Post updated: Oct 9, 2020
When you are going to purchase gold jewelry, you can get confused by the abundance of all kinds of products that fill the domestic jewelry market. Italian gold has always had a special place among domestic consumers. Gold jewelry from the Apennine Peninsula is deservedly considered one of the most expensive and elite.
The cost of gold products largely depends on the cost of an ounce of metal on the world market. But the work of the master jeweler who produced the product is also not the least important factor in determining the price. Jewelry products from Italy are made using a special technology that has no analogues in the world.
- How to avoid counterfeiting?
- What makes Italian gold different?
- What's in fashion now?
- Caring for your jewelry
How to avoid counterfeiting?
Italy is one of the largest gold exporters in the world. Such popularity also has a negative effect - in a number of countries they have learned to counterfeit gold jewelry so that an ignorant person cannot distinguish it from the original. Costume jewelry made to look like Italian precious jewelry is very similar to the real thing, which is handmade using real aurum. Fraudsters are constantly inventing new manufacturing methods, and now in almost every market you can see high-quality fakes of all kinds of products of Italian origin. To purchase authentic jewelry made in Italy, you must follow these guidelines.
Products made from Italian gold must have a certificate. If the seller does not have such a document, then with almost 100% probability he is selling counterfeits without gold content.
Any jewelry sold in a jewelry store must be labeled indicating the country of origin. Its absence on the product means illegal and illegal sale on the territory of Russia, and it is good if it is a real product made of gold, and not costume jewelry.
Thus, it is best to purchase jewelry from Italy in special jewelry stores, or in departments of shopping centers. The most reliable option would be to buy gold in the producing country, but traveling to Rome, Venice, Milan and other Italian cities is prohibitively expensive for many people. Therefore, you can purchase products from Italian jewelers and jewelry companies in the capital and major cities of our country.
Such a variety of gold
It is quite difficult for an ordinary person who does not understand precious metals to answer how these or other types of gold differ from each other, besides the fact that most often it comes in 585 or 750 samples. Those who do not know what a hallmark is need to take a close look at the clasp of the chain or bracelet, or the inside of the ring (photo).
Gold content
Three small numbers confirm the authenticity of the product and indicate how much pure gold is contained in the alloy. On products with 75% pure metal content, a 750 standard is used. Where there is less than 50% of the precious metal, namely 41.5%, they put the mark 585. The most elite is 999 gold, such jewelry is almost entirely (96%) made of yellow gold.
Gold is also classified according to the following criteria:
- According to the extraction method. There are ore gold and alluvial gold, mined by washing sand.
- By color:
- Yellow. Its purity is 585, which means that it consists of pure metal and impurities in a 1:1 ratio.
- White. The ligature for white gold is light-colored metals - nickel, palladium or platinum.
- Red. This type of gold gets its red tint due to its high copper content.
- Gray. It is easy to confuse it with white gold, but unlike the first, its alloy necessarily includes silver.
- Black. Quite an expensive metal, which includes sulfur, chromium and cobalt. Additionally, black gold products are coated with a layer of rhodium.
- By manufacturer. Spain, UAE, Italy and France are the largest jewelry producers and exporters of precious metals.
a gold bracelet
What makes Italian gold different?
Italian gold jewelry can almost always be distinguished by color from products from other countries. Gold from the Apennine Peninsula does not have a reddish tint, and if the seller assures that reddish gold was brought from there, feel free to refuse the purchase, they are trying to sell you a fake.
The appearance of the product can also say a lot: if a chain, pendant, ring or other product looks light, sophisticated and openwork, then this is the signature style of the Italian master; reviews of such products are always excellent.
Italian gold is processed using a special technology that has been kept secret for several generations of jewelers. The technology of making gold products is carefully protected by Italian jewelry families, who pass it on to the younger generation in the process of learning.
There is also the concept of sample, which demonstrates the amount of metal in a solid alloy with other components. Gold of any standard in Italy is produced using a unique technology that is not repeated in any jewelry house.
High-quality Italian gold must certainly be polished, which is another indicator of the quality of the jewelry and determines its appearance in the photo. Attention to detail is one of the main advantages of Italian products made from precious metals; this trait has also been adopted by costume jewelry, which is quite easily confused with real jewelry.
