Featured Jewellery - Precious Metal Jewelry

Metal Jewelry

Say you don’t want to bother with gemstones at all—or maybe you do, but you
care just as much about what they’re set in as the stones themselves. You’re smart:
The metal used in jewelry can make or break the piece—literally! You want to
make sure the metal is properly represented, or you could end up with a piece
that scratches, tarnishes, peels, or breaks with minimal wear and tear.
Assessing Quality
Consumer laws closely regulate gold, platinum, and silver, the main “precious”
metals in terms of what dealers are allowed to sell. These regulations ensure
that sellers properly represent the purity and content of the metals. Gold,
platinum, and silver used in jewelry are actually alloyed with other metals
for color and hardness, so the metals are easier to manipulate when designing
jewelry. With gold, the metal’s purity is measured in karats (not to be confused
with carats, for gemstones). For platinum and silver, laws regulate the
metals according to the percentage that is pure platinum or silver.
Manufacturers who sell precious metal jewelry are required by law to sell the
jewelry with a stamp, which is really an engraving in the metal, usually
located on the underside of the piece. The stamp must include a hallmark—
usually a symbol along with the manufacturer’s name—and a measurement
of the metal’s purity. Here’s what to look for with each metal:
■ Gold. The purest gold is 24 karats. In North America, gold is sold in
several different increments, including 10 karats, 14 karats, 18 karats,
22 karats, and 24 karats. The higher the karatage, the softer the gold,
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Figure 4.9
The lots of rough or uncut
gemstones you’ll see on
eBay, similar to these uncut
diamonds, sound romantic in
theory, but they’re really not
so attractive in reality. If
you’re looking for a true
beautiful gemstone, stick
to the cut and polished ones.
because it isn’t mixed with as many other metals. Therefore, it’s
harder to carve fine detail into higher-karat gold, but you get a richer
yellow color. The karatage will be stamped as 10K, 14K, 18K, 22K,
and 24K (though you rarely see 24-karat gold used in jewelry).
■ Platinum. This hard, shiny white metal is available in North American
markets at three quality levels: 95 percent, 90 percent, and 85 percent
platinum. The marks will read 950 or PT950, 900 or PT900, and
850 or PT850. It’s illegal to sell platinum marked any lower than 85
percent in the United States.
■ Silver. The surest way to prevent that nasty green skin tone around
your ring is to buy 95.8 percent or 92.5 percent silver jewelry (marked
with .958 or .925). The 92.5 percent variety, known as sterling silver,
is the most common.
Be sure that before you bid, the seller provides a picture of the jewelry’s
stamp. Many sellers will include such a photo with their description, but if
a seller doesn’t, contact him to see if he can e-mail a digital photo to you.
Hold on to the photo and, if you win the auction, make sure it matches up
with stamp on the jewelry you receive.
Red Flags
Buying precious metal jewelry ensures you’ll have a piece that remains beautiful
for years—an heirloom you can pass on to your children. But you must
beware that you’re getting what you think you are, or you could end up with
jewelry that is overpriced and tarnishes or peels easily.
■ Underkarating. There have been widespread problems with sellers—
not just on eBay, but in many different channels—selling metal jewelry
with stamps that misrepresent the actual karatage or purity of the
metal, so be careful when purchasing gold and platinum jewelry that
is priced extremely low for its karatage. Also, be sure the piece has a
hallmark, or a mark with the manufacturer’s name or logo, along
with the purity mark. Misrepresented pieces often don’t contain a
manufacturer’s hallmark, a sure sign of deception.
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■ Plating. Plating has long been a way for people who want pretty
jewelry to buy it, even if they can’t afford the real thing. Here, gold is
“plated” over a less expensive metal, providing the gold look without
the price. However, plated gold will eventually wear away, so be sure
you understand that if you are serious about buying a piece that lasts.
Also note that plated pieces should not bear stamps.