| Acid Etching | This process involves engrossing the metal in an acid solution while protecting certain parts with a substance like wax or rosin, which is known as resist, in order to create a pattern on the metal’s surface. |
| Acid Test | Acid test determines the purity of gold through the use of nitric acid and aqua regia. |
| Actual Gold Content | Actual gold content describes the amount of gold that exists in a metal object after subtracting all the alloys. |
| Ag | The chemical symbol for silver. |
| Alloy | An alloy is a mixture of two or more metals usually mixed to enhance the strength and/or appearance of a particular metal. Copper, silver, nickel, zinc etc are frequently used as alloy metals and usually are mixed with all precious metals for some specific purpose. |
| Alpaca | It is a mixture of alloys, which is a substitute of silver, consisting of 55% copper, 20% nickel, 20% zinc, and 5% tin. |
| Aluminum | It is an inexpensive, lightweight and malleable silver-white ore with a bluish tinge. Aluminum is remarkably resisted to oxidation and used in many alloys. |
| Annealing | It is a process of providing multi-phased heat and stress treatment that alters the microstructure of a metal adding strength, pliability and hardness. |
| Anodizing | Anodizing is a process used to dye and/or modify the surface of a metal using electrolysis. The dye enters the pores in the etched oxide surface of the metal. Usually metals like aluminum, magnesium, titanium and tantalum are often anodized. |
| Assay | An analysis of a metal to determine its purity by scraping a bit of metal from the metal piece. |
| Au | The chemical symbol for gold. Au is derived from Latin word ?aurum? for gold. |
| Base Metal | Base metal is a term used to refer any non-precious metal. Generally, it is used as a base for gold-filled or gold-plated coverings. |
| Blending | Blending is a process of smoothing rough areas of a metal piece to provide same plane or roundness and/or same surface finish. |
| Bloomed Gold | This term is used for gold Jewelry that has been engrossed in an acid bath to give slightly matte texture. |
| Brass | An alloy made up of roughly half copper and half zinc, which has a nice yellow color. |
| Bronze | Bronze is a very heavy and dense alloy consisting of 60% copper and 40% tin. It has a dull brown color and usually not preferred in Jewelry due to its heaviness. |
| Brushed Finish | A brushed finish, also known as matte finish, is a texture applied to metal surface, which gives a dull and non-reflective finish. In this finish, a firm wire brush is used to give scratches or tiny grooves on the surface of the metal piece. |
| Buffing | Buffing is the process refers to the use of grease compound in combination with wheels to produce very smooth polished surface. It is the final step in professional finishing process. |
| Bullion | Bullion is a precious metal usually gold in form of bars containing at least 99.5% purity. |
| Bullion Coin | Bullion coin is a precious metal in the form of coin which trades at a price close to spot. In other words, it has little or no numismatic value. |
| Burn | Burn refers to changes in metallurgical properties and other physical characteristics such as discoloration of the metal piece due to excessive temperature during grinding. |
| Burnishing | Burnishing is a finishing with shiny surface usually resulting from using a dull or loaded grinding wheel or coated abrasive. |
| Burr | Burr refers to a sharp edge of metal which remains on the surface of metal after cutting and reforming. |
| Cameo | Cameo is a style of carving in which the design pattern is left, and the surrounding surface is cut away leaving the design in relief. This is done to use the natural colors of the stone or shell to produce the different shadings of the carving. |
| Carat | The term Carat is used as a standard unit of measurement of the weight of diamonds and most other gemstones. The word comes from the carob beans which are known for its consistent weight and was used in ancient times to measure diamonds and other gemstones. One carat (ct.) equals 200 milligrams, or 0.2 grams (1/5 of a gram), or 1/142 of an ounce. There are 100 points in a carat. If all other factors are equal, the more a diamond weighs, the more valuable it will be. It is sometimes incorrectly spelled ?Karat?, but Karat refers only to the fineness of pure gold and gold alloys. |
| Casting | Casting is a widely used Jewelry manufacturing process, in which a molten material such as metal, plastic or any other material is poured or forced into a hollow mold and allowed to solidify within the mold and then ejected or broken out to get a fabricated Jewelry part. |
| Centrifugal | Casting Centrifugal casting is the process of casting in which molds are attached to the outside edge of a hollow tube. Metal in liquid form is poured into the tube and it is spun at high-speed centrifugal force that pulls the molten metal into the molds. |
| Chasing | method of decorating or designing surface of the metal by etching or hammering using shaped punches and a chasing hammer. |
