Caring for Your Sterling Silver Inlay Jewelry

Turquoise wedding ring set shown with white sapphire and turquoise engagement ring in Continuum sterling silver.

Unlike gold or platinum jewelry, your sterling silver jewelry needs some special care to stay as beautiful as the day you brought it home.  However, keeping your sterling silver jewelry looking good does not have to be a chore.  Silver jewelry can tarnish under the right conditions.  Your sterling silver jewelry is 92.5% pure silver with copper or other metals added to make the silver more durable.  The copper in the sterling silver alloy reacts with moisture and sulfur in the air to oxidize or tarnish the surface of the jewelry. Your silver jewelry will tarnish faster in areas of high humidity and air pollution.  Other agents such as hairspray, lotion, perfume, deodorant and other chemicals can accelerate the tarnishing process as well.  Some people’s body chemistry can also contribute to rapid tarnishing.

One of the easiest solutions to prevent your silver jewelry from tarnishing is to wipe your rings or other jewelry with a jewelry polishing cloth.  The best polishing cloths have two layers  or sheets.  One sheet is treated with chemicals that clean and whiten the silver.  The second layer is a soft cloth that is great for rubbing and buffing the piece of jewelry to maintain its luster.  If you use your polishing cloth on a regular basis you should be able to prevent tarnish from ever forming on your jewelry.  As an added precaution, some people find that storing their silver jewelry in an airtight plastic bag keeps tarnish at bay.  This may be a great solution for customers who do not wear a particular piece of jewelry very often and storing it in a plastic bag may not only prevent it from tarnishing but also protect it from being scratched by other jewelry in your collection.

If you discover that your inlaid sterling silver jewelry has stubborn tarnish build up that just won’t wipe away, there are several things you should not attempt.  Do not dip your sterling silver jewelry in a tarnish removing liquid or rub a tarnish removing cream on your jewelry if it has inlay, enamel  or other sensitive gemstones on it.  The tarnish remover could damage the stones or the epoxy used to secure the inlay in place.  The same is true for an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner.  While ultrasonic cleaners are great to remove “gunk” buildup around your gemstones, the powerful high-frequency sound waves can damage the epoxy holding the inlay in place, damage enameling and harm some gems.  No inlay jewelry should ever be placed in an ultrasonic cleaner and you should always consult a jeweler to see which gemstones are safe for ultrasonic cleaning.  The best way to remove stubborn tarnish is to take you silver jewelry to a jeweler and they will use a polishing compound with a buffing wheel will to make short work of the tarnish.

These measures will help your silver inlay jewelry stay looking great and tarnish free but the most important step is preventing damage to the inlay while wearing your jewelry.  Earrings and pendants are rarely damaged from everyday wear but rings can easily be nicked, scratched or dented from the objects your hands come into contact with on a daily basis. Silver is the softest of all the precious metals so some care must be taken to prolong the life of your favorite silver ring.  Some activities will be detrimental to both the inlay and the metal in your sterling silver ring.  Remove your ring before gardening, yard work, swimming, rock climbing, weight lifting or any activity that could jeopardize your ring or  possibly injure your finger if your ring gets caught or crushed.  A little common sense will go a long way toward keeping your silver inlay ring damage free.  The above suggestions will keep your jewelry looking good longer as well as extend the life of your jewelry.  Eventually, your inlaid stones and the silver will lose their luster and it will be time to send the ring or jewelry back to the maker to be refinished.

Shop our top quality silver inlay jewelry at shop.HilemanSilverJewelry.com and read about our tarnish resistant Continuum silver option.

 

HilemanSilverJewelry.com

TheHilemanCollection.com

 

 

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New Turquoise Wedding Ring Set Options

Turquoise and moissanite engagement ring and wedding ring set.

We have recently added several new choices for turquoise wedding ring sets.  The first wedding ring set is a matching engagement and wedding ring set inlaid with blue turquoise with a moissanite center stone.  The channel set round moissanite is .68 carats and is a bright white color with fire that rivals that of a diamond at a much more affordable price.  This turquoise ring set is inlaid in sterling silver but can also be made in 14k white or yellow gold.  A new sterling silver alloy (Continuum) is also available for a small upgrade charge.  We highly recommend upgrading to Continuum sterling silver for the added durability and tarnish resistance over standard sterling silver.  We have several men’s rings that can be inlaid in turquoise to make a matching his and hers wedding ring set .  Check out this new turquoise wedding and engagement ring set at HilemanSilverJewelry.com or on our Etsy shop!

