Handmade Gemstone Jewelry - the high price of silver!

Fire agate pendant necklace
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Is silver going to be the new gold? Maybe not, but it isn't going to be cheap.

In 1999 silver was under $5.00 an ounce for most of the year. In 2005 it was under $8.00 an ounce most of the year. Then it started to creep up and reached $19.00 an ounce in 2008. The price was expected to keep going up, but the recession slowed the price down.

It's on the rise again, and today it hit $23.14 an ounce.

So the good news is that the price of silver is going up - and the bad news is that the price of silver is going up - and is expected to keep going up, up and away. Investors are buying it, and industrialists are buying it too, as it has many industrial applications. The price is not expected to go down because of the increase of industrial demand.

So where does that leave those of us who make and buy silver jewelry? Not in a real good place. The choices are few: pay the price for silver, use other less expensive metals, or don't use much metal at all.

The increase may not be obvious for a while, as manufacturers and jewelry artists use their current stock. However, some of my suppliers have already raised their prices.

I said this a year ago, because the experts said it, and the price of silver stayed pretty much the same, again because of the recession.

The experts now expect the price to keep going up. I'm no expert. I'm just passing on what I know.

So just a word to the wise - if you want to buy anything made of silver - do it now! One thing seems pretty certain - the price isn't going down. That's what the experts say.