All of the items offered are designed and handmade in the USA by Crowsnest Designs. We use a variety of materials, but most items include a mixture of sterling silver beads and gemstones.
The sterling silver beads are mostly handmade beads from the Hill Tribes of Thailand, and no two beads will therefore be exactly the same. We never use anything silver-plated or beads made from pewter (such products may contain lead or nickel, which can cause allergies), so if something looks like silver in the photograph, it is sterling silver. We refer to the silver as sterling silver (which contains 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper), but often the silver of the Hill Tribes products is actually purer with a silver content of up to 99%.
The gemstones are natural products, and many stones are slightly irregular and have what are called inclusions or matrices. This is what gives natural stones special character and is part of their charm.
All bracelets and necklaces are strung on special jewelry wire made up of 49 strands of stainless steel, which means that they are extremely flexible and at the same time very durable. The only exceptions are a few items that are strung on leather cord or memory wire.
