Casual Maille

• Stainless Steel:  This is a strong, heavy, shiny metal.  Some people                              prefer the weight, you know you are wearing steel!  

                               It has a generally masculine look/feel, but many                                      awesome ladies (including my wife) prefer it.  It will                                not rust and requires no maintenance.  I use                  machine cut, which is not as smooth as saw cut, but I personally              prefer this more rustic style for stainless.  I have not gotten any              complaints of roughness, but I can obtain the smooth saw cut if you        prefer.  It contains some nickel, so sensitive skin may want to avoid.

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• Anodized Aluminum:  This is a very light, shiny metal that comes in                            many beautiful colors.  Some people prefer the                                  airy lightness of it, you can easily forget that it is                              on.  I only use smooth saw cut for this metal.  See                              the section AA Colors for what I have on hand.  A                              chemical process (that I don't really understand) is used to add a color coating to aluminum.  The colors look good in pictures, they look great in person.  They will not rust and require no maintenance.  The color can be scratched or chipped, though after the jewelry is made, I'm not sure how this could happen without trying.  It usually only happens when the pliers snap down by accident (these get discarded).  As it contains no Nickel, it should not irritate sensitive skin.

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• Sterling Silver:  Not to be confused with "Bright Silver" which is a                               color of anodized aluminum or "Nickel Silver" aka                             "German Silver" which is an alloy of of Copper,                                   Nickel, and Zinc.  Sterling is 92.5%, also available is                           the softer, more pure, more expensive 99.9% Fine                             Silver.  TRL silver is a "special anti-tarnish sterling silver alloy made just for us!"  It is still Sterling, but tarnishes slower, and eventual tarnish "is easily removed with a chemical silver polish."  This is a metal for people with the most sensitive skin, or semi-expensive tastes.  I am confidant that my silver prices are very reasonable.  To compare, the most important thing to consider is gram weight, which will give you price per gram.  Secondary is ring size:  the larger the gague number = the thinner the ring.  The larger the ID fraction/centimeter number = the bigger the hole.  Ex:  18 gague 5/32" (10/64") rings would give a thicker, heavier chain than 20 gague 9/64" rings. (don't confuse gauge size with gram weight-both may be "g")