 

 

Matching turquoise wedding ring set with white sapphire accents set in sterling silver by Hileman Silver Jewelry.

The second turquoise wedding ring set features plain blue turquoise accented by white sapphires.  The turquoise is the perfect turquoise blue inlaid on each side of the triangle shaped inset in the center.  Inside the inset are 3 pave` set white sapphires totaling .09 carats in her ring and .12 carats in his wedding band.  The white sapphires add just the right amount of bling to the ring and set below the level of the inlay giving the ring a low profile that makes it ideal for everyday wear.  For a little more sparkle in your wedding ring, the white sapphires can be upgraded to moissanite for a small additional charge.  Moissanite is a lab created gemstone that has more scintillation than a diamond at a much more affordable price.  This turquoise wedding ring set also looks great in 14 karat white gold.  Contact us with your ring sizes for a quote in the upgraded metal.  This great new turquoise ring set is available in our Etsy shop.  Stop by and check it out!

 

HilemanSilverJewelry.com

info@HilemanSilverJewelry.com

Designing Your Unique Turquoise Engagement Ring

Steps To Customizing Your Turquoise Engagement Ring

White sapphire and turquoise engagement ring by Hileman Silver Jewelry.

Hileman Silver Jewelry has many engagement ring designs that feature turquoise inlay accented by gemstones such as topaz and moissanite.  By choosing the turquoise, the center gemstone, and the metal used for the mounting, you can customize your turquoise engagement ring to your tastes.  Our engagement ring designs are all made to order in your specific ring size so you will need to allow 4 to 6 weeks for us to make your new  ring.

Pick Your Ring Style

We offer quite a few turquoise engagement ring styles to choose from.  When browsing our website keep in mind that any of the rings you may see inlaid with other stones such as dinosaur bone or lab opal, can be inlaid with the turquoise of your choice.  The same is true with the center gemstone.  Just look for a ring shape and style that you like and think of it as a blank canvas to add the colors of your choice.  Most of our engagement rings are labeled with a ring style number that will help you describe which ring you like and make sure we are on the same page.

Pick Your Turquoise

You may also customize your turquoise engagement ring by selecting the turquoise you would like for us to inlay in your new ring.  Our turquoise comes from various mines in the Southwest in colors ranging from greens to blues.  Some turquoise has dark veining or matrix running throughout the stone that creates a spiderweb pattern.  The turquoise pictured below is a beautiful blue color and has a faint birdseye pattern.  Because

Birdseye turquoise rough from Kingman Arizona.

turquoise is a natural stone, the colors and the spiderweb pattern will vary from stone to stone and even from cut to cut within the stone.  This is important to understand when requesting a specific turquoise  color or spiderweb pattern.  We will always do our best meet your color and spiderweb pattern requests but nature may not always fully cooperate.  Find one of our turquoise ring designs that has the turquoise you would like and we will let you know if it is available and will get to work on a price quote for your ring.

Pick Your Center Gemstone

Most of our engagement ring designs have center gemstones in a variety of shapes and sizes.  In many cases the ring design is set up for a specific size and shape that cannot be changed without major wax customization or in some cases a whole new master carving.  However, you can almost always change to a different color of gemstone or colorless option such as a diamond, moissanite or white sapphire in the same size and shape.  The most popular choice that looks great with turquoise is blue topaz.  The topaz we use is available in several shades of blue with the lightest being sky blue, medium being Swiss blue, and the darkest being London blue.  Many of our customers choose to be more traditional for their engagement ring and go with a white or colorless stone.  We have options for white gemstones such as white topaz, white sapphire, moissanite and diamonds.  We highly recommend moissanite because of its incredible scintillation, affordability and durability.  Moissanite is almost as hard as a diamond and actually has a higher refractive index, which means more sparkle.  It is a lab created stone so any concerns about mining or being conflict free are resolved.  At a fraction of the cost of diamond, it is a great alternative that is budget friendly without compromising on beauty or durability.