Italian jewelers most often use 585 and 750 gold, which are painted in different shades. But more often, 750-carat gold is always used, from which most jewelry collections are made. However, some masters even produce jewelry collections only from 585 gold.
Use of gold in production
585 gold, used to make Italian jewelry, is distinguished by the absence of a reddish tint. The technology of jewelry production is one of the most closely guarded secrets of Italian craftsmen, who pass on the secrets from generation to generation.
The most common alloys used by jewelers are 18 and 14 karat gold, which corresponds to 750 and 585 karat gold. The composition of the alloy and the alloy production technology is a professional secret of the manufacturers.
Mostly an alloy marked 18 carat is used to make jewelry. However, the dominance of a certain type of alloy when creating jewelry collections is the preference of the master himself. Among the distinctive features of modern products by Italian craftsmen are the meticulous elaboration of decorative elements, the skillful combination of thin openwork components with additional materials.
What's in fashion now?
Italian jewelers have been setting the tone for European fashion for gold jewelry for many centuries, and our time is no exception. Jewelry from this country with embedded precious stones does not lose its fans all over the world. The good thing about Italian accessories is that among all the jewelry works of art, there are examples in any style and for every taste.
But fashion trends have not bypassed the Italian jewelry industry. Now among the ornaments, floral and leaf patterns predominate, adding exoticism to any image. Particularly exquisite and popular are the formats of Italian gold jewelry that look like buds or flower bouquets.
The more closely the ring’s ornament resembles a real plant, the more trendy and stylish the decoration is. This gold ring is called the best gift for the bride, with which the groom expresses his attitude towards the girl. Such products are almost always based on diamonds.
Italian jewelry at the production stage is combined from different types of gold:
- Pink;
- White;
- Yellow.
In modern Italian products, such combinations are considered classic. And the combination of emeralds, sapphires and diamonds is one of the most common in flower arrangements.
Jewelry from Europe is also a skillful combination of contrasting things. Italian gold can be of three shades, but stones contrasting with them, both precious and semi-precious, provide considerable scope for designers to experiment.
Jewelers in their works quite skillfully combine different textures of stones in order to highlight the accents of each, even the most insignificant element.
Famous Italian brands of jewelry
Versace has released its own Orchid jewelry line.
An analysis of the jewelry market indicates the leading position of Italian craftsmen in the field of trendsetter for products with precious and semi-precious stones. It is customary to use a variety of styles and combine precious stones in products:
- emeralds;
- sapphires;
- diamonds.
Italian jewelry contains floral patterns and compositions, details with imitation of flowers, leaves, and buds. The realistic resemblance to a natural flower makes the item more valuable, stylish and elegant. The cores of the products are decorated with diamonds. When creating modern jewelry in Italy, they use a combination of alloys of various shades:
- pink;
- yellow;
- white.
The contrast of colors, achieved through the use of alloys of different shades, is one of the external distinctive features of jewelry from Italy. Craftsmen skillfully combine stones of different textures and appearances, creating the uniqueness of each element of the product.
The main brands of gold from Italy are characterized by the uniqueness of their products, which have a sophisticated design and color combination. The most popular jewelry brands are:
- Arando – handmade watches and unique jewelry;
- Bucciarati is a brand of an Italian dynasty of jewelers with a large number of branches in many countries;
- Bulgari – distinguished by its special design of watches and accessories;
- Damiani is a brand of jewelry made of precious metals with diamonds and watches.
Caring for your jewelry
Caring for such products does not require special care. A wooden box is best suited for storing such things, and each element must be hidden separately in a plastic or fabric bag. Chains and bracelets are stored straightened so that none of the joints are crooked.
After removing the jewelry, wipe it with a piece of flannel cloth. Well, in order to avoid troubles, it is better not to wear jewelry during physical work; Italian gold is softer than domestic gold and therefore may not withstand stress.
Jewelry from abroad does not tolerate all kinds of chemicals, and they must be cleaned with soapy water. But if there are a lot of such jewelry, or they are expensive, then it would be better to purchase special equipment for caring for precious items.
When heading for gold in Italy, don’t forget to pack a magnifying glass in your suitcase!
Today we will continue our conversation about Italian gold jewelry. In the previous article “Italian gold: oh, how I want to wear it!”
I promised to answer specific questions from a tourist who might want to add to his jewelry collection while visiting Italy for a short while.
