Sterling Silver vs Stainless Steel

At Quia Omni, our jewellery pieces have a base of either 925 Sterling Silver or 316L Stainless Steel (both of which are considered to be fine metals). You may be wondering what the difference between both of these materials are, so we thought we would break it down for you.

Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver is a blend of pure silver, along with other metal alloys such as copper. Pure Sterling Silver (925) will contain at least 92.5% of real silver. Jewellery pieces made from this material should have a 925 mark on them to indicate the purity of the metal.

Pure silver in its rawest form is often too soft to be used for jewellery, especially in the case of delicate pieces. This is because pure silver can easily bend and therefore, easily break too. That’s where Sterling Silver comes in; it looks exactly like pure silver (unless gold plated), but is much more durable due to the added copper. This makes it a much better material for jewellery.

This metal will not rust and, given you look after your jewellery, it will look great well into the future. 

Sterling Silver in particular is also an excellent, high-quality base metal when it comes to gold-plating due to the high level of silver purity. 

 

Stainless Steel
Stainless Steel on the other hand is a material made up of a group of metal alloys (iron, carbon, and chromium). Because of this, it is a highly durable metal, allowing it to withstand everyday wear and tear. This hard metal is scratch, dent and tarnish resistant due to the layer of chromium on the metal, which also prevents oxidisation.

It has recently gained popularity for use in jewellery, not only because of the above reasons, but due to the fact it gives off an amazing sparkle and light reflection when polished. 

 

The Main Differences

  • One of the main differences between Stainless Steel and Sterling Silver is their appearance. Stainless Steel’s finish is more of a mirror-finish while Sterling Silver’s finish is glossier with no mirror effect. For example, check out the mirror finish on our unisex Gold Cuban Chain.

  • While Stainless Steel is known for its durability, Sterling Silver is the more malleable option. Because of this, it is better used for more intricate and dainty jewellery pieces, such as our Gold Face Pendant Necklace.
  • Sterling Silver is very lightweight. Stainless steel on the other hand, is much heavier. 

Overall, both materials are great when it comes to jewellery due to their durability and individual benefits outlined in this blog. With proper care and love, jewellery made from either material will retain their sparkle and lustre well into the future.

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