Pick Your Metal

We offer metal options for just about any engagement ring budget.  The most affordable metal option would be sterling silver.  Sterling silver is the softest of the precious metals and can also tarnish.  Sterling silver will hold up to daily wear if you are careful and remove your ring before any rough activities.  We offer a new sterling silver called Continuum silver.  It’s a relatively new silver alloy that is more durable than standard sterling silver and is also tarnish resistant.  Continuum silver is approximately 30% harder than sterling silver and will provide a more secure setting for your center gemstone.  We highly recommend upgrading to Continuum silver for all daily wear rings such as wedding and engagement rings.  Other metal options include white or yellow gold, platinum and stainless steel.  Stainless steel is also an affordable option and is very durable.  Because 316L stainless steel is so hard, it is not available as an option for all of our ring designs.  Some gemstones are not hard enough to be set in stainless steel without breaking them.  Contact us with your ring style and stone choice and we will let you know if stainless steel is a possibility.  White gold is our most popular choice.  It’s durable and provides a secure setting for your gemstones.  White gold and yellow gold are considerably more expensive than sterling silver so we will need your ring size to estimate the gold weight and give you an accurate price quote.  Platinum is the heaviest of the precious metals and combined with the fact that most platinum alloys are 95% pure platinum, makes it by far the most expensive metal option for your turquoise engagement ring.  Platinum provides a very secure setting and will hold up to daily wear and tear very well.

Let’s Get Started

Contact us with your choice of ring style, the metal you would like (and your ring size), the gemstone you prefer and your favorite turquoise type and we will get to work on a price quote for your new turquoise engagement ring.  In some cases we may be able to send you a photoshop mock up of what your new ring will look like with your stone choices.  Once we have all the design details worked out, we collect payment and begin work on your ring.  The production process will take 4 to 6 weeks with 3 -5 days for shipment so please plan ahead.  Contact Mark or John to get started on your new turquoise engagement ring today!  (623) 518-6588

HilemanSilverJewelry.com

info@HilemanSilverJewelry.com

 

 

Our Favorite Turquoise Wedding Ring Set

Turquoise and spiderweb turquoise rings are one of our most popular choices for wedding rings and wedding ring sets.  Our turquoise wedding ring sets are available in a variety of colors with and without the spiderweb pattern.  Our most popular spiderweb turquoise wedding ring sets are inlaid with spiderweb turquoise from Kingman, Arizona.  This turquoise has a very tight spiderweb pattern and the color of the blue ranges from light blue to a darker blue and lighter blue mix.  The colors and pattern of the turquoise varies from stone to stone and sometimes changes with every saw blade slice through the stone so you can expect some variation in this natural material.  These variations make your turquoise wedding ring set unique and virtually one of a kind.  Here is an example of our favorite turquoise ring set inlaid with plain blue turquoise and Kingman spiderweb turquoise in Continuum sterling silver.  The man’s wedding ring is 6mm wide and the woman’s ring is 4.5mm wide.  Both rings taper slightly toward the bottom of the ring and are stamped .925 sterling silver and hand signed “MMH” on the inside.

Spiderweb turquoise and turquoise wedding ring set in sterling silver by Hileman Silver Jewelry.

We also have several turquoise engagement ring options that would look great with our turquoise wedding rings if you are looking to create a bridal set.  Center stone options include white sapphire, white topaz, Moissanite, blue topaz and diamond.  We also offer metal upgrades to 14 karat gold in both white and yellow as well as platinum. If you don’t see exactly the stone combination you are looking for, contact us for a quote on customization.  Check out all of our turquoise engagement rings and wedding sets at HilemanSilverJewelry.com and ShopTurquoiseRings.com.

Turquoise wedding ring set shown with white sapphire and turquoise engagement ring in Continuum sterling silver.

 

 

John Hileman

HilemanSilverJewelry.com

 

New Lab Created Opal Wedding Ring Set

This new lab created opal wedding ring set is stunning.  We inlaid the wedding set with some of the new lab opal we just received.  This new lab opal has bright green flashes of color on a dark blue base color.  The colors and flash of the lab opal mimic those of the best Lightning Ridge Australian opal at a much more affordable price.  Both rings in the set are a comfortable thickness and width.  The man’s band is 6.5mm wide at the top and the woman’s band is slightly narrower at 5.5mm wide.  Both the man’s wedding ring and the woman’s are available for purchase separately if you don’t need a set.  You can also purchase the set in hers and hers or his and his combinations.  The green lab opal in these rings is very flashy and bold.  We also have several other lab opal color options that are variations of blue-green and some options that are multicolor.

