Properties of Sterling Silver

There is no such thing as pure silver beads. Silver is an element that occurs naturally in the earth and is too soft for practical use in silver jewelry making. An alloy such as copper is usually added to make silver workable for silver jewelry. A sterling silver bead is 92.5 percent (925 parts) pure silver and 7.5 percent (75 parts) alloy metal. The alloy minerals vary, but copper is typically used to insure that the Sterling silver can be easily worked into the desired shape. Sterling Silver is used to create silver beads or silver clasps in a variety of shapes and sizes.