... and now for something completely different...
jewelry from MBoot Designs
by Cynthia & David Ryder
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... and now for something completely different... |
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jewelry from MBoot Designs by Cynthia & David Ryder |
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1. What is …and now for something completely different… jewelry? It is individually handcrafted one of a kind, juried and award winning art jewelry. It is made with quality materials, and unusual and colourful precious and semi-precious stones. This jewelry is available only from the artists, David & Cynthia Ryder, at select retail shows or from select galleries. Either way, you are directly supporting our artistry with your appreciation. Top
2. What is art jewelry and why should I buy it? Art jewelry is a growing trend amongst jewelry wearers who are not satisfied with wearing mass-produced items. It is handcrafted and is often one of a kind jewelry. An art jewelry purchase says that you are both savvy and chic. Wearing the piece shows your uniqueness, artistic nature, and good taste. It can be prestigious to own and it always shows your appreciation of art. Art jewelry is collected to satisfy the aesthetic sense; because it's fun to wear. It can be a solid investment. Its value is not the sum of the parts but also the design, uniqueness and techniques of construction. You can be proud of wearing art jewelry as you will often be noticed and complimented. Collect your heart's desire with confidence because it's a unique opportunity to wear a beautiful, original creation. Top
3. What Is wire wrapped jewelry? Wire Wrapped Jewelry is created by using some techniques that date back over 5000 years and are frequently unique to this art (speculation is that it began in early Egypt or Phoenicia). The cold-connect methods used in this type of jewelry requires no soldering, heat or chemicals. Since it is completely hand crafted no two pieces ever look the same. It may be delicate in appearance but it is quite durable and as with all jewelry, using care and common sense, these pieces will last you a lifetime. Top
4. What is the metal in the jewelry? We use Sterling Silver for the majority of our work. Some pieces may include 14KGF, 18KYG, copper or polymer coated wire. Top
5. What is Sterling Silver {925} and German silver? Do you use German silver? Sterling silver, also referred to or stamped 925 is a precious metal. The sterling silver that we purchase for use contains 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% copper, another pure element, which helps harden the metal. Fine Silver is 99.9% pure and is too soft to use in the majority of our jewelry. We never use German silver in our creations. It is a base metal with nickel as a prime component and is also known as nickel silver and sometimes referred to as Mexican silver. It contains no silver at all. Top 6. What is 14K Gold fill or 14/20?14 Karat Gold fill is not electro-plated. Gold fill is a process that bonds a solid layer of gold, in this case 14K, 1/20 or 5% by weight, onto the alloy of jeweler’s brass through heat and pressure. This is a mechanical process and the quantity and quality of gold used means that the price of 14KGF will fluctuate with the gold market prices. It is very user friendly and far heavier in true gold weight than electro-plated items. It will not chip away as is often the case with electro-plated items. Most electro-plate or gold-plate is only 10K as well. A 14/20 Gold fill piece is usually considered a lifetime piece of jewelry and will match your 14K jewelry in color. There are collections of Victorian era gold-filled jewelry pieces that are still in very good shape. Today there are very few commercial jewelry items using this metal and commercial production runs are done in gold electro-plate to keep the costs down. Top
7. I would like an item that I see on your site, can I order it? Yes, but with some conditions. We do try to keep up with this but an item may have already been sold and may not be marked sold. Please read the following information for more information on this topic: Shipping and Return Policy Top
8. Can I have jewelry custom made? As a general rule, the answer is "No". We may choose to make exceptions if the work that you are seeking is really similar in style to what we already do or if you looking for a modification of a current piece of our work. If you are seeking custom work, we have access to a large community of metal artists and will try to recommend someone in your area. Top
9. Can I have clip-on earrings? Yes, we can convert the “hooks” to clip-on but they are only silver toned, not sterling silver . We currently do not have clip-on pieces in gold tone. Top
Our rings are each unique and their size is on the tag. Some rings can be slightly altered in size. We may be able to enlarge a ring by about a quarter size if it does NOT affect the mounted stones or beads. We can also make a ring approximately a half size smaller by "wrapping the shank" if it is not already wrapped. This involves adding 1/2round wire wrapped all the way around the shank. There will be an additional fee of $5.00 for wrapping the shank. Top
