Rings & Things Jewelry Blog

We carry an eclectic (and diminishing) variety of African beads, both old trade beads, and newer beads made or strung in Africa for the world-wide bead trade. Trade beads are old and/or used beads, and will show varying amounts of wear. Newly-made African beads are generally handmade in small communities. Style and availability vary.Rings & Things founder, Russ Nobbs, loved trade beads and African Art. For many decades, he purchased trade beads from African traders -- for sale as well as for …

Jump directly to illustration of gold-fill vs. gold plate.What are Elements and Alloys? Metals can be elements or alloys. Elements are the basic building blocks of chemistry. Examples of elements: Oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, iron (Fe), copper (Cu) and niobium (Nb).Lead (Pb) is an element that was popular for 1,000's of years as an ingredient in casting alloys (and some other alloys) because it makes some metals softer, less brittle and/or helps them melt at lower temperatures. Lead is now known …

What is "Nickel Free"?The term "nickel free" can be confusing since jewelry marked nickel free is still allowed to contain a very small amount of nickel ... but it is such a tiny amount that it takes extremely sensitive instruments to measure it. The European Union's (EU) Nickel Directive limits the amount of nickel that may be released onto the skin from jewelry and other products. This type of measurement is distinct from measuring the percentage of nickel that exists in an alloy's composition …

Glosario español-inglés de términos relacionados a la joyería-bisuteríaSpanish-English    |    English-Spanish Many of us sell to, or buy from, Spanish-speaking countries and people. It can be hard to track down the specialized words for beads, findings and other jewelry-related terms, so we thought we'd share this glossary with you. Additions and questions are always welcome! Hay muchos de nosotros que venden a los países y a la gente de habla hispana, o que compran de ello …

What is "Nickel Free"?The term "nickel free" can be confusing since jewelry marked nickel free is still allowed to contain a very small amount of nickel ... but it is such a tiny amount that it takes extremely sensitive instruments to measure it.The European Union's (EU) Nickel Directive limits the amount of nickel that may be released onto the skin from jewelry and other products. This type of measurement is distinct from measuring the percentage of nickel that exists in an alloy's composition. …