OUR MATERIALS

Silver is a noble material from which we make the majority of our jewelry. Used pure, it is extremely malleable. Even too much. This is why, in jewelry, it's combined with copper to boost its strength. Thus, the 925 hallmark was introduced to guarantee you a minimum of 92.5% pure silver in the alloy of your jewelry. We also speak of sterling silver or solid silver. The official hallmark of 925 silver is an oval shape in which is written the following: AG 925. This is the chemical symbol followed by the proportion of pure silver contained in the alloy. When you buy a piece of jewelry, we advise you to check the hallmark carefully as it guarantees the quality of the jewelry! Rest assured, the fact that it's recycled alters in no way its quality. This just means that it was not extracted from mines especially for the manufacture of our jewelry: it had another life, probably in other sectors of activity such as dentistry, automobiles or electronic. Not very sexy but for sure more ethical!

Gold is an exceptional material because it almost never oxidizes. This property makes it rarer, which is why it has so much value and is used a lot in jewelry. Just like silver, pure gold (24k) is too soft to form solid jewelry. This is why its universal titration is 18 carats or 18k. The carat is a unit of measurement that is equivalent to 1/24th of the jewelry alloy. 18k gold therefore guarantees you a proportion of 18/24ths of pure gold in the alloy of your jewelry. This means that 14k gold has a lower gold percentage, which is why it's more accessible and has a slightly lighter tone. When you buy gold jewelry, it's therefore important to check if it is hallmarked. The hallmark of 18k gold is its chemical symbol followed by its proportion of gold in thousandths: AU 750. These indications are inscribed inside a lozenge shape. At Sample Slow Jewelry, we have done a lot of research to source 100% recycled gold.