Frequently Asked Questions - Bronze
Feel free to contact us if you still have questions after reading the information below.
- What is Bronze?
- Why Choose Bronze?
- Are your bronze styles all the same color?
- How does your bronze compare in price to your sterling silver items?
- Do you offer plated bronze?
- Can bronze cause allergic reactions?
- How do you care for bronze?
What is Bronze?
For over 5,000 years, bronze has captivated civilizations with its rich, golden warmth. From ancient sculptures to modern art, this remarkable metal has been prized for its beauty, strength, and ability to age gracefully.
Bronze delivers a coveted warm glow that flatters every skin tone. Bronze jewelry feels luxurious and looks stunning. It's the original golden metal, and today it's your secret to accessible luxury.
Bronze is an alloy that consists of a mixture of copper and tin, approximately 90% copper and 10% tin. Producing bronze is a less toxic process than producing brass. Brass is a combination of copper and zinc, and the manufacturing process often produces zinc oxide which is toxic.
Our natural bronze styles are solid bronze. Our gold plated bronze has a solid core of bronze that is plated in gold.
Why Choose Bronze?
Talking Points for Bronze Sales
- Rich, warm tones that complement any style
- Durable and substantial, made to be worn daily
- 5,000+ years of history in every piece
- A golden glow, beautifully priced
- Perfect for gifting and casual purchases
- The original golden metal
Are your bronze styles all the same color?
Our styles that are cast from a high quality Italian bronze alloy, mixed with precision instruments that ensure a consistent, top-end product.
The bronze alloy includes an anti-tarnish compound. Nevertheless, bronze will naturally tarnish and become darker over time, adding character to the metal. Bronze usually changes color evenly but exposure to chemicals and certain body products may have unpredictable results.
How does your bronze compare in price to your sterling silver items?
Bronze is less expensive and has less cost volatility than precious metals like silver and gold. This allows us to price our natural bronze at a fraction of the cost of sterling silver.
All of our products are priced based on a combination of metal and labor costs. On heavier items, metal is a higher percentage of the total cost than it is for lighter items. This means on heavier items there is a bigger price difference between a bronze item and the same item in sterling silver than there is for lighter items, where metal is a smaller percentage of the total cost.
Likewise, for handmade items labor is a higher percentage of the total cost than for cast items because there is more labor involved in their production. As a result, for most of our Bali styles which are handmade there is a smaller price difference between a bronze item and the same item in sterling silver than there is for our cast items, where labor is a smaller percentage of the total cost.
Additionally, because bronze is a harder metal than silver, it can require more labor to achieve a high quality, shiny finish on a bronze item than a silver item. As a result, some of our smallest bronze styles are actually more expensive than the silver version!
Do you offer plated bronze?
We offer our bronze styles in two finishes: natural bronze and gold plated bronze.
Natural Bronze
The Natural Bronze is a lovely warm color, a bit more earthy than our gold plate finish. Bronze will naturally tarnish and become darker over time, adding character to the metal. There are many products available on the market to add various colored patinas to bronze. Feel free to experiment!
Gold Plated Bronze
Our Gold Plated Bronze has the same gold plate as we use on our Gold Plated Sterling Silver. It is a satin finish with a 24 karat gold color. The plating process uses 98.5% pure gold and is 40 micro inches thick over bronze with a fine layer of nickel in between. The nickel layer increases the longevity and durability of the silver plate by preventing the bronze from migrating up through the gold to the surface.
Please keep in mind that bronze is a harder metal than silver, and it is therefore more difficult to achieve a pristine, smooth surface. On some of our larger, flat items, small imperfections in the surface may be visible through the satin finish gold plate.
The plate is very reliable and popular with our customers. However, as with any plated item, please keep in mind that bending it may cause the gold plate layer to crack.
Can bronze cause allergic reactions?
The quick answer is it depends on the bronze you’re wearing. Our bronze is an alloy of copper and tin. It is a high quality alloy we sourced from Italy. It is mixed with precision instruments and with the highest standards, so we can offer a product we are proud of. But a lot of antique “bronze” jewelry (and perhaps even current production from other sources) also contains nickel and zinc. Our bronze does not contain nickel or zinc.
How do you care for bronze?
One of the benefits of using bronze over other base metals is that much like sterling silver, tarnish can be easily removed with a polishing cloth. Mixed metal jewelry is still quite fashionable and the inclusion of natural bronze with precious metals allows the designer to create economical pieces that will maintain their original finish with proper maintenance.
We do not recommend using a polishing cloth for any of our plated bronze products as the cloth uses micro abrasions that may eventually remove some of the plated surface.