To do this, I imagined a person who read that Italian gold
is valued all over the world, most often has a 750 standard and is distinguished by its yellow color, but he does not know how to actually approach the purchase.
I myself am a bad expert in this matter.
In order to give you competent advice, you need to interview someone who has been selling gold all his life. Meet Cristiano Ravaioli. He owns a family jewelry store in the center of our city, from which I sometimes report on the latest trends in jewelry fashion... You already know Cristiano from some of my articles, for example, we went together to a jewelry exhibition in Vicenza, and not so long ago he talked about fashionable things summer 2013.
— Christiano, tell us about yourself. How did you get into this business?
— My father, returning from Venezuela, where he was in exile, opened his first store in 1965. I was still a schoolboy, I rode my bike to the city center after school and helped him. I liked talking with customers, of which we always had a lot...
- Let's start with the question with which many begin to think about buying gold jewelry. What kind of gold is sold in Italy?
— Mostly yellow, but also white and pink.
There is no need to be deceived about white gold - not much of it is mined in the world, so stores often sell yellow gold that has undergone a rhodium plating procedure under the brand name of white gold. Over time, the top, white layer wears off, and yellowness appears underneath, which means the product must be rhodium-plated again. By the way, I do this in my laboratory.
Ninety-five percent of the gold sold in Italy is 750, also called 18-karat.
— Let’s say a buyer comes to you and asks what he should buy: a chain, a ring, earrings?.. What do you recommend?
— Mostly people come already knowing what they are looking for. For example: “Give me small silver cat earrings for my daughter.” But sometimes they ask for advice for a gift.
From my point of view, it makes more sense to buy a bracelet. Women, at least in Italy, have almost stopped wearing rings. Yes, and with the size you can not guess, then go and adjust it.
But they wear bracelets, and now there is a fashion for three, five, or even more pieces at a time. In second place are earrings, especially studs. People used to buy them willingly, and the trend has continued.
- Such a paradox. Russian-speaking tourists come to you and try to buy gold, being confident that in their homeland, in Italy, its quality is guaranteed. On the other hand, there is a fear that they will be deceived, because many do not know the language and have no idea where to turn if they find themselves a victim of a scam...
- I understand the question. In Italy, gold is not sold in the markets, it is sold only by shops that have a license and a number of other serious documents... But... Theoretically, you can be deceived in a store, replacing, for example, 18-karat gold with nine-karat...
- How can you protect yourself?
— You need to look at the product: the sample is always indicated on it.
True, it’s very small, you can’t see it without a magnifying glass, but any jewelry store has a magnifying glass, you can ask for it. There is another sign, usually a set of numbers and letters. For example, “1155 AR” means that the manufacturing company has number 1155 in the register of jewelry companies in the city of Arezzo.
If you know where to look, you won't be fooled.
— On the question of shopping: is it possible to ask for a discount in a jewelry store?
- Well, of course! (Laughs.) In Italy, it is customary to bargain everywhere, including when buying jewelry.
- How much?
- Well, ten percent, five, maybe even fifteen. Depends on the value of the purchase, on the seller, on your mood. It is better, of course, to deal with the store owner; he is most interested in making a discount and retaining the buyer.
Although it happens that a person leaves satisfied without a discount, and also vice versa.
Yesterday a customer came and brought back earrings that she had bought a few days ago for very substantial money. The saleswoman recommended them to her, made a discount, but did not take into account one detail - the customer’s ears were small, and these bulky earrings simply did not suit her.
I had to accept them and choose something less heavy in return.
The buyer was so glad that they listened to her and helped her choose what suited her perfectly, that she also ordered a chain with a pendant. As a result, she left more money than the first time, but her eyes shone with joy. The purchase brought her real pleasure.
The issue of trust is very important here. Finding “your” jeweler is like finding yourself a hairdresser. You asked how not to be deceived in a jewelry store; foreign tourists have such a fear. They are not
know the language, they are in a foreign country. Buying jewelry becomes enjoyable when you trust the person you are buying from. This is a question of fashion, money, and your image; the seller must take all this into account. I realized for myself that I must put myself in the client’s shoes, understand what he wants, what he needs, then everything will go smoothly and he will return to me more than once.
- Yes, and he will bring more friends and relatives
