Sterling Silver Jewelry Supplies

Most of the jewelry parts and raw metals we sell online at Halstead are sterling silver. It is a popular and affordable white metal that is easy to work with. Jewelry artists love the versatility of sterling. It can be formed, textured, cast and soldered. It takes beautiful surface patinas to achieve a darker "antiqued" appearance. With depletion gilding, sterling silver jewelry can also be enameled or fused with gold foil in techniques like keum-boo.

Around the world you can find many different types of silver used in jewelry making. In the United States, the standard is "sterling", which is an alloy of 92.5% pure silver plus copper and other trace metals. The term ".925 silver" comes from this formula. Jewelers rarely use 100% silver because it is soft and will not hold up to everyday wear. Read our article at the left for more information on different kinds of silver metal.

Cleaning Sterling Silver Jewelry

Quality sterling silver jewelry will last a lifetime and only requires surface cleaning to maintain. Since this metal is widely used in jewelry making, it can be sourced as findings, chain and mill product in many different forms and styles.

All sterling silver will eventually tarnish. Tarnish is a natural reaction of the copper in the alloy with common elements in the air and water that surround us every day. The metal is easy to clean with readily available silver cleaning supplies.

Why Use Sterling Silver

Sterling silver is used in a wide range of jewelry styles and sold at various price points. Favored by many middle market designers because it is a high quality, lustrous material that is also affordable for most people. However, even high-end designers sometimes favor the metal for its unique color and working properties.

Finished jewelry items created using sterling silver components should bear a .925 or sterling silver quality stamp. Individual findings and parts are not required to be stamped. This is due to surface area limitations and the fact that stamping individual findings would detract from their appearance once combined.

At Halstead, we offer thousands of sterling silver jewelry parts for sale online at wholesale prices. Shop now using our primary menu links at the top of the page or some of the most popular sections shown in the visual buttons above.

Pricing for Sterling Silver

Precious metal materials on the wholesale market are priced each day based on commodity market benchmarks. Most people understand the system best when you compare it to the price of gasoline at the pump. The exact price each day fluctuates based on supply and demand for the commodity. Gold and silver derivatives work the same way. Read more about how we establish market-based pricing each day.