How to Care For Your S.V.DECKER Jewelry

Although our metals do not easily tarnish, it is only natural for everyday build up such as lotions, skin oils and water residue to form a thin layer of dirt on jewelry. 

We recommend simply wiping down your pieces with warm water and a cloth or a jewelry cleaning cloth. If there are pieces that need a more intense cleaning, then apply some soap or detergent to your warm water and cloth and gently rub your pieces until they are clean. 

If you feel more comfortable using a store bought jewelry cleaning solution, you can find our favorite pearl, silver and gold cleaning solution here as well as polishing cloths to keep your pieces looking brand new.

Commonly Used S.V.Decker Materials 

Gold Filled Metals: Gold filled metals refer to metal that has an actual layer of gold pressure bonded to a base metal. Legally, 1/20 of the total weight of the metal has to be pure gold in order to be considered "gold - filled". This is a wonderful way to experience gold, and the way that many of our cherished vintage pieces of jewelry were created. Due to the thick layer of actual gold, gold filled metals stand the test of time very well and do not tend to tarnish. 

Gold Vermeil: Gold vermeil is a thin layer of 22k or 24k gold plating over a base of sterling silver.  Vermeil pieces will have a very bright gold finish as they are plated in high karat golds. The actual layer of gold will generally not be as thick as the layers of gold in gold filled items. Yet, some customers do like the idea that vermeil items do have a sterling silver base.

Sterling Silver: Sterling silver is an alloyed metal of silver. It is composed of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% of other metals, most commonly, copper. Sterling silver must be at least 92.5% pure silver by law. Sterling silver is a fantastic metal to work with, the slight percentage of copper gives the metal a bit of hardness that is key to working with when making functional and wearable jewelry. 

Fine Silver: Fine silver is referred to as pure silver. It is 99.9% pure silver, with the remaining 0.01% being trace amount of impurities. Due to the high content of pure silver, fine silver is extremely soft and fusible. It is used in the majority of S.V.Decker fused and granulated pieces as well as our handmade chains.

Argentium Silver: Argentium silver is a modern alloy of silver. As opposed to the traditional sterling silver alloy of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metals (mainly copper), Argentium silver contains 93.5% pure silver. This somewhat new alloy has yet another difference from sterling silver in that the copper content within sterling alloys is replaced with geranium in Argentium alloys. The replacement of copper with geranium has many benefits, one being that it is extremely tarnish resistant. 

Gold (14k, 18k, 22k, 24k): Gold comes in different karats or purities. Karats are measured in units of 24. 14 karat gold refers to the fact that it is 14/24 karats gold, meaning that it is 58.3% pure gold and 41.7% alloyed metals. 18k gold is 75% pure gold and 25% alloyed metals, 22k is 91.6% pure gold and 8.4% alloyed metals, and 24k gold is 100% pure gold. Pieces with a higher content of pure gold will be softer metals to work with. They will also contain a richer "golden" hue due to the large concentration of pure gold.

White Gold: White gold is available in up to 21 karats and is a carefully alloyed mixture of metals including rhodium which helps to achieve a white look as well as increase the hardness of the overall metal.

Rose Gold: Rose gold is available in 14k and 18k and achieves it's red/pink coloring by the addition of copper alloyed with gold. The more copper added, the redder the metal will be.