Introduction To Sterling Silver

Sterling silver is versatile, sophisticated and timeless, and this incredibly beautiful allow has made its place in the list of most loved precious metals. However, most people are not sure of what makes this metal so special. Do you know of what exactly is sterling silver, and how it compares to pure silver and other popular metals? How does it suit the individual needs of jewelers, designers and consumers?

Here is a guide to sterling silver jewelry to answer all of your questions about this versatile and lovely metal. Read on this blog to learn more about sterling silver along with other benefits of adding a piece to your jewelry collection.

What is sterling silver?

Sterling silver is an alloy that is made from pure silver and other such trace metals, but in order to fully understand why sterling silver was developed and used to make sterling stud earrings, we must begin with pure silver.

Silver: A Soft Dilemma

Buried in the earth’s crust, silver has been recognized as a precious and valuable metal all around the world. We all have mined, worn as sterling silver stud earrings and marveled at it since it was first discovered. Used initially for only currency and intricate jewelry, silver has historically been a signifier of wealth and status- with expressions like “born with a silver spoon in one’s mouth” or “served on a silver platter” illustrating the metal’s wealthy connotations.

Earlier, metalsmiths had a few problems with silver. Pure silver happens to be an incredibly soft metal, and although it is beautiful, it is not very practical for items that see any kind of use, such as home goods or often-worn jewelry. In order to be functional, silver’s malleability needed to be made stronger with another metal which is stronger.

Sterling Silver: A Beautiful Solution

An alloy is defined as a mixture of two or more different types of metals. The metals are all heated to a liquid state and then poured together, forming a new material with properties from each metal.

Today, sterling silver is one of the most commonly used metals in high-end and high-quality jewelry and accessories. But not every silver alloy can be labeled as sterling- true sterling needs to have a set amount of silver content.