FAQ

Hand made jewelry is jewelry that is made by hand without the use of machines molds or casting. In a hand made piece of jewelry all materials must be shaped formed and assembled. Machine powered cutters, drills, and lathes can be used as long as they are operated manually, and guided by the artisan’s hands.

Hand made jewelry is the benchmark for craftsmanship in fine jewelry as it requires highly skilled labor to manually control tools materials and temperatures to accurately work platinum and gold.

Karat is a term used to indicate gold purity. Pure gold is 24 karat. The legal standard is to stamp gold jewelry with markings such as 10KT, 14KT and 18KT. The Karat stamp indicates the purity of the metal. The number preceding the KT marking indicates how many parts out of 24 are pure gold. The alloys mixed with gold are added to control durability, color and the cost of fine jewelry.

If you desire strong yellow color from your jewelry, 18 karat gold will give you the richest yellow appearance.  The disadvantage to 18kt is that it is not as durable or cost efficient as 14kt. Opinions vary about the most desirable karat from culture to culture. In America 14kt has become the most popular gold used in jewelry today due to its cost and durability. In western culture Jewelry made from 10kt has become synonymous with discount and lower end jewelry and is often brittle and difficult to repair.

Karat is the unit used to measure the purity of gold. Carat is used to measure the weight of diamonds and gemstones.