How Do I Know If My Jewelry Is Sterling Silver
Being the most affordable precious metal known for its timelessness and exquisite collections makes sterling silver, is highly valuable in the market,its smart to get to know whether your silver jewelry is real or not and to figure out its authenticity.
Sterling silver is extremely valuable and comes in two compositions: 99.9% and 92.5%. The 99.9% is pure silver, with the remaining 0.1% usually being copper or nickel, which is such a soft metal that it cannot be used to produce jewelry or household items.
Due to pure silver’s fragility and inability to maintain shape, jewelers must combine it with other metals like copper or other metals to create jewelry that is 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals (ie; copper or nickel). Hence the name 925 sterling silver.
Like any other precious metal ,silver has some distinctive qualities for us to identify whether the jewelry is real or fake. Here are the below fun DIY tests to see if you have real silver or not.
Authentic Stamping or Markings:
Genuine merchants almost always have stamps on their jewelry or household goods. Usually, you should check for the inside side of the rings, the clasps or hooks of the jewelry, or even the charm of the bracelet, etc. Based on the percentage of silver, the markings are in 3 digits, such as 925, 800, or 999.
The sound test:
Tap on the silver ring with a coin or another metal to hear a high-pitched bell-like sound. Carefully tap the silver item on the coin; if it doesn’t make a sound, it probably isn’t silver.
The Magnet test:
A magnet should be used, and it should be placed on top or to the side so that the silver will be drawn to it. Silver is not magnetic. If the jewelry reacts with the magnet, it might be silver-plated. This test can tell you if the jewelry is old and has no markings.
The Sniff test:
Silver is odourless, you can try sniffing it to see if it gives you any smell of other metals such as iron, which has a distinct smell even though copper is present in sterling silver and does not give off any smell because the silver composition in the silver jewelry is 92.5% silver.
The Scrub test:
The oxidation of tarnished silver is black .You can try scrubbing it with a towel, and if the tarnish black residue comes off on the cloth, it is most likely silver. Also, you can check the smell by performing the sniff test following the scrub test.
The professional help:
Get expert assistance to verify the jewelry’s authenticity. Their lab testing will be thorough because to their extensive knowledge. A professional jeweler can be contacted, or you could look for authentic, experienced, or certified expert testers.
At HazelGal, We have stunning sterling silver jewelry for every occasion. So, whether you want something simple or something spectacular, we have the right piece of jewelry for you!