11. Do you write or do names in wire? No, but we do know some people who do a great job of just that and would be pleased to recommend them to you. Top
12. Why won’t we create a piece for you? You have asked for work that we are either unable to do, because it does not fit into our style or it involves techniques that we are not comfortable using for custom work. You have asked for the duplication of another artist’s copyrighted work. You may have asked for a deadline for your item that we are unable to meet, as we cannot fit your creation into our schedule. In instances where we are unable or unwilling to do your project we would be pleased to offer you information about artists who may be better suited to doing the work. Top
13. Do you have a Return Policy or a Cancellation Policy? We value your satisfaction with our jewelry. Please read the following for a thorough explanation of our policies: Shipping and Return Policy. Top
14. What is your guarantee and if my jewelry needs repair, what can I do? Our guarantee provides you with confidence and security in the quality of your purchase: We are pleased to offer a quality jewelry item and extend a guarantee of workmanship. Should the metal in your piece break or the stone come loose, in normal use during the first year of ownership, we will rebuild the piece upon receipt of our original effort and stone/bead. If the damage occurred due to misuse or an accident, please contact us so we can give you an estimate of the repair cost. A charge to replace lost stones will also apply and we do not cover your return shipping costs, insurance for shipping, or loss during transit to us. We do not guarantee against loss or theft. Top
15. What does it mean when you say…? Available – currently available for purchase, it is likely one of a kind too Limited Edition - there is more than one, but it may also mean supplies are limited as well SS/925 - Sterling, Sterling Silver 14/20 or 14KGF – 14 Karat Gold fill 18KYG - 18 karat yellow gold SP Stones - Semi-precious stones include familiar ones like amethyst and quartz, as well as lesser-known stones such as sard-onyx and aventurine Fresh Water Pearls - these are natural pearls harvested from fresh-water mollusks that have been seeded with small bits of shell or glass Faux pearls - these are simulated pearls, made from glass beads covered with a pearlescent coating Faux… - means fake Top
Yes, we do wholesale. Please visit the following page for our wholesale line: Wholesale. All shops or galleries that represent us are carefully selected, and are often are owned and operated by other small business owners and artisans who have an eye for quality and a good understanding of art and the nature of handcrafting. Please do not waste your time soliciting us to buy from you. We are not interested in carrying finished goods from another company. Top
17. How do I clean my jewelry? Treat this jewelry as you would any other gold or silver jewelry. When it is not being worn, we have found success in keeping tarnish at bay by wrapping it in aluminum foil, or plastic wrap, and by keeping it in a dry place. You may use any commercial jewelry silver cleaner, but always pay attention to all warnings in regards to using it with soft stones, pearls and other organics such as amber. We are not responsible for the results of jewelry cleaners. Two inexpensive cleaning solutions are: 1) Line a heatproof glass bowl with aluminum foil, shiny side out. Add a spoonful of washing soda ( a laundry detergent booster) in the bowl and carefully add enough hot tap water to cover the jewelry to be cleaned. Place jewelry in the bowl in contact with the foil. This is particularly good at cleaning heavy tarnish from silver. Please be careful as it will also remove antiquing that has been purposefully applied to the silver. Rinse well and dry with a soft clean cloth. We find this to be a non-abrasive cleaning solution that is also gentle on organics and soft stones. 2) This is a quick way to clean a piece of sterling jewelry in an emergency such as when you have an encounter with a chlorine which will blacken silver. Using ordinary toothpaste (including gel formulas) and a soft cloth or toothbrush, apply paste to the item and gently rub, rinse well and dry with a soft clean cloth. We do not recommend this option as a regular cleaning solution as the toothpaste is an abrasive and will scratch. Lastly a safe alternative for all your jewelry is a rouge cloth. We like the Connoisseurs line of jewelry cleaning cloths, which are available at many department store jewelry counters. You may wish to rinse the piece after cleaning, in case rouge is irritating to your skin. Top
18. mboot - what does that mean? Mboot is an acronym that we started using in 1998, shortly after we met one another. We feel that it represents how some people perceived the decisions that we were making... Must Be Outta Our Trees. Top
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