Green lab created opal wedding ring set in sterling silver by Hileman Silver Jewelry.

The high quality lab created opal we use in our rings has the same chemical composition as natural opal with the exception of water content. Natural Australian opal contains about 4% water and lab created opal contains no water. Instead, the water is replaced with resin

in lab created opal. The resin gives the synthetic opal more durability and helps to resist cracking. Laboratory grown opal gives you all the fire and colors of top grade natural opal at a much more affordable price with increased durability.

His and hers lab created opal wedding ring set.

This set is available for purchase in our Hileman Etsy shop or our new Lab Opal Jewelry website.  Please allow us 4 to 6 weeks to make your rings in your exact sizes.  See more lab opal colors on our Hileman Flickr page or on our lab opal Pinterest board.  If you are interested in natural Australian opal take a look at our Australian opal jewelry website featuring only the finest Australian opal inlaid in our bold 14 karat gold designs.

Amazon Launches Handmade on Amazon

Dinosaur bone wedding ring set now available at Handmade at Amazon.

Today Amazon officially launched Handmade at Amazon.  Amazon’s new venture will feature handmade items from around the globe and we are pleased to announce that our Hileman Silver Jewelry line was accepted to be a part of this new marketplace.  Amazon is only accepting artists and companies that offer handmade goods – no mass production items!   At launch Amazon plans to offer over 80,000 items from artisans in all 50 states and 60 countries.  The new marketplace will also offer more information about the artists and how they produce their goods as well as images of their studios.

We are in the process of building out our new Handmade at Amazon shop but we invite you to stop by and check out our new home on Amazon.  We believe our handmade dinosaur bone rings, turquoise engagement rings and Australian opal jewelry will be a big hit with customers looking for unique handmade jewelry.

Visit Hileman Silver Jewelry on Handmade at Amazon!

Cobalt Chrome Wedding Rings

Cobalt chrome is one of  newest alternative metals to hit the jewelry market.  Cobalt chrome is the perfect combination of color, strength and weight for a wedding ring.  It’s color is very white and is  comparable to that of platinum at a much more affordable price.  Cobalt chrome is very strong but at the same time malleable enough to be practical for most jewelry styles.  It won’t shatter or crack like some of the other alternative metal choices.  Cobalt chrome is 4 times harder than platinum, 5 times harder than gold and 7 times harder than silver.   It has a nice weight, similar to that of white gold.  Cobalt chrome rings are not featherweight like titanium and not super heavy like tungsten rings.  The other advantages of cobalt chrome rings over titanium and tungsten rings are its pleasing white color and the ability to size the ring slightly if needed.

We are excited to offer cobalt chrome as an upgraded metal choice for our wedding rings.  It’s durability makes it a great choice for our wedding rings and sets.  Because of the extreme hardness of this new metal, we will have to charge more for cobalt chrome rings than our sterling silver rings  to cover the additional metal working time and extra wear and tear on our tools and equipment.

Tan dinosaur bone ring in cobalt chrome.

Here is one of our first rings made in cobalt chrome.  The ring is inlaid with tan dinosaur bone with no dividers between the sections of dinosaur bone, giving it the appearance of one continuous piece of dinosaur bone across the top of the ring.  As you can see, the cobalt chrome has a nice bright white color similar to platinum or rhodium plated white gold.  To see more photos of this dinosaur bone ring in cobalt chrome visit our Etsy shop at Etsy.com/shop/thehilemancollection.  Most of our ring designs will be available in this great new metal choice.  Please contact us for details or questions.

 

www.HilemanSilverJewelry.com

info@HilemanSilverJewelry.com

 

 

We Need Your Reviews on Wedding Wire!

White sapphire wedding ring set with Australian opal inlay in sterling silver

Wedding bands and engagement rings have become a large part of our business and positive reviews from happy brides and grooms are an important factor in our success.  If you have purchased wedding rings from us recently, we need your help.  Positive reviews make a big difference to prospective buyers looking for a jeweler to create their forever wedding rings.  Please take a couple of minutes to go to our WeddingWire.com page and leave us a nice review.  It would really help us and help our future clients entrust us to create their rings.  Also, by reviewing us or your other vendors you can earn up to $75 worth of free gifts!

