This unique silver cuff bracelet is cast with cuttlebones. Cuttlebone molds create unique designs and can only be used once, and then the mold is discarded. Cuttlebones come from cuttlefish (a member of the mollusk and octopus family). These bones are found on beaches after a storm, which are cleaned, dried and shaped into a mold for casting. This organic mold produces intricate, clean, one of a kind designs in jewelry making. Years ago you would find strands of these fish bones hanging in goldsmith’s shops.
This silver cuff bracelet inner dimension measures 3 1/2″ and is available in our mens jewelry section at SilverStones. Check out this cool bracelet and other jewelry available for men.
Onyx is a variety of Agate. Onyx is either solid black or has black and white bands. Onyx that is reddish brown and white is known as Sardonyx. Black onyx is usually dyed to produce a uniform color. Onyx has a fine texture that makes it ideal for carving cameos. In ancient times Romans used onyx to carve their seals because wax would not stick to it.
This black onyx necklace has tiny black onyx beads woven into a rubber collar with a magnetic clasp. This necklace can be worn alone with the clasp in back or with the clasp in front with a ginkgo leaf pendant (shown above) or one of the many V-style silver pendants available at SilverStones.
The main source of onyx is British Columbia, Canada, Scotland, UK and in the US in Utah, South Dakota, Idaho and Rhode Island, although it is also found in other parts of the world.
Argentium silver (AS) is made with a touch of geranium, which severely inhibits tarnishing. Argentium is silver and is marked .930, which is never less than 93% silver, higher graded Argentium silver is never less than 97% silver.
There is not a lot of Argentium silver on the market today. This type of silver could be used by silversmiths to create handcrafted jewelry. We sometimes use this type of silver in our handcrafted necklaces. We carry a few on these Argentium silver chains on our site. I have this figure-8 chain shown here. I love it. It reminds me of white gold but without the price. This chain is great for several of our pendants available at SilverStones.
Argentium silver cannot be melted down with sterling silver. If you recycle your silver, keep this type of silver separated from your sterling silver, which is marked .925.
Love is what everyone wants. It can’t be bought but is freely given. There are different types of love including platonic love – the love of a family member or friend and romantic love – the type of love that is spell binding, the desire to be with one person and no one else. True love is eternal. The best description of love was written by the Apostle Paul in 1st Corinthians “Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud, it is not crude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always preserves.” (1 Cor. 13:4-7, NIV)
Show your affection for the one you love with this sterling silver ring. This heart ring is an excellent choice to ask your girl to go steady and makes an inexpensive wedding band. Surprise your lover with this heart ring and let them know they are yours forever.
Marquise Drop Cable Necklace
All eyes are on her as she walks into the room. Her sophisticated style, the allure of mystery, all men want to meet her and all the women wish they were her. The smell of flowers lingers in the air as she passes your table. She turns and looks at you with her dark seductive eyes, your heart skips a beat as she smiles and walks away.
Her shimmering silver necklace is what caught your eye; with every step she took, the light reflected off the silver drops next to her tanned skin. Recreate the moment with this sterling silver necklace and your woman will be the one they can’t take their eyes off of.
Check out these new .925 sterling silver chains we just added to our site. Shown on this page is the beveled curb chain from Germany. This 20″ sterling silver chain is a great chain for a man and is the largest chain we carry measuring 4.1mm in width. We also have another silver curb chain from Germany that measures 2.9mm in width that is available in 18″, 20″ and 24″. We added two chains from Italy. One is a box chain available in 18″ and 20″; the other one is a beveled curb chain available in 20″ and 24″. Not to mention many other sterling silver chains available in several different lengths that are made in the USA!
When ordering a pendant to go with a chain, be sure the opening of the pendant is at least 1mm larger than the width of your chain. Use the contact us form on our Web site if you have any question regarding these chains and pendants available.
