JEWELLERY INFORMATION

My main aim with the jewellery I sell is for it to be of good quality but at a reasonable price. I don’t have one big supplier, I source items from many different places to get the best combinations, so the charms, chains and pendants  are not all made of the same metal. Each product will have a description which tells you what it is made of. 

CHARMS

What are they made of?

The charms on this website are made of either plated pewter or brass. Pewter is a metal alloy made mainly of tin with a small amount of copper, antimony and bismuth. The metal itself is a dark silver colour, and the charms are plated in a silver or gold coloured base metal. Brass is a gold coloured metal alloy made of copper and zinc. The brass charms are plated in chrome or 23K gold. All charms come with either a solid sterling silver or gold plated brass jump ring.

Are they nickel free?

The pewter charms do contain a trace amount of nickel, as with most costume jewellery. ‘Trace’ means the amount is so small it can’t be measured. The gold plated brass charms have a layer of nickel under the gold for durability and brightness.

How do they wear?

To this question I would say they are not designed to be worn constantly, but they do wear well. With the pewter charms all that will happen is that over time the silver coloured ones will become less shiny and the gold ones may fade to a more silvery colour. Charms wear quickest when against the skin, so if you wear them on a long necklace chain over clothes they will pretty much stay the same, as they are not in contact with the skin. With the brass charms, the chrome plated ones wear very well, and will stay silver coloured for a long time. The gold plated ones will start to wear around the edges after a while, showing the silver coloured nickel plating underneath. None of the charms have a copper plating underneath (as is common with a lot of costume jewellery) so they will never fade to a copper colour.

METAL PENDANTS

The metal pendants are also made of pewter, however the gold coloured ones are plated in a higher amount of 23K gold than the charms, hence why they are more expensive. The silver ones will wear the same as the charms, but the gold ones will keep the plating very well.

The monogram pendants are made of brass with a heavy 23K gold or sterling silver plating, they can be worn all the time and will keep the plating.

CHAINS

There are four metal options for the chains, here is a description of each and what to expect when you wear them:

Brass

Brass is a gold coloured metal alloy made of copper and zinc. As it is an alloy, the colour of brass can vary from a light yellow gold colour to a more reddish gold colour. When you first get the chain it will be bright and shiny but as you wear it it will start to tarnish. An easy way to polish it is to dip it in a solution of malt vinegar mixed with a little salt.

Gold Plated Brass

The gold plated brass chain is plated in 23K gold, and will be a bright yellow/orange gold colour. As you wear it it will become more of a yellow gold colour. To prolong the gold plating I recommend taking it off when you shower and at night.

Steel

The steel chains are made of stainless steel, which is a metal alloy used to make everything from cutlery to aeroplanes – so it’s pretty stong! The colour of the chain will vary from a dark silver to light silver colour. You can wear this chain all the time and it won’t fade or tarnish.

Sterling Silver

The most expensive of the chains, but made of solid sterling silver so you can wear it all the time. The best way to polish the chain is to dip it in a silver polish solution. To keep the cost down the chains are not hallmarked as they weigh less than 7.78g (by law items weighing more then this have to be hallmarked)

CHAIN LENGTHS

You will see various chain lengths mentioned in regards to necklaces, the length is measured in inches from one end of the chain to the other. You can gauge how long the chain will be on you by measuring one of your own necklaces and comparing.