Interesting chain!

[MuranoSilver]

Lol - great picture though yep Cooksons what EmmaRose said
get some Solunar style chains in
Nic x

[Charlotte]

Ooooh I love that long almost rectangular shaped chain, sixth in from the left. I tend to get snake, belcher or trace chains, a lot of the others on offer remind me of old fashioned mass made jewellery, so more options would be great!.

[mizgeorge]

Totally agree - more loose chain would be great!

Out of interest, are all those over 7.78g Barbara?

[Di Sandland]

Love the pic - and the chains - Barbara. Maybe Cooksons are looking for a new supplier

BTW - taking this even more off topic (but only for a second) I'm a cockney too!

love
Di
x

[kymbi]

Great assortment of gorgeous chains

How do you get your more delicate silver chains hallmarked? Do you need to have a tag with a soldered ring on the end that can be stamped? Do all the links need to be soldered as well?

Questions, questions ~ until recently I'd not made a bracelet or chain that was heavy enough to be hallmarked and managed to escape the routine, but I made a chainmaille one recently that was over the 7.78g limit and kept it for myself...any old excuse

[Solunar Silver Studio]

Thanks for your sweet comments Kym, Di, George and Charlotte. I didn't realise this post was still live...especially as I gate crashed it!!

The rectangular link one is really just an elongated oval link...and that is the style I have put on my website, unhallmarked, for silver clay users...if they want a fine silver chain for their fine silver creations...

A couple of my heavier designs do go over the weight limit but I decided to go the hallmarking route because I make chains with fine silver...but if I don't hallmark them as 999, who is going to believe they are any different to sterling?...it also means I can do necklace chains too - which often go over the weight limit. I did think about it a lot before I took the plunge...but I'm glad I did. I am registered at Edinburgh - who are supposed to be the best and most sympathetic hallmarkers of silver clay work - and they are really lovely, helpful people. As it happened they were also the cheapest Assay Office to register with.

All of my links need to be fused closed as fine silver is too weak to risk in an open link bracelet and I attach a pmc tag (with a fused link) that has a sort of basic logo for Solunar Silver Studio (but I want to get a proper logo stamp made when I can afford it!). They hallmark the back of the tag - but as the mark is 0.5mm high they said they could put it on the chain if I wanted to have it there.

It is a costly process though...mainly because of the registered post and insurance needed for sending the package both ways...and the Assay Office charge a set rate just to open the package(!!) before they charge for the actual hallmarks...which strangely is only pennies each piece! So it pays to save up a huge stash before sending it off!! But they get it done and returned within 4 or 5 days in my experience - so I'm very happy with them!!

Sorry ! I've written a bit of an essay here!! ...but hope it helps!
Barbara

[bustagasket]

Totally agree - more loose chain would be great!

Out of interest, are all those over 7.78g Barbara?

Ok i know i am new but can someone please explain to me what all this weight obsession is about? is it purely to do with hallmarking or what? cos i cannot get my head round it!

[Solunar Silver Studio]

Yep..just about keeping legal!! Anything over that magic figure (depending on what precious metal you are using) has to be hallmarked by law if you intend to sell it...but I wanted it as a guarantee of metal quality on my chains generally...
I think the lightest chain I do is in the region of 3 grams and they average aroun the 6-7 mark. The large square link one with flowers - which is MINE - and which I have been wearing 24/7 since I made it in February (one hell of a test run!!) weighs around 14 grams...but then again I do have wrists to match my fingers.....hooooooge!! so most of the stuff I wear is heavy man!!
There has been a thread on hallmarking before...and I think it was Nic that gave the full lowdown...Go!...seek it out my friend!!
Barbara

[adaresmith]

The chains shown in the captures are really beautiful... I will surely share this post with my other friends.
Hope they also like the designs and beauty of the jewellery...
Wish to have one..!!!