Silver plated refers to jewellery created by covering a base metal, such as copper or brass, in a very thin layer of sterling silver. The coating can be anywhere from 1 micron to 10 microns thick.

An alloy made up of roughly half copper and half zinc, which has a nice yellow color. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. It has a bright-gold appearance, which, for centuries, has made it a popular material to be used in a wide array of pieces of jewelry.