Jewelry care
The brightness, resistance to bacterial accumulation, and rarity of silver make it ideal as a metal for jewelry making!
"White and shiny"
Silver is one of the first metals processed and used by humans. When polished, it shines to an exceptional degree, even more than platinum. That is why the chemical symbol for silver is "Ag", derived from the Latin word "argentum" meaning "white and shiny". The Latin word comes from the Greek "άργυρος" originating from the adjective "αργός" which in ancient Greece also meant "bright". The word "silver" comes from the expression "άσημος άργυρος", meaning silver without marking. Silver belongs to the category of noble metals along with ruthenium, rhodium, iridium, palladium, osmium, and gold.
As a precious metal, it is used for making jewelry as well as for savings and transactions. For stock market transactions, it is measured by the ounce and traded, like other precious metals, on international financial markets. Silver is also used to make commemorative medals and trophies, and until the 1970s, silver coins were produced. Because it is the best conductor of heat and electricity among all metals, it is also used in many technological fields as a material for industrial-scientific applications.
Silver as jewelry
Silver in jewelry can have various finishes depending on the techniques applied during manufacturing, such as polished, matte, oxidized, sandblasted, satin, or even antique.
Pure silver is almost as soft as gold, making it impossible to create durable objects from it. Therefore, silversmiths mix it with other harder metals to make jewelry. In items characterized as "silver jewelry," this mixture is made with a ratio of 92.5% (up to 95%) silver, which is why genuine silver jewelry bears the 925 hallmark. One may encounter jewelry with a lower silver content, but these are not classified as "silver" and, of course, you will not find such items at emmanuela.gr.
However, to enjoy our silver jewelry and always impress when we wear them, we must take care of and maintain them.
In our workshop, we apply techniques for making silver jewelry that make them more durable, so you can enjoy and wear them for long periods without needing to clean or repair them frequently.
When the designs and manufacturing conditions allow, we rhodium-plate the silver parts so that they do not "tarnish" and are more resistant to knocks and distortions. Rhodium, which belongs to the platinum family, is an extremely expensive precious metal, harder than silver, but equally shiny and does not "tarnish." For the dark parts of the jewelry, we apply black rhodium plating. Finally, many of our silver jewelry pieces are gold-plated with 24K gold, which naturally does not tarnish.
"Tarnishing" on silver jewelry
Silver jewelry is not significantly affected by external factors except that it "tarnishes" periodically - when not rhodium-plated or gold-plated - forming stains, which at an early stage can be easily removed with a soft cloth and a little rubbing. If our silver jewelry has "tarnished" a lot, we use a liquid cleaner for silver items, one of those widely available on the market. The "tarnishing" is due to surface oxidation caused by the contact of silver with sulfur present in the air of the atmosphere.
We must be very careful when using liquids for polishing, as it is possible that other elements of our jewelry, such as semi-precious stones, corals, and pearls, may discolor.
We carefully clean only the silver surfaces with a soft cotton cloth, which we have first moistened with the cleaning liquid. We rub with horizontal or vertical movements and not circular ones.
Toothpaste? Probably not...
The well-known advice that to polish silver well we use toothpaste is not so wise, since toothpastes contain corrosive agents that ultimately cause faster "blackening." That is why we do not recommend this polishing practice.
The "rules" of silver...
Like all jewelry, to keep silver always shiny and beautiful like new, we must follow some rules:
- We never wear them when we are sweaty, swimming, exercising, or doing intense manual work, as pool chlorine, moisture, and sweat salts are enemies of silver, while silver can easily be scratched by small impacts and altered by pressure.
- We make sure to apply first the cosmetic products we use (makeup, perfume, hairspray, creams, etc.) and then wear our silver jewelry. Silver should not come into contact with the chemicals and acids contained in these products.
- It is good to clean our silver jewelry with a soft cotton cloth after each use. Even better to wash them with lukewarm water and a little soap. After drying them well with careful wiping, we store them separately from our other jewelry. This way we remove the corrosive agents that adhere to them.
- We store them in airtight plastic bags, preferably those that "seal" and isolate the contents, preventing contact with air.
- We place them separately from other jewelry or hard objects that might scratch the silver surface.
- We store them in a place where light does not "see" them.
Finally, special strips or fabrics with anti-corrosive action for silver are available on the market. We can place them in the areas where we store our jewelry to protect them from corrosion, long-term and more effectively.
Do you have any other questions?
At emmanuela.gr we will be happy to provide you with even more information regarding the precious and semi-precious materials we use in our jewelry, as well as our techniques. Please do not hesitate to submit questions and inquiries to info@emmanuela.gr or by phone at (+30) 239 1021132.