Why we finish our silver in rhodium

People sometimes ask why we work in silver rather than white gold. The honest answer is that, finished the way we finish it, we think it makes the better piece - and we would rather explain than pretend the question away.

Sterling, for the body

We cast in 925 sterling silver - 92.5% pure, alloyed just enough to hold a crisp edge and a satisfying weight in the hand. Pure silver is too soft to keep a fine setting; sterling is the balance jewellers have trusted for centuries, hard enough to protect a stone and warm enough to feel like something.

Rhodium, for the surface

Every piece is then plated in rhodium, a rare member of the platinum family. Rhodium is brilliantly white, harder than the silver beneath it, and it does not tarnish - so the piece keeps its mirror finish far longer than bare silver ever could, with the look of platinum at a fraction of the cost.

Living with it

A little everyday care keeps it at its best: take pieces off before swimming or the gym, keep them away from perfume and lotion, and store them dry and apart so they do not scratch one another. None of it is fussy - it is the same care that keeps anything good, good.

And when, after years of wear, the finish does soften? That is what our lifetime care is for. Bring the piece home and we will re-finish it, good as the day it left the atelier.