your metal; gold and platinum use the same cleaner while silver uses a stronger liquid. At Silver City, we sell a few different cleaning solutions for about $7 each.
For gold and platinum, the goal is to remove any dirt or residue that has gotten behind stones or in small openings in the metal, and you’ll want to soak your jewelry in the solution anywhere from 10 minutes to a few hours. It may be helpful to use […]
What is Gold?
Gold is one of the oldest and most valuable metals in the world. It has a bright yellow color and is very easy for jewelers to work with. Gold is the traditional metal for engagement rings and wedding bands.
What does karat mean?
Pure gold is extremely bright yellow and too soft for jewelry, so jewelers alloy gold with other metals to make a stronger, different colored alloy. These alloys’ level of gold purity is what karat refers to, with 24 karat being pure gold. 8 karat gold is 33% gold, and 67% other metals. 10k is 41% pure gold, 14k is 59% pure gold, and 18k is 75% pure gold. The higher the karat of the alloy, the yellower […]
What is Silver?
Silver is a classic precious metal that has been used for jewelry throughout human history. Its brilliant white color is as beautiful as any other metal when cleaned and polished properly. It, along with gold, is soft enough for jewelers to shape but strong enough to last a lifetime.
What does Sterling Mean?
Sterling silver is the standard silver alloy used for jewelry. It is at least 92.5% pure silver, and the remaining 7.5% is usually copper. Hundreds of years ago, silversmiths found that if they mixed silver with other metals, it added some strength to their creations. In order to make sure that the silversmiths were still mostly making their pieces of silver and […]
Gifts for Her
If you are looking to buy jewelry as a gift for a wife, girlfriend, or mom, it can be difficult to choose. Jewelry comes in many shapes and sizes, and there are many options to choose from. If you come to Silver City, our jewelry specialists will help you choose a great gift. If you can’t come in or you’d like think about it ahead of time, this is a quick guide to get you on the right track.
Yellow or White Gold?
Most women either wear only yellow or only white gold. If you aren’t sure which one she likes, look at the jewelry she’s wearing next time you see her. If she wears no jewelry at all or […]