 WEDDING RESOURCES
|
THE WEDDING RINGSThe purpose of engagement rings and wedding bands is to convey deep emotions of eternal love, eternal happiness, eternal commitment, and eternal togetherness. In fact, these rings signify eternity - between the giver and the recipient. A ring, of course, is a complete circle with no break and no end or beginning, which means that it just goes on and on - it is eternal.
And, since folklore has it that the fourth finger of the left hand has a vein leading directly to the heart, it is only natural that both engagement and wedding rings would be worn on this particular finger, which was once reputed to be a direct route to the heart.
The giving of a ring in honor of a union, betrothal, and marriage has been going on since ancient times.
| 
|
|
|
|
 | Adorn Brides Jewelry RentalHere is a chance for brides to wear beautiful diamond jewelry without having to layout a large amount of money to purchase it. Beautiful and well worth a look! Use our code PV8SETOH for a 10% discount courtesy of My Wedding Atlanta! Visit Adorn Brides Jewelry Rental.
|
CHARM BRACELETS FOR THE BRIDE
 Something that is beyond the ordinary bridal gift is the classic charm bracelet. What girl doesn't love charm bracelets. Giving the bride a bride charm bracelet is personal, different, affordable, and will be remembered for many years to come.
With the various types of charm bracelets on the market today, finding one that suits the bride shouldn’t be a difficult task. In fact perhaps a bride charm bracelet could be the “something new” part of the wedding day traditions. Choosing a bracelet that fits with the bride’s jewelry selection, gold or silver, and adding a charm such as a wedding ring, a church or an engraved charm would definitely be a great idea. The bride could wear her bracelet on her wedding day and from that day on add to her bracelet as special events take place.
A Charm bracelet for the bride is indeed a great idea. They are not only special, but can also be for the bridesmaids. Although the charm bracelets given to the bride and bridesmaid must not be of the exact design, they can be matched and individualized at the same time. Charm bracelets are always great gifts for special events.
When shopping for charm bracelets online, you can literally come across thousands of different patterns and beautiful designs. Anything that is offered on the market can also be bought from the internet. You can access online stores on this page and find many beautiful charm bracelets and charms.
| NOTE: The "Heart Charm" bracelet shown above can be located at... | at Finejewelers.com. 70% off retail and FREE SHIPPING! |
KNOW YOUR PRECIOUS METALS
Silver
Though silver is indeed a precious metal, you won't find it in most fine jewelry stores. Silver is too common (and thus inexpensive) and is also very soft. The softness makes it lose shape more easily than some other metals. If you want a silver look to your fine jewelry, check out white gold or platinum.
Gold
Gold is still the most popular of all precious metals and you will find it abundantly in any jewelry store. Gold typically comes in 10, 14, and 18 karat varieties. These numbers indicate the amount of pure gold contained in the jewelry. You will not find 24 karat gold jewelry because gold, like silver, is a soft metal. If you had a completely pure gold item it would not keep its shape well. 14 karat gold is what you find most commonly on fine jewelry. If you are purchasing something like a man's wedding band that you think will take a lot of abuse, you might want to consider 10 karat gold since it is harder and will withstand plenty of mistreatment.
Definition: The karat system is used to reveal the amount of pure gold found in an item.
- 24 karat (24K) gold is pure gold.
- 18 karat (18K) gold contains 18 parts gold and 6 parts another metal or metals, making it 75% gold.
- 14 karat (14K) gold contains 14 parts gold and 10 parts another metal or metals, making it 58.3% gold.
- 10 karat (10K) gold contains 10 parts gold and 14 parts another metal or metals, making it 41.7% gold. 10k gold is the minimum karat designation that can still be called gold in the US.
Common Misspellings: The term carat, spelled with a "c," refers to the weight of a gemstone.
White Gold
White gold is simply yellow gold coated with a silver colored metal, typically nickel. White gold is still a precious metal since it's actually yellow gold, but it does not occur naturally in nature. The issue a buyer will face when purchasing fine jewelry in white gold is that the nickel coating will rub off after years of use. Thus white gold jewelry needs to be re-colored every couple years. If you like the look of white gold, but don't want the hassle of having it re-colored, consider platinum, though platinum will cost much more. Another option for white gold jewelry is to purchase an extended warranty with your piece that covers the cost of re-coloring for life.
Rose Gold
Like white gold, rose gold is not found in nature. It is instead a mixture of yellow gold and copper, giving it a red or pink color. Some jewelry stores carry rose gold as an accent color on pieces of jewelry, however rose gold has not enjoyed wide acceptance in the fine jewelry world.
Platinum
The most precious of all metals available in most fine jewelry stores, platinum is a brilliant silver color. Platinum is very hard and can withstand incredible amounts of abuse. If you are purchasing a diamond ring and you're worried about losing the stone, get the diamond set in platinum. The strength of the metal will keep your diamond secure. Platinum does lose its luster after a lot of use but any jewelry store can buff your ring with a special buffing machine to bring it back to it's original shine. Because platinum is pricey, it is typically reserved for more expensive, smaller pieces such as diamond engagement rings and wedding bands.
More On Platinum
Platinum is a rare precious metal that's used to create fine jewelry. Its heavy weight and durability make platinum a metal that will not wear away with constant use. Platinum holds fine gemstones firmly in place for the life of the jewelry when used as prongs and other setting components.
Platinum's natural white luster provides a rich backdrop for diamonds, but it's a metal that's just as elegant when used all by itself to create a piece of jewelry, either a simple polished item or a design with engraved motifs. Platinum looks stunning when combined with contrasting touches of 18K yellow gold.
The Platinum Group of MetalsZ
Six related metals belong to the Platinum Group of Metals, or PGM:
- Platinum
- Iridium
- Palladium
- Ruthenium
- Rhodium
- Osmium
Platinum Marks
Jewelry can contain different percentages of pure platinum. The US Federal Trade Commission, FTC, publishes guidelines for acceptable marking standards for platinum jewelry sold in the US.
Platinum content is usually expressed as the amount of pure platinum the jewelry contains in parts per thousand. Think about it like this... you mix up a huge bucket of fruit tea that contains 1,000 ounces--900 hundred of the ounces are plain tea and 100 are fruit juice. That makes the tea 900 parts per thousand of your mix. Another way to express that is to say that tea makes up ninety percent of the mix--900 divided by 1000.
- Jewelry that contains at least 950 parts per thousand of pure platinum may be marked or described as "Platinum"
- Jewelry that contains 850, 900 or 950 parts per thousand of pure platinum may be marked "Plat" or "Pt" if a number is used in front of the term to disclose the amount of pure platinum in the mix, such as
(1) "850 Plat" or "850 Pt", or
(2) "950 Plat" or "950 Pt"
- Jewelry that contains at least 950 parts per thousand of platinum group metals, with at least 500 parts per thousand of the total pure platinum, may be marked as platinum as long as the numbers of each metal are disclosed. For instance,
(1) "600 Pt. 350 Ir." or 600 Plat. 350 Irid." for 600 parts pure platinum and 350 parts iridium
(2) "550Pt. 350Pd. 50Ir." or "550Plat. 350Pall. 50Irid." for 550 parts pure platinum, 350 parts palladium and 50 parts iridum
The FTC is currently considering a request to allow manufacturers to mark jewelry as platinum even if it contains metals that are not part of the platinum group.
|
|
|
|
