Hill Tribe Rings

Hill Tribe silver is made by the Karen people of northern Thailand, using techniques passed down through generations. Each piece is worked and stamped by hand, so the patterns carry small variations that machine production can't reproduce.

It's the human quality that people fall for — you can see where the tool met the metal.

Yes, typically. Karen Hill Tribe silver usually runs between 95% and 99% pure, compared with sterling's 92.5%. This higher silver content makes it closer to fine silver, and gives each piece a warmer tone with a matte, satin-like finish rather than a high shine. Rest assured that every Hill Tribe piece we sell is above 92.5% purity.

Pure silver is naturally a soft metal — the copper in sterling is added precisely to harden it, and Hill Tribe silver contains less of it. That extra give is why so many Hill Tribe pieces are made as adjustable or wraparound designs. Less copper also means less to react with the air, so Hill Tribe silver is slower to tarnish than sterling.

Many are. Wraparound and open-band designs can be adjusted gently — opened out for a looser fit, or pressed inwards to tighten — which helps if you're between sizes, or if you want to move a ring between fingers or wear one as a thumb ring! Each product page says whether a design is adjustable or a fixed size — and for the fixed sizes, our ring size