since the beginning of time we have adorned ourselves with embellishments of found natural materials... shells, bone, feather, stone & wood... just to name a few...

From prehistory we humans have been making a statement of our individuality with items of 'jewellery' to standout in the crowd,   feel good about ourselves & or to show our wealth & status to peers & even adversaries

& to be more appealing to potential mates...

Evidence suggests the first known examples of crafted adornments date back some 75,000 years, some of those examples were made from animals skin, but for the most part before the industrial age organic material such as bone, stone & wood all formed part of jewellery making from early times.

Then as now we use our natural environment to source our inspiration & product to create beautiful pieces of jewellery to add something to our life.

With the refining of the first metals came the ability to enhance as well as make more durable & interesting accompaniments for the natural elements we already were using.

Our fascination with jewellery dates back many millennia, the Egyptians had such flair for creating extraordinary jewellery that it is often this period of history that is brought to mind when thinking of jewellery in historical terms.

Jewellery communicates with us as much as the wearer might.

The alluring woman wearing the dazzling necklace brings emphasis to her décolletage, the belly dancer wears her jewels to add attraction to her hip, arm & leg movement within her stunning display.

We use a wedding band to make a statement about our connection to our partner in life, to each other & the outside world.

We give jewellery to say thank you, I love you or appreciation for your good service & loyalty.

It has an intrinsic value that can often be more valuable then the actual price tag, a beautiful piece of jewellery may not cost a kings ransom but may give much to the wearer in confidence & self esteem in being happy & free to say I am worthy of such beauty.

It is important to our well being to be able to have something lovely that makes us feel good. It gives us something extra when others notice & comment 'that necklace makes your eye colour standout' or 'those earrings look great on you'.

After we have organized the most basic yet so very important & essential of our needs, a roof over our head, water & food for our belly & being, clean clothes to wear as well as hopefully a good income source to keep all that a thing; then being able to afford something a little special like a nice piece of jewellery is a bonus we ought all be able to give ourselves & gift to others...

The first time I was able to buy my first ring was really special, yes I had bought jewellery before when gifted some money for a birthday or such, but to save a little from my first pay & go into my favourite shop & buy that sterling silver ring with the tiny turquoise stone was pretty bonza!

Sterling Silver...need to know

pre-treated with gentle chemicals to restore silver's natural brilliance, although most any soft cloth will do the trick preferably soft cotton or other natural fabric.  you could also keep your silver jewellery in a small fabric bag or similar to keep it nice & therefore ready to wear only requiring a quick polish when you want to wear it.

ref: https://www.jewelry-auctioned.com/learn/buying-jewelry/sterling-silver-vs-925-silver