When I was a little kid, my mom was a big fan of jewelry.
However, she was very careful about what she was buying. Later on I
realized that the only thing she wore was gold. This was not necessarily
because she loved it so much, but because she was allergic to metals.
One people out of seven have an allergy to metals and the majority is
allergic to nickel alloys. Even so, some persons are simply allergic to
almost all metals.
Jewelry
Thus, since I am designing handmade jewelry, I try to create objects that can be worn by everyone. For that to happen, I have searched some things related to the various metals that are being used in jewelry manufacturing. Here is what I found!
Allergies
Before getting into anything, you have to understand the causes of the allergic reactions with most metals. As it was mentioned above, the majority of allergies appear when nickel alloys are involved. Nickel alloys are placed straight on the skin so the natural oils and sweat oxidize the metal. Due to this oxidation, the nickel forms a thin layer of salts on the jewelry. These salts annoy the texture of the skin and they can cause allergic dermatitis, which is characteristic to the metal allergy. Now that we have established that, let us move on to the metals.
Gold
Normally, gold comes in carats, a unit of measurement for the amount of gold in the jewelry. There are many categories: the 24 carats is pure gold and the 10K is 42 percent gold and 58 percent alloy. When talking about the 14K or higher, the metal will not cause allergies. But if it is white gold, you should be careful because of the alloy, which gives gold that silvery shade.
Gold terms
There are two gold related terms used in the jewelry industry: Fill and Plate. The Gold Fill appears when a base metal gets filled in the interior of a carat gold tube. This means that a tube of carat gold can be completed with a base metal (copper). In some cases, nickel can be utilized to create gold fill metals, so remember this if you have metal allergies.
The gold-plated metals appear when a base metal is being electroplated with a very thin cover of gold. However, once again, the base element can be nickel. Some might believe that the coating prevents the reaction from happening, but the truth is that after a while, the coating gets worn out and leaves the metal exposed on the skin.
Silver
What do you know about silver? Real silver also has 3 categories: fine, sterling and plated. The fine silver contains 99.9 % pure silver. This means that the chances to generate allergic reactions are minimal. Because there are no metals in combination, silver is smooth and malleable. Fine silver is normally included in jewelry design, but sterling is more popular because it hardens pretty well and it can be used to create long-lasting designs.
Sterling silver
This is only ninety-two percent pure silver. In this case, the silver is combined with copper and can be recognized due to the "SS" mark or 925 sign. Lately, this type of alloy has been adjusted in order to reduce tarnish and fire-scale. Due to this tweaking, a few metals have been added into the mix.
Silver plated
This type of silver is similar to the gold-plated jewelry. This is a metal which has been electroplated with a thin layer of silver alloy. This is a cheaper alternative to jewelry grade metal because it maintains the look of silver without costing so much. I for one love to work with silver! It has a sleek, shinny look and it is pretty malleable. It feels great to work with it. Despite this, I've met a lot of customers who cannot wear silver jewelry. Thus, the biggest question is: what is the proper way to design sliver earrings and have those people with allergies wear them?
Surgical steel
I have found a good solution: I exchange sterling silver jewelry for surgical steel. Why you ask? Simple: because even if the surgical steel has nickel, it remains a great metal for the persons who have nickel allergies. In this case, some of the studies made by the American College of Dermatology show that the nickel is very tightly put inside the alloy, preventing the nickel salts to make contact with the skin. This type of steel is safer since it is also used in creating orthopedic screws that are implanted straight into the body.
Others
The elements mentioned above are not the only examples available. Some of them, such as platinum or titanium, are seen as hypoallergenic because they do not contain any nickel. Other metals, such as the German silver, do not have the same properties because they have a nickel basis. I have to say that not all the metal allergies are caused by nickel. This means that a metal can be seen as hypoallergenic but can still be the cause of a serious reaction. A friend of mine prefers only nickel and she can wear it every single day without any reaction, but cannot stand gold.
If you are one of the customers that have problems with the metal allergies, try to talk to a local designer. Many of them offer their services in order to create jewelry that can be worn even if you are allergic to metals. I always try to keep some new things close just to please every customer!
