Beautiful jewelry such as necklaces, bracelets and rings are timeless gifts that have been cherished for centuries, but what to do when you want to give someone jewelry and they are allergic to it? Look to gold-filled jewelry for a smart alternative.
Allergies come in many forms, but few realize that many people are allergic to jewelry and the alloys contained within – such jewelry can cause severe irritation and discomfort making jewelry an undesirable gift despite its popularity and thereby ensuring your gift will be placed in a drawer! Because of these common allergies to jewelry, becoming aware of how to better purchase jewelry becomes essential.
One of the primary causes for allergic reactions in jewelry is due to the inclusion of nickel and lead which is used to make jewelry easier to design and mold. Not all jewelry shops or vendors will disclose the contents of jewelry so it is important to shop only where such content is disclosed or whether or not the jewelry is listed as being hypo-allergenic. It should also be noted that the use of nickel and lead applies to both silver and gold unfortunately, the two most common types of jewelry metals.
Typically, higher quality gold or silver jewelry does not contains extensive amounts of these allergy trigger metals, but purchasing pure silver or gold pieces can become quite expensive if available at all. Gold-filled jewelry, on the other hand is a popular alternative that is less expensive than solid gold jewelry or silver jewelry and represents a better choice for those looking for more moderately priced jewelry that will be easy to care for and have a shine for life!
Gold-filled is not to be confused with gold-plated which has a reputation for chipping, gold-filled jewelry is hypo-allergenic and is required to be 5% or more of gold by weight (gold plating is 0.05% typically!). Brelox carries a variety of gold-filled pieces, the Astere collection features gold filled chains with assorted semi-precious stones.