Metals
All Tamara Steinborn jewellery is made with cast bronze pendants on 14k gold fill chain or ear hooks, or cast sterling silver pendants on sterling chain or ear hooks.
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FAQ
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Hear are the most common questions I've been asked over the years, and their answers.
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Q. Will bronze, 14k gold fill or sterling silver tarnish, rust, wear off, turn my skin green or cause an allergic reaction?
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A. BRONZE:
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Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin, with smaller amounts of aluminum or zinc. As an affordable alternative to gold, bronze has been used to make jewellery for thousands of years. You'll often find it used for outdoor statues, so rest assured it is highly resistant to oxidation. I use yellow bronze to give that warm, gold tone. It is a solid metal, so there is nothing to wear off.
Necklaces, bracelets and earrings are worn losely and will require only a polishing from time to time to bring back the bright gold shine.
For those who wonder about rings turning their finger green... Under average heat and humidity conditions, a ring that can move freely won't likely cause any discolouration. When a ring is tight and temperatures/humidity are high, skin oils can combine with copper to create copper carbonate, which is what can leave that greenish hue on the skin. The easiest solution to this is to coat the inside of the ring band with clear nail polish.
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14K GOLD FILL
Because the back of the neck is another place susceptible to heat and humidity (and hair spray!), I use 14k Gold Fill chains. "Gold Fill" is created using intense pressure and heat to bond multiple layers of 14k gold to a core of jeweller's brass. It is not actually filled with gold, so confusing, but a
thick outer layer that is 1/20th, or 5%, pure gold by weight. The end result is enough gold to prevent most sensitivities and to not wear off from normal wear and polishing. 14k gold is also tarnish resistant, so requires infrequent polishing.
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STERLING SILVER
Sterling silver is an alloy of pure silver (92.5% by weight) and other metals used as hardeners, usually copper (7.5% by weight). This is what the standard marking .925 indicates: a minimum of .925 silver and maximum .075 other metals. As we all know, sterling silver does tarnish and requires semi-regular polishing to maintain its shine. It is a solid metal, so does not wear and does not rust. Most people can wear sterling without a problem, but for some the 7.5% of hardening metals can cause sensitivities, especially in the ears.