Lapis Lazuli Necklace
Lapis lazuli is a dark blue stone that sometimes has flecks of pyrite that are gold in color. The color of this stone can range from a deep dark blue to a medium blue. The lapis lazuli jewelry shown left is a good example of the range in colors of lapis lazuli where the brick bead is more of a brilliant blue than the round beads. I have been to bead shows that have lapis lazuli and denim lapis in the same lot. The sellers at these shows often don’t know what denim lapis is. These sellers will also hide their best lapis lazuli stones behind the counter.
Denim lapis is a lighter stone that often has white specks in the stone. This stone is not as expensive as lapis lazuli but not cheap either. Denim lapis color can range from a light blue, also called cornflower blue to a darker blue but is never as dark as lapis lazuli stones. Visit our web site to see the difference in color of these gemstones. Both lapis lazuli and denim lapis stones have basically the same metaphysical properties.
What girl doesn’t love horses? Parents of teenagers are wise to get their daughters involved with horses to keep them preoccupied. Horses are a sure ticket to distract them from boys. If you want to make sure your daughter survives her teenage years, buy her a horse. However, horses are not cheap and cost a lot to maintain but well worth the money to keep her away from boys. 
Those of you who already know this are sitting there reading this and nodding your head. Horses require a lot of attention, two trips to the stable a day, riding lessons, grooming, and when she becomes a good rider, she’ll be going to competitions. She’ll be so tired she won’t have the energy to have anything to do with boys! So parents, get your daughter a surprise gift from our sterling silver horse jewelry collection, then go show her what’s waiting outside. Her very own horse and your lifesaver!
There are different types of natural turquoise stones. There is Sleeping Beauty turquoise that is solid sky blue in color. Chinese turquoise has more of a green tint and has a brown matrix but sometime this turquoise has blue stones in the strand. Then, there is green turquoise that comes from Taiwan. There is also American turquoise; most of this turquoise is recycled from older jewelry due to over mining. You will want to dig through my blogs to find another article I wrote showing the difference between natural turquoise and the stones dyed to look like turquoise.
The prices of these stone vary greatly. I am basing these prices on a 6mm round stone with a strand length of 16″, these are wholesale prices. The least expensive is green turquoise from Taiwan, a stand of this cost around $10. Chinese turquoise cost around $30 a strand. Sleeping Beauty turquoise (sit down, you might faint) cost around $200 a strand! Why does Sleeping Beauty turquoise cost so much? I suspect the price is due to over mining and it is hard to come by. Like everything else supply and demand increases the price, the harder it is to get the more it costs.
The turquoise jewelry shown here is what Sleeping Beauty turquoise looks like (even though it didn’t say that was what the stone is). It’s hard to tell natural turquoise stones from stones dyed to look like turquoise, so be an informed shopper and don’t get ripped off.
How do you clean sterling silver jewelry? There are several ways. You can use a polishing cloth, which does a good job for most silver pieces. If your silver jewelry is really tarnished and has a lot of crevices that’s hard to reach, try Revitalizing Silver Jewelry Cleaner by Connoisseurs. This product is very powerful so please read the instructions. You only dip your silver jewelry for a few seconds. You will still need to use a polishing cloth to bring back the shine and luster to your jewelry after using this product. We include a deluxe polishing cloth free with orders totaling $150 or more.
If you wear your sterling silver jewelry all the time it is less likely to tarnish. I wear my silver bracelet 24/7, in the shower too. It always looks great, however, once in awhile I will use a polishing cloth to make it look brand new.
DO NOT use the above cleaner mentioned with jewelry that has gemstones. Please refer to our instructions on how to clean silver and gemstone jewelry. When using a polishing cloth on jewelry with gemstones, be careful not to touch the stone with the polishing cloth. I put my fingernail next to the stone to keep it from coming in contact with the polishing cloth.
Other tips: Do not leave your silver jewelry lying around in damp places like a bathroom or next to a sink. Do not leave your gemstone jewelry where is will get direct sunlight over an extended period of time, it will damage the stone.