Jewelry
Thus, since I am designing handmade jewelry, I try to create objects that can be worn by everyone. For that to happen, I have searched some things related to the various metals that are being used in jewelry manufacturing. Here is what I found!
Allergies
Before getting into anything, you have to understand the causes of the allergic reactions with most metals. As it was mentioned above, the majority of allergies appear when nickel alloys are involved. Nickel alloys are placed straight on the skin so the natural oils and sweat oxidize the metal. Due to this oxidation, the nickel forms a thin layer of salts on the jewelry. These salts annoy the texture of the skin and they can cause allergic dermatitis, which is characteristic to the metal allergy. Now that we have established that, let us move on to the metals.
Gold
Normally, gold comes in carats, a unit of measurement for the amount of gold in the jewelry. There are many categories: the 24 carats is pure gold and the 10K is 42 percent gold and 58 percent alloy. When talking about the 14K or higher, the metal will not cause allergies. But if it is white gold, you should be careful because of the alloy, which gives gold that silvery shade.
Gold terms
There are two gold related terms used in the jewelry industry: Fill and Plate. The Gold Fill appears when a base metal gets filled in the interior of a carat gold tube. This means that a tube of carat gold can be completed with a base metal (copper). In some cases, nickel can be utilized to create gold fill metals, so remember this if you have metal allergies.
The gold-plated metals appear when a base metal is being electroplated with a very thin cover of gold. However, once again, the base element can be nickel. Some might believe that the coating prevents the reaction from happening, but the truth is that after a while, the coating gets worn out and leaves the metal exposed on the skin.
Silver
What do you know about silver? Real silver also has 3 categories: fine, sterling and plated. The fine silver contains 99.9 % pure silver. This means that the chances to generate allergic reactions are minimal. Because there are no metals in combination, silver is smooth and malleable. Fine silver is normally included in jewelry design, but sterling is more popular because it hardens pretty well and it can be used to create long-lasting designs.
Sterling silver
This is only ninety-two percent pure silver. In this case, the silver is combined with copper and can be recognized due to the "SS" mark or 925 sign. Lately, this type of alloy has been adjusted in order to reduce tarnish and fire-scale. Due to this tweaking, a few metals have been added into the mix.
Silver plated
This type of silver is similar to the gold-plated jewelry. This is a metal which has been electroplated with a thin layer of silver alloy. This is a cheaper alternative to jewelry grade metal because it maintains the look of silver without costing so much. I for one love to work with silver! It has a sleek, shinny look and it is pretty malleable. It feels great to work with it. Despite this, I've met a lot of customers who cannot wear silver jewelry. Thus, the biggest question is: what is the proper way to design sliver earrings and have those people with allergies wear them?
Surgical steel
I have found a good solution: I exchange sterling silver jewelry for surgical steel. Why you ask? Simple: because even if the surgical steel has nickel, it remains a great metal for the persons who have nickel allergies. In this case, some of the studies made by the American College of Dermatology show that the nickel is very tightly put inside the alloy, preventing the nickel salts to make contact with the skin. This type of steel is safer since it is also used in creating orthopedic screws that are implanted straight into the body.
Others
The elements mentioned above are not the only examples available. Some of them, such as platinum or titanium, are seen as hypoallergenic because they do not contain any nickel. Other metals, such as the German silver, do not have the same properties because they have a nickel basis. I have to say that not all the metal allergies are caused by nickel. This means that a metal can be seen as hypoallergenic but can still be the cause of a serious reaction. A friend of mine prefers only nickel and she can wear it every single day without any reaction, but cannot stand gold.
If you are one of the customers that have problems with the metal allergies, try to talk to a local designer. Many of them offer their services in order to create jewelry that can be worn even if you are allergic to metals. I always try to keep some new things close just to please every customer!
Are you a big jewelry fan? Come visit our Fashion Jewelry Store and choose from a wide range of Silver Jewelry designs!
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Karina_Popa
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