Care Instructions

Hand stamping involves striking a hammer to create an impression into metal. That impression is then filled with ink and allowed to dry. This gives the lettering colour and definition. 

The following hints and tips will help keep your item looking new;

• Avoid getting your item wet as this could encourage tarnishing and encourage the 'ink' to fade. Avoid getting hairspray or perfume on your item and do not wear in the bath, shower, swimming, sauna, hot tub or steam room. Certain metals can dull over time and we would recommend cleaning with mild soap and water and buffing with a soft cloth to shine. Products such as Everbrite will clean and protect metal. Mild household abrasives such as toothpaste are also commonly used to clean jewellery. 

If over time, your item does dull, lose its shine or your wording fades, you may send it to us whereby we will endeavour to polish and re-ink your wording. We do not guarantee that your item will look 'new' but will endeavour to achieve best results. You, the customer, will be responsible for postage both ways however our maintenance service is free of charge and is applicable for the life of your jewellery and whilst Stamping Street continue to trade. If you request for parts to be replaced or your jewellery to be amended or added to, additional costs will apply. 

We do not recommend or suggest that you purchase our items for children. It is your responsibilty to assess the age of the child that the item is intended for. Our products are certainly not suitable for children under the age of 36 months.

Whilst maximum care is taken to minimise sharp edges, our items are made of metal and we will not be held responsible for injury caused by misuse or without due care or attention.

It is common for hand stamping to leave a slight impression or mark on the reverse of the metal. Each individual letter is hammered by hand to leave an indentation in which ink is inserted. The excess metal is therefore forced outwards. For this reason, we cannot stamp on both sides of the metal as it will distort the lettering and weaken the metal itself. This imperfection is considered part of the appeal of buying handmade and is certainly not to be considered a flaw. Please do not confuse hand stamping with engraving which merely scratches the surface and is mostly achieved by machinary creating a precise and different finish on often mass produced items.

• Scratching. Slight scratching can occur on some of the soft metals we use such as aluminium. Soft metals are vital so that as humans, we can apply sufficient pressure to make a deep enough impression by hand. The metal goes through certain processes after stamping to harden it, however please still expect a minimal amount of surface scratching.

The properties of individual metals aluminium, copper, brass and pewter and further care instructions for each metal, can be found here.