| Chrome Plating | Chrome plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of chromium on other metal surface mainly for giving a bright and lustrous metallic surface, which is highly resistant to tarnish. |
| Chromium | Chromium is a lustrous, hard brittle, steel-blue metallic element which is highly resistant to corrosion and tarnishing. It is generally used in the hardening of steel alloys and the production of stainless steels. |
| Cleaning | A word used by some jewelers unofficially or informally which means flawless, or at least internal flawless. |
| Coin Silver | A mixture of 90% pure silver and 10% metal alloy is known as Coin Silver. A process of melting down coins done in the 19th century, and mostly discarded today. |
| Colored Gold | Colored gold term is used when gold is mixed or alloyed with other metals, such as silver, copper, zinc, nickel, platinum, palladium etc. to create various color hues like white, pink/ rose, green and the seldom found blue, purple and black. |
| Comex | Comex is one of the world’s major commodities futures exchanges where gold and silver are traded. It is a division of the New York Mercantile Exchange based at New York. |
| Conductivity | Conductivity is the ability of a mineral to transmit heat, electricity or sound. |
| Coolant | Coolant is a metalworking fluid used in grinding process to prevent a metal piece from burning as well as to lubricate for the process. |
| Copper | Copper is a reddish-brown non-ferrous metal, which is usually considered as a base metal or alloyed with other precious metals. It is fairly soft metal with excellent conductivity of heat and electricity as well as it is very malleable and ductile. Other than Jewelry, it is widely used for electrical wiring and water piping. The chemical symbol for copper is Cu. |
| Cu | The chemical symbol for copper. |
| Deburring | It is a method of removing burrs from the metal piece by using various hand and automated processes. Coated abrasives, non-woven products and stones are typically used for deburring. |
| Density | The density of a substance depends on both its mass and its volume. For example, lead is denser than feathers, so 1 tonne of lead will have a lesser volume than 1 tonne of feathers. |
| Die | An engraved metal object, usually of a hard metal such as steel, bronze or brass, used to strike or stamp the design on another metal object. |
| Die Struck | Die struck is a process of reproducing an object by pressing or striking a piece of metal between a pair of dies. This pair consists male and female patterns to form highly detailed impressions on that metal piece. |
| Dwt | Dwt is used as a symbol for ?pennyweight? that is 1/20th of a troy ounce or approx. 1.555 grams. |
| Electroplated | This term is generally used for Jewelry items that have been coated with gold through the process of electroplating. |
| Electroplating | Electroplating is the process where inexpensive metals are frequently electroplated or coated with a thin layer of more expensive metals like gold (gold plating), silver (silver plating), rhodium (rhodium plating), copper (electro coppering) etc. In this process, an electric current is flown to coat an electrically conductive metal object with a relatively thin layer of precious metal. |
| Enamel | Enamel is a powdered colored glass fused onto the surface of the piece of Jewelry. It is a soft material and can be easily cracked or damaged. This should not be used on Jewelry pieces, which are exposed to daily wear. |
| Engraving | Engraving is a method of surface decoration in which a design is etched or engraved with a sharp tool. |
| Etched | It is very faintly carved decoration scratched onto the surface of a metal piece. |
| Findings | Jewelry findings are basically components, materials and elements such as clasps, pins, hooks, tabs etc. that can be used in making or assembling a piece of Jewelry. |
| Fineness | Fineness refers to the purity of a precious metal. The purity of a precious metal measured in 1,000 parts of an alloy. For example, a gold bar, containing 995 parts gold and 5 parts of another metal alloy, is considered with .995 fineness. |
| Finish | The way surface of a piece is cleaned or polished or textured. Finish refers quality of polish and symmetry on a stone as well as polish or texture applied to the metal on an item of Jewelry. Common metal finishes include florentine, high polish and matte or brushed. |
| Florentine Finish | A Florentine finish is a crosshatched decorative technique engraved into the surface of a precious metal. It is usually applied by a hand tool and consists a series of parallel lines engraved in two directions perpendicular to each other. This finish reduces the reflectivity of metal and the lines are often coarser and more deeply incised than the brushed or matte finish methods. |
| Foil | Foil is a paper like thin sheet of metal which is used to place behind a gemstone to intensify its brilliance. |
| Foiling | A method of coating or placing silver, gold, or colored foil behind a gem in a closed setting to enhance its appearance as light is reflected by this. This is often done with rhinestones. |
