Buy discount Jewelry not cheap jewelry. Might sound like a fancy cliché but it is genuine statement. Really you should not buy cheap jewelry! For over 25 years I have sold jewelry wholesale, I have owned a Jewelry factory in Asia for 8 years and my brother Paul Sedawie operates in Bali for the last 5 years.
We are wholesalers and have sold hundreds of thousands of jewelry pieces and we DO NOT sell cheap jewelry. Our factories operate under strict quality control that every jewelry piece is wearable and durable. That means it must last under normal conditions of wear and tear.
Cheap jewelry is a completely different matter. I have many jewelry friends and they have constant problems repairing gold jewelry purchased in those cheap gold sales that department stores have.
Silver jewelry they don’t even look at. If it is damaged it’s just thrown out as repairs cost is too much. Even 9k Gold is on border if it can be repaired, or if it is worth it. Problem is that in manufacturing they are making for price so all aspects of jewelry manufacture has to be at minimum requirements. Claws that should hold the gemstone in is minimal or the clasp to hold bracelets or necklaces together is minimal. This means many cheap Jewelry pieces break and this is not covered by seller.
Most common problems with cheap jewelry is that STONES FALL OUT. Claws that hold the ring are at minimum settings so if the claw catches clothing the claw is bent. The wearer would not notice that the claw has been bent and the stone will fall out.
Unfortunately it is difficult to add new claw back as jeweller has to solder a new claw manually and re-polish so adding a claw is the same work nearly to create a new ring.
IMAGE OF SAPPHIRE STONE THAT HAD FALLEN OUT OF GOLD RING AND SHOWS WORK TO ADD CLAWS SO THAT THE STONE WILL NOT FALL OUT
Bracelets or Necklaces are joined together by links that are machine made, and these are also minimal settings so when caught or pulled the weakest chain breaks. As the chain is machine made there is always one chain weaker than the rest. Machine made does mean same standard for all links so jewelry has to re solder, but as links are minimal they can be difficult to solder so many times the jewellery will make new link manually. Well made 9k gold chain displaying strong links, a quality product direct from the factory
Many cheap jewelry pieces have small pointers around the larger stone and once again claws are minimal and when one small pointer falls out it is difficult to find a matching pointer. A $0.2 cent glass or CZ pointer can cost $40.00 to replace and most jewellers are not interested in repairing it.
After a few months the shiny appearance is dull. It is common practise to rhodium plate silver or gold jewellery to make new shinny appearance
But if only one coat rhodium plating the jewelry piece will wear quickly as a ring really needs three layers plating to be wearable and last. Many white gold rings are white gold plated so one ounce white 18 k gold will plate hundreds rings so it is not expensive to plate properly.
Stones can be diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emerald or any popular gemstone. And how do you tell if it is natural or man made? Many gemstones are now heat treated, which is common in many gems. But its lab created gemstones that are big problem with cheap jewelry. The seller might call the gems fancy name to disguise that it is man made. Old wife’s tale if you can see gemstone bright from few meters away its glass. And still true today especially cheap jewelry.
Clasps can also be a weak link. This image shows well made clasp connecting gold chains. But one of the biggest problems is buying silver 925 or gold jewellery that is not as hallmark stamp.
In our factory we buy silver direct from smelter in one or ten kilo slabs and controls our own mixture and all is weighed and double checked for accuracy which is super important to us as we are wholesalers so always want repeat business. We have hear that silver or gold hallmarks in china and India are only 80% not as stated by hallmark so they are much lower silver or gold content. While I cant verify these figures I think it is actually larger. In our factories all jewelry is correct exactly hallmark. If we buy jewellery from India or china a we state Indian silver 925. Which is another way saying it may or not be 925 silver. Many cheap jewelry pieces form India are stamped hallmark 925 but one quick look and you can tell its just rhodium plated base metal
Informative information on how to Understand The Meaning Of gold hallmarks.
When you find a good vendor who has a large stock, offers premium gems, and a good price you have already won.. that is the most important part of our journey. Next is to know what your actually want to buy and know your product. When you are preparing to search for and buy Jewelry these are the steps you will want to take:
A MUST KNOW TIP! Today the Economy is rough, So when you buy online the local stores loose sales, your choice to shop online is a personal one. It may be due to medical conditions, Financial savings or just your preferences! Why drive to a store when you can hop online with no gas cost or transportation fees. Regardless when buying online if your getting a second opinion from a local area Store Owner you may find a unhappy recipient, Unhappy because you did not buy the item you purchased from them!! It is all to common for many area jewellers’ to give a bad report on a item you have bought online only because they wanted your business and you did not buy from them! So if your going for a second opinion you may not want to mention you bought the item online! You might just say it was a gift from a family member, You are more apt to get a honest report from the shop owner. It is very common for a local shop owner to try to discourage you from buying online.. A MUST KNOW TIP ! When buying Rings online make sure you know your accurate Ring size, Neck size for Necklaces and Wrist size for Bracelets. A MUST KNOW TIP! Online Photo Colors may vary between Monitors, If you have more than one pc, Lap top in the home look at the item you are interested in on all PCS. Just remember allow for a little difference in color, This is normal due to computer settings, Each computer is different. Ask your seller about color and get more information, You may tell them why your asking due to differences in monitors if they understand they may be able to send you a accurate named color to help you if needed. Make sure you Research all of these Questions before bidding or buying. Your buying experience will be much more fun and rewarding in the end if you have planed well for your purchase whether it be for item of little Cost, Maybe a inexpensive piece of cheap costume jewelry, or a fine quality close out ring or a wholesale jewelry gemstone necklace. What the Jewelry is called really does not matter as long as the price is right and your needs are met! A transaction you can boast about in the end was a well planned experience from the beginning.
Was this article helpful?
6 people found this article helpful