Jewelry Design Jewelry Design 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which metal alloy is most commonly used for yellow gold jewelry at 14 karat purity?
- Gold mixed with silver and copper (Correct answer)
- Gold mixed with palladium and silver
- Gold mixed with zinc and nickel
- Gold mixed with platinum and iridium
Correct answer: Gold mixed with silver and copper
14K yellow gold is typically alloyed with silver and copper to achieve the desired color, hardness, and 58.3% gold content.
Question 2: What is the purpose of a 'pickle' solution in jewelry making?
- To add patina to metal surfaces
- To remove oxidation and flux residue after soldering (Correct answer)
- To harden metal through chemical treatment
- To clean gemstones before setting
Correct answer: To remove oxidation and flux residue after soldering
Pickle is an acidic solution (often citric acid or sodium bisulfate) used to remove oxides and flux residue from metal after soldering.
Question 3: In gemology, what does the term 'brilliance' refer to?
- The surface luster of a polished gemstone
- The white light reflected from within a cut stone (Correct answer)
- The rainbow spectral colors seen in a diamond
- The transparency rating of a colored gemstone
Correct answer: The white light reflected from within a cut stone
Brilliance refers to the total white light reflected back through the crown of a faceted gemstone to the viewer's eye.
Question 4: Which setting style leaves the most metal visible around a gemstone?
- Prong setting
- Bezel setting (Correct answer)
- Pave setting
- Channel setting
Correct answer: Bezel setting
A bezel setting wraps a continuous band of metal around the entire perimeter of the stone, leaving the most metal visible.
Question 5: What is 'annealing' in metalworking for jewelry?
- A polishing technique using abrasive compounds
- Heating metal to relieve stress and restore workability (Correct answer)
- A chemical process to add color to metal surfaces
- Joining two metal pieces using a lower-melting filler
Correct answer: Heating metal to relieve stress and restore workability
Annealing involves heating metal to a specific temperature and allowing it to cool slowly, relieving internal stresses and restoring malleability.
Question 6: What does 'gauge' refer to when selecting wire for jewelry making?
- The purity level of the metal wire
- The thickness or diameter of the wire (Correct answer)
- The tensile strength rating of the wire
- The length of wire in a coil
Correct answer: The thickness or diameter of the wire
Gauge refers to the wire's diameter, where a higher gauge number indicates thinner wire in the American Wire Gauge (AWG) system.
Question 7: Which type of solder has the highest melting point and is used first when making multiple solder joins on one piece?
- Easy solder
- Medium solder
- Hard solder (Correct answer)
- Soft solder
Correct answer: Hard solder
Hard solder has the highest melting point and is used for the first join so subsequent lower-temperature solders won't re-melt it.
Jewelry Design Jewelry Design 2
Which metal alloy is most commonly used for yellow gold jewelry at 14 karat purity?