| Forging | Heating a metal to a temperature where the metal becomes malleable (red hot) or deforming its shape by compression or exertion of force (by hammering or cold forging). |
| Gallery | Gallery is metal strips used to make settings for gemstones or used as a decorative design element in a piece of Jewelry. |
| Gilding | A metal object usually decorated with a thin layer of gold, gold foil or gold leaf. |
| Gold | Gold is an extraordinary and rare precious metal, with an unmatched combination of chemical and physical properties. Gold is the most non-reactive of all metals and it does not oxidize under ordinary conditions. No other metal is as malleable as gold. Pure gold is very soft and pliable, and alloys of different other metals are combined with pure gold to enhance its durability and strength, as well as creating a blush in the golds appearance with different color tones. 24 karat is 100 % pure gold, and it is more expensive and less durable than gold that is alloyed with other metals. |
| Gold – 10 Karat (White Tone) | Gold which combines 10 parts of pure gold and 14 parts of other metal alloys and appears in white tone. Normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a copper, zinc and nickel (or palladium) alloy. |
| Gold – 10 Karat (Yellow Tone) | Gold which combines 10 parts of pure gold and 14 parts of other metal alloys and appears in natural yellow tone. By combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains a rich yellow color while increasing its strength. |
| Gold – 14 Karat (White Tone) | Gold which combines 14 parts of pure gold and 10 parts of other metal alloys and appears in white tone. As mentioned above, normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a copper, zinc and nickel (or palladium) alloy. |
| Gold – 14 Karat (Yellow Tone) | Gold which combines 14 parts of pure gold and 10 parts of other metal alloys and appears in natural yellow tone. As mentioned above, by combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains a rich yellow color while increasing its strength. |
| Gold – 18 Karat (White Tone) | Gold which combines 18 parts of pure gold and only 6 parts of other metal alloys and appears in white tone. As mentioned above, normally white gold is created by combining pure gold with a copper, zinc and nickel (or palladium) alloy. |
| Gold – 18 Karat (Yellow Tone) | Gold which combines 18 parts of pure gold and only 6 parts of other metal alloys and appears in natural yellow tone. As mentioned above, by combining with copper and silver, yellow gold retains a rich yellow color while increasing its strength. |
| Gold Eagles | It is referred as modern gold bullion coin. American gold eagle contains 91.7% pure gold (22 karat) and for the remaining part silver and copper as alloy. |
| Gold Filled | Gold filled refers to a layer of at least 10-karat gold that has been permanently bonded by heat and pressure to the surface of the base metal, then rolled or drawn to a prescribed thickness. The karat gold must be at least 1/20 of the total weight. It is also known as gold overlay. |
| Gold Flashed | A gold coating in which thickness of layer is less than seven millionths of an inch. It is sometimes also called gold washed. |
| Gold Plated | Gold Plated refers to a thin layer of plating of 10-karat gold or better which has been bonded to a base metal. The karat gold content may be less than 1/20, but it must be properly identified by weight in terms of total metal content. |
| Gold Standard | A monetary system in which currency can be redeemed or converted for a fixed amount of gold. The government or bank must have enough gold in reserve to redeem all its circulating currency. |
| Gold Tone | In its pure form, gold has a metallic luster with deep yellow in color, but when it is mixed or alloyed with other metals, such as silver, copper, zinc, nickel, platinum, palladium, etc. then it creates various color tones like white, pink/ rose, green and the seldom found blue, purple and black. It is sometimes called gold color. |
| Golden finish | Jewelry that does not contain actual gold but finished in such a manner that it has the look of gold Jewelry item. |
| Goldsmith | A person, who is an expert for working with precious metal to create Jewelry. |
| Grain | Diamond crystals have different strength bonds in different directions and these directions are known as grain. The term, grain is also an earliest known weight unit for gold in which one troy ounce contains 480 grains. |
| Gram | Gram is the basic unit of weight of the metric system and generally used to express the weight of Jewelry items. One troy ounce contains 31.1035 grams |
| Green Gold | Pure gold is mixed with silver, copper and zinc to get green gold. Although this color is not very popular but still it gives wearer an opportunity to look different. |
| Grinding | Grinding is used to remove material from a work piece through machines and by using abrasive minerals. |
| Hallmark | A hallmark is an official mark (or a series of marks) stamped onto a precious metal that indicates the fineness of the metal and the manufacturer’s mark. As well as sometimes hallmarks indicate the country and year of manufacturing. Although marks are not officially required in USA but usually they are carried by custom and practice. |
