Metals & Hallmarking
All DeJoria precious metal jewelry mountings are hallmarked in England. But what does this mean?_small.jpg)
WHITE GOLD & YELLOW GOLD
With its highly polished chrome finish, white gold is extremely popular for jewelry. Yellow gold is more traditional in appearance, and provides a lovely warm finish for engagement rings and other jewelry.
The purity of gold is determined by its karat. Note that karat and carat relate to two completely different things karat relates to the purity of precious metals whilst carat refers to the weight of a diamond.
The standard karat of gold in the US is 14kt and 18kt. Because all our jewelry mountings are handmade and hallmarked in England, we use 18kt white and 18kt yellow gold. This comprises 75% gold and 25% other alloys which provide the required strength for use in jewelry. All our gold jewelry mountings are hallmarked by the Assay Office in England.
PLATINUM
In recent years, platinum has experienced an enormous boom in popularity due to its durability and integrity, making it an ideal precious metal for diamond jewelry. All metal scratches. However, be assured that if your platinum scratches, it is not a fault of the manufacturing process, it is simply a property of the metal. The scratch on a platinum item is merely a displacement of metal with no loss of integrity. Platinum is 30 times rarer than gold which explains its higher price. Indeed, it is estimated that if all the platinum in the world were poured into a single Olympic sized swimming pool, it would scarcely be deep enough to cover your ankles and although made into jewelry, is considered an excellent investment, no matter what form.
We use 950 platinum which is 95% pure platinum with the remaining 5% comprised of ruthinium and tungsten, to provide additional strength for use in jewelry. All our platinum jewelry moutings are hallmarked by the Assay Office in England.
HALLMARKING
The hallmarking process is, uniquely, a legal requirement for precious metal jewelry sold in the United Kingdom.
Hallmarking in the UK dates back over 700 years to when Henry III commanded the Mayor of London to appoint six faithful and discreet goldsmiths who would be responsible for ensuring standards for gold and silver articles.
A hallmark is a small marking stamped on the item which shows the article has been independently tested and guarantees that it confirms to all legal standards of purity and is carried out by one of four UK Assay Offices in London, Birmingham, Sheffield or Edinburgh.
For US customers, your piece of jewelry will be hallmarked, as all our rings and jewelry mountings are handmade by our master craftsmen in the England, so you will enjoy not only European luxury, but also complete peace of mind in the purity and quality of your precious metal.
NICKEL-FREE
Being as all our mountings are handmade in England, they are, by law, classed as nickel-free.
Nickel is the most common cause of allergic contact dermatitis of the skin and can occasionally cause a minor allergic irritation for the majority of individuals, but some people experience a severe significant reaction. The main problem with nickel arises for nickel-sensitive patients who develop hand dermatitis. Nickel can easily permeate through the skin of their hands resulting in a perpetuation of the dermatitis. As nickel is such a universally found substance, it is almost impossible for sufferers to avoid contact with nickel on hands.
UK Nickel Regulations enforce the European Nickel Directive which was initiated by dermatologists.
For more information on the hallmarking process, please click here.
