Fine Silver ... Sterling Silver ... What's the Difference?

Hi, this is Jean from SilverSmack and I'm going to talk a bit about the difference between fine silver and Sterling silver.

About Fine Silver

Fine silver (.999) is higher in purity than Sterling Silver.  It's 99.9% pure silver. 

This makes it more tarnish resistant, more malleable, and much whiter and brighter than Sterling silver.  It also has a higher melting point. Many jewelry makers prefer to fuse rather than solder fine silver. Fine silver can be soldered with a bit of scrap sterling.

Norah from Your Daily Jewels made the fine silver Modern Tribal Silver Sapphire Gemstone Necklace shown in the photo above. You can find it in her shop on this page.

Phylly from Sending Love Gallery used fine silver to create the beautiful textured drops in the amazing Ruby and Gemstone Earrings you'll see just above this sentence!

Bob of Art Jeweler NYC made the antique Egyptian look Fine Silver Ring shown above.

About Sterling Silver

Sterling silver (.925) is 92.5% pure silver with the other 7.5% alloy. The alloy is usually copper.  This makes it harder and stronger, but also makes it tarnish more easily, which for jewelry makers means it's easier to give that lovely antiqued patina.  It can also be soldered. Silver solder has more copper in it than sterling silver so it melts at a lower temperature.

Crystal Hartman made the intricate bracelet above from recycled sterling silver.

SilverSmack loves to add an antique patina and texture to many of her creations.

 

Brooke has soldered circles in her sterling necklace.

Both fine silver and sterling silver have their merits. Each is a beautiful metal with unique qualities. Each artist should consider these qualities before choosing which metal to use so they can be fully satisfied at the completion of their project.