| Hammered Finish | A hammered finish is a texture applied to the surface of a metal piece with a hammer to give it a dimpled look. A hammered texture gives impression of a series of small depressions in the metal. This finish is varied from light to deep hammering texture and usually increases the size of the metal piece. |
| Handmade | Handmade Jewelry is created completely by hand and only some hand tools are used for this. |
| High Polish Finish | High polish finish is a super shiny and smooth polish applied to a metal surface that gives a highly reflective and mirror-like finish. |
| Ingot | An ingot is a metal cast into the shape of a bar or block. |
| Inlay | This term refers to a decorative feature of an item of Jewelry. An inlay is a piece of material (usually stone or glass) that is partially embedded in another material (usually metal) and these two materials make a level surface. |
| Iridium | Iridium is a metal of the platinum family which often alloyed with platinum to improve workability. Jewelry pieces marked ?80% Plat. 20% Irid? would indicate that the alloy is containing 80 % platinum and 20% iridium. |
| Iron | Iron is a very common metallic element and mainly used to make steel. It usually appears dark brown in impure form whereas silvery-white in pure form. Pure iron is quite soft, and it is oxidized (rusted) easily by moisture. The chemical symbol for iron is Fe. |
| Karat, Karat Weight | Karat is the American spelling of carat which is now only used for gold or gold alloys weight whereas English spelling carat is used in respect of weight of diamonds or other gemstones. Karat is always based on pure 24 karat gold and if a Jewelry item contains 18 karat gold that means it has eighteen parts pure gold and six parts other metal alloys. Karat is also used in its abbreviated kt form. |
| Lead | Lead is a dense, soft metal with a dull blue-grey appearance. It has a low melting point and due to this it is generally used in soldering. The chemical symbol for lead is Pb. |
| Lost Wax Casting | This is one of the most commonly used casting techniques. Under this casting method, an object is made of wax and coated in clay. When the clay is fired, the wax melts and is drained away or evaporates leaving an exact impression of the object in the hardened clay, which is then filled with molten metal. |
| Luster | The quality of reflected and refracted light from the surface of a diamond or gemstone or pearl or metal. Luster is mainly dependent on stone’s surface (polish) and the reflective index of the mineral. Luster can be described as: adamantine, pearly, greasy, metallic, silky, resinous, vitreous, earthy (also known as dull) and waxy. |
| Malleability | Malleability is the physical property of metal that allows it to be hammered, rolled, compressed and stretched. Gold is the most malleable of all metals. |
| Matte Finish | A matte finish, also known as a brushed finish, is a texture applied to metal surface, which gives a dull and non-reflective finish. Matte finish is achieved either by a chemical process or by using an abrasive material to scratch the top layers of the piece. |
| Metal | Metal is a solid mineral element that usually has a shiny surface and generally a good conductor of heat and electricity, and can be melted or fused, hammered into thin sheets, or drawn into wires. Common metals include bronze, copper and iron whereas gold, platinum and silver are considered as precious metals and used for making Jewelry. |
| Metal Etching | A technique of creating a design on metal using acid. Some parts of the metal are covered and protected from the action of the acid, while the remaining exposed parts are eaten away by the acid to form a design. |
| Metal Type | The type of metal that is used to create Jewelry. |
| Milgrain | It is a decorative technique in which a beaded design is impressed into the metal by using a special engraver?s tool. |
| Mirror Finish | A highly reflective and mirror like finished surface with no visible abrasion pattern. |
| Mold | Mold is the hollow form into which molten metal is poured to solidify and then ejected or broken out to get a fabricated Jewelry part. It is made from a refractory material either for temporary use or for permanent use. |
| Nickel | A multipurpose hard, bright, silver-white metallic element of the iron group that is malleable, ductile and resistant to corrosion. It is most commonly used in alloys and plating. |
| Nonmetallic | An object or material which is not composed of metal. |
| Non-precious Metal | Non-precious metal is any metal that is not considered to be a precious metal. |
| NYMEX | NYMEX is New York Mercantile Exchange which is a future exchange where platinum and palladium are traded. |
| Ore | An ore is a group of rocks containing valuable minerals that can be extracted. |
| Ounce | A unit of weight. For precious metals, an ounce means a troy ounce which is equal to 31.1035 grams. |
| Oxidation | Oxidation is a chemical process in which a metal is blackened as a reaction to oxygen. |
| Palladium | Palladium is a member of the Platinum group metal and it is lighter and less expensive than platinum. Palladium is usually mixed with yellow gold to create white gold. |
| Patina | The change in an object's surface resulting from natural ageing due to oxidation and wear. |
| Pennyweight | Pennyweight, usually shortened by dwt, is an American unit of weight for gold. One pennyweight equals 24 grains or 1/20 of a troy ounce. Also, a pennyweight is equal to 1.5552 grams. |
| Periodic Table | It is a tabular method to classify, systematize and compare all the 116 (94 natural, 22 synthetic) basic chemical elements. |
| Pink Gold | Pink gold, also known as rose gold, is alloyed with copper, and at times possibly even with silver. The proportions are about three parts of 24-karat gold to one part of copper. |
| Plating | Plating is the technique to cover or coat a thin layer of a metal to another metal surface mainly for the decorative purposes. |
| Platinum | Platinum, an extremely rare and expensive metal, is a silvery gray precious metal often used for setting or mounting high quality diamonds and gemstones. Platinum is a strong, durable and dense metal which is valued for its white color and purity. |
| Plumb Gold | It is a term used to describe gold Jewelry that contains the precise amount of gold in the alloy that the karat mark indicates. A Jewelry piece with 18kt plumb gold means that the gold will be at a minimum 18 parts gold mixed with 6 parts alloys. |
| Polish | Polish is considered as smoothness of the surface of a fashioned stone in which optical reflection is maximized. Generally, a polished stone does not show visible wheel marks or burn marks under 10X magnification. Polish is an indicator of the quality of stone’s cut which is graded as Ideal, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor. In terms of metal, polish is considered as smoothness of the surface of a metal object in which optical reflection is maximized. |
| Polishing | The process of polish which converts a stone’s or metal’s rough or irregular surface to a smooth surface by using various methods. |
| Porosity | Porosity refers to the areas of the mold that absorbed some of the casting material and leaves the cast object with a rough, granular surface. |
| Pot Metal | Pot metal, also known as white metal, is a mixture of alloys which does not contain any precious metal. |
| Precious Metal | A precious metal is a metal with rare metallic chemical element. Gold, platinum and silver are widely traded and considered as precious metals due to their rarity, beauty and physical properties. Precious metals are less reactive than most elements, have high luster, and have higher melting points than other metals. |
| Relief | Relief is a kind of decoration that projects from the surface, like a cameo |
| Repoussé | A method of decorating a metal surface by pressing or hammering a design from the inside or backside and then polishing it up in front with a chasing hammer, producing a three-dimensional base-relief surface. |
| Reticulation | It is a process of giving the metal surface a rough or wrinkled texture. |
| Rhodium | Rhodium is a noble metal, from the platinum family, with a whitish gray appearance. Rhodium, in raw natural state, comes in liquid state and in Jewelry industry, it is very popular plating metal which gives very smooth, shiny and expensive look, just like platinum, to a metal piece. |
| Rhodium Platin | In this process, rhodium is applied through the electroplating process to base metals like gold, sterling silver or some other metal alloy. This rhodium plating gives silver tone finish, which is darker than a silver-plated finish and darkens with time rather than tarnishing like silver plate. Rhodium plating is virtually identical to Platinum but on a fraction of the cost and often it is used on fashion rings and brooches. |
| Rolled Gold | Rolled gold is a very thin layer of gold that is applied to a lesser or base metal usually brass. Rolled gold metal pieces are marked rolled gold plate or R.G.P. or RGP. |
| Rose Finish | A type of finished jewelry that resembles to rose gold jewelry but does not contain any gold content. |
| Sand Blasting | Sand blasting refers to the process of cleaning, smoothing or etching a hard surface by forcing very fine bits of solid material across that surface at high speeds. |
| Sand Casting | Sand casting is the oldest and most popular casting technique. Under this technique, natural sand (lake sand) or green sand (mixture of sand, clay and some water) is packed onto wood or metal pattern halves, removed from the pattern, and metal is poured into resultant cavities. And finally, mold is broken to remove casting. This technique requires a lead-time of days to obtain castings. |
| Satin Finish | Satin finish is a texture of a metal surface that is in between matte finish and a brilliant one. In this finish, a series of tiny parallel lines are scratched onto a metal surface with a wire brush or polishing tool to produce texture. This finish gives impression of a soft, pearl-like luster instead of a bright polish. |
| Scoring | A technique of using a tool to engrave a groove or furrow into the flat surface of the metal. |
| Silver | Silver has been known and used for thousands of years and it is considered as one of the three precious metals along with gold and platinum. Pure silver is very soft metal with its lustrous white color. Silver is used as Jewelry metal well before the development of white gold alloys, and before platinum could be isolated. It is normally stable in pure air and water but tarnishes when exposed to ozone, hydrogen sulfide or sulfur. The chemical symbol for silver is Ag. |
| Silver – Coin | A mixture of 90% pure silver and 10% metal alloy is known as Coin Silver. |
| Silver – Fine | It is the purest form of silver with 99.9% purity. In this form, silver is too soft to be used for Jewelry. |
| Silver – Mexican | Silver from south of the border is known as Mexican silver, which consists anywhere from 90% to 99% pure silver. |
| Silver – Sterling | A mixture of 92.5% of pure silver and 7.5% of copper is known as Sterling Silver. Pure silver is alloyed with copper to give strength and durability. It is one of the most familiar and used forms of silver alloys. |
| Silver Eagles | It is referred as modern silver bullion coin. |
| Silver Finish | Jewelry or any other item that does not contain actual silver but finished in such a manner that it has the look of silver Jewelry item. |
| Silver Plating | Silver plating is a method of depositing a silver layer on other metal surface mainly for decorative purposes on household and Jewelry items. |
| Soldering | Soldering is a technique, used by jewelers, in making and repairing Jewelry. By using this technique, two or more metal pieces are joined by applying a molten metal or metal alloy that has a lower melting point than the two metals being joined. This molten metal forms a bond when cooled and solidified. Soldering is also used in adding findings or links in a metal piece. |
| Solid Gold | As per the rules of the Federal Trade Commission, the term ?solid gold? can be used for items which are not hollow and contain at least 10 karat or finer gold. |
| Stainless Steel | An extremely durable metal alloy of steel and chromium that can be polished to resemble a precious metal and is almost unaffected to rust, discoloration and corrosion. |
| Stamping | Stamping is the process of cutting or embossing a mark on metal sheet with a punch or a die. |
| Swage | Swage is a technique which uses a tool or hammer to bend or shape a metal available in solid state. |
| Tarnish | A dull metal finish or luster due to its exposure to air or dirt that discolors the surface of metal as well as due to reaction between metals and other chemicals which discolors the surface, particularly silver which reacts with sulfur. Tarnish is a form of corrosion. |
| Tin | A silvery metallic element with a low melting point and resistant to corrosion, which is often used as soldering material and alloy for other precious metals. The chemical symbol for tin is Sn. |
| Titanium | Titanium is an ultra-light, but very strong and hypoallergenic metal comes in silvery color. In Jewelry industry, it is generally used for wedding bands and watches. |
| Tola | Tola is a unit of weight mainly used in India which is equal to 180 grains or 0.375 troy ounce or 11.7 grams. Usually gold bars are measured in tolas and the most popular of which is the 10-tola cast bar (3.75 troy oz). |
| Troy Ounce | It is a unit for measuring the weight of precious metal. One troy ounce equals 31.1035 grams or 480 grains (20 pennyweights (dwt) each of 24 grains) or 1.09711 avoirdupois ounces. |
| Tungsten | In Jewelry industry, Tungsten is a fairly new metal which often used for wedding bands. It is four times harder than titanium and resistant to corrosion. |
| Two-Tone | A piece of Jewelry that either uses both white and yellow metals or uses two different tones of same metal. |
| Vacuum Coating | A coating process in which an extremely thin metallic coating is applied generally on very inexpensive metals, by volatilization within a vacuum |
| Vermeil | Vermeil refers to gold plating, with at least 10-karat gold, onto the surface of sterling silver. The finishing looks are very similar to pure gold Jewelry and very hard to differentiate. |
| White Metal | White metal, also known as pot metal, is a mixture of alloys which do not contain any precious metal. |
| Yellow Gold | Yellow gold is the most frequently seen and a timeless color. It is usually alloyed with silver and copper. Depending on the karat gold (14K, 18K or 22K), the color of yellow gold may vary from a softer shimmering yellow to a bright rich yellow. This is due to the varying alloy combinations. The color contrast of yellow gold is most suitable to diamonds and other delicately colored gemstones, as they can appear brilliant and vivid. |
| Zinc | Zinc is a lustrous bluish-white metal from the magnesium-cadmium group and generally alloyed with other precious metals. This metal is also used for coating iron and steel to protect against rust. The chemical symbol for zinc is Zn. |
| Zn | The chemical symbol for zinc. |