In addition, during the month of July WeddingWire is running a review sweepstakes. For each review you write on WeddingWire, you’ll be entered into a grand-prize drawing for $1,000!

Here is the link to leave a review on our WeddingWire review page:

http://www.weddingwire.com/shared/Rate?vid=c5ecda4fb1fb047a

 

Thank you for your help and good luck in the drawing!

Mark and John

http://www.HilemanSilverJewelry.com

info@HilemanSilverJewelry.com

New Pink Dinosaur Bone Ring!

Pink dinosaur bone ring with white sapphire center stone by Hileman Silver Jewelry.

 

We just completed our first ring with some of the pink dinosaur bone we acquired a few months back.  This dinosaur bone is a little more subtle than the red or the gray in some of our other dinosaur bone ring designs.  The new pink dinosaur bone has more pastel pink with some darker mauve spots all surrounded by brownish gray cell walls.  The softer colors give this woman’s ring a more feminine feel and don’t overpower the center stone.  This ring would make a nice alternative wedding ring or engagement ring for someone looking for a unique alternative to a diamond band.  We can create a  matching 4.5mm dinosaur bone wedding band to complete the matching bridal ring set.  We can also inlay this new pink dinosaur bone into any of our other ring or jewelry designs by special order.  See the video of this ring on YouTube!

Pink dinosaur bone ring with white sapphire in sterling silver.

The pink dinosaur bone in this ring came from the Morrison Formation in Utah and was a living animal during the Jurassic Period around 144 to 208 million years ago. It is actually no longer bone material but is a combination of minerals that replaced the bone over time. Dinosaur bone is found in a rainbow of colors with the webbing color and cell size varying greatly from piece to piece. The varying cell size and colors create some truly unique patterns and virtually one of a kind pieces of jewelry. Fossilized dinosaur bone can be composed of many different minerals including agate, jasper and calcite.  The color of the dinosaur bone is determined by the combination of minerals present when the fossilized bone formed.

You can see this new dinosaur bone ring and others in our Etsy shop or on www.HilemanSilverJewelry.com.

Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates on new items, sales and promotions!

 

John Hileman

Info@HilemanSilverJewelry.com

HilemanSilverJewelry.com

 

New Dinosaur Bone Jewelry in More Colors

Dinosaur bone and white sapphire engagement or wedding ring in sterling silver.

Hileman Silver Jewelry now has more color options available for our dinosaur bone jewelry designs.  We have always had a variety of red dinosaur bone options, but now we have several choices in grays, a white base bone with reddish spots and some yellow with red accents.  We are busy creating new jewelry with these new dinosaur bone colors.  One of our favorite new ring designs is a wedding or engagement ring with a white sapphire in the center and the new white/gray base color gembone with random reddish-orange spots inlaid down the sides.  It is a little more subdued than the bold red dinosaur bone but has a very interesting pattern and makes for a very unique wedding ring.  You can purchase or read more about this new dinosaur bone ring at our Etsy shop.

Gray dinosaur bone and white sapphire ring in sterling silver.

A great example of our new gray dinosaur bone with black matrix is this new man’s ring design.  The top of the ring is inlaid with one piece of fossilized dinosaur bone that is slightly raised above the surrounding silver.  The bone is a combination of several shades of gray with very distinctive black webbing running throughout.  Three sparkling white sapphires are channel set on each side of the dinosaur bone center.  This ring will also be available with black diamonds instead of the white sapphires and other materials may be substituted for the gray dinosaur bone.  Look for this ring to be listed soon at both our Etsy shop and our Hileman Silver Jewelry website.

If you are interested in learning more about dinosaur bone and dinosaur bone jewelry, please read our blog page about dinosaur bone.  For detailed information about dinosaur bone, how is it is formed and its metaphysical properties, read this information from BoneMasters.com.

We offer a great collection of dinosaur bone jewelry in a variety of colors and patterns inlaid in sterling silver.  To browse our large selection of dinosaur bone jewelry including rings, wedding ring sets, pendants and earrings please visit our Hileman Silver Jewelry website.  If you would like to see more photos of our dinosaur bone jewelry, please go to our Flickr page and view our “Dinosaur Bone Jewelry Collection“.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for updated information about sales, new jewelry designs and special offers.

John and Mark

http://www.HilemanSilverJewelry.com