Comments on: Should I Swap Out Silver Plated for Sterling Silver?

By: Nallery

Nallery — Sat, 11 Jul 2015 13:56:35 +0000

I was recently talking to a friend who said I should use the materials as testers to try and test out my design ideas on this first then hard code them on sterling. I liked that idea. I was also thinking of de stashing some of it to make some of my money back. Now as far as all the pieces I fell in love with that I’ve made in silver plated, I’m still stuck on what to do with those?

By: Cere Lyda

Cere Lyda — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 23:32:09 +0000

Ruth, I agree with you entirely. I use silver plate for pendants and earrings because these items aren’t worn on a daily basis. It will most likely be years before the plate starts to wear off when an item is only worn a couple times a month. As you said, buyers can place custom orders for sterling. I’ve found that the quality of my work makes the sale in most cases.

By: Ruth

Ruth — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 19:59:09 +0000

I like to use sterling when it is a small piece such as a pendant or earrings. But for larger pieces I use plated and customers can opt for it to be made in sterling as a custom order – that way I don’t pay the cost of materials first and then try to sell it. This way I don’t have a problem affording it.

By: ALlison

ALlison — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 13:34:55 +0000

Hi Nallery,

A lot depends on who you are making your pieces for. I primarily use sterling and copper. When sterling-filled became more available when the price of sterling went through the roof, I started using a lot of that to keep the price down on the finished jewelry – I do mostly custom and my customers can’t always go for sterling. The silver-filled works beautifully. I use my silver-plate supplies on “disposable” things – everyday bracelets for little girls, key ring markers, etc. The sorts of things that are likely to get lost. ( I started doing that when people didn’t want these things out of sterling.) I still use gemstone beads with the plate – but not the better ones in my stash.
If you are buying nice gemstone cabs or beads for a project, use sterling or sterling-filled. The people who can and will pay a fair price for this won’t bother with plated. And when you are putting all your effort into a piece, it’s nice to have the materials match your level of work.

By: Cora

Cora — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 12:43:19 +0000

Hi Nallery
I think that gemstones are worth setting in sterling silver. And if you are selling the piece, the cost of materials, both gemstones and the metal you use, is covered in your artist’s price. Using sterling takes you ‘up a step’ in perceived value so you are seen in relation to other artist-made jewellery, rather than in relation to bulk-assembled items.
Cora

By: Valarie

Valarie — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 12:31:44 +0000

Second question : where do I see myself in five years? When you want to get into juried shows, they will look at your materials as well as your products. Plated items don’t sell well in those markets. You may also have trouble with plating starting to flake off when you get into really intricate designs.

By: Valarie

Valarie — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 12:26:17 +0000

I understand having a lot of supplies and wanting to use them up, but you need to ask yourself a few questions.
1. How are my sales? Silver can be a little pricey, but the cost of silver is way down right now, and it’s a great time to take advantage of that. If you are selling your work, I would at least go to sterling filled as opposed to sterling plate because it’s much more durable, and you want people to get a lot of wear out of their pieces. I personally like sterling because of its perceived value, and I have a lot of people tell me they can only use sterling because of allergies and such. Plus you can have your scraps melted and get money back for it.
That said, copper and bronze are also economical “solid metal” options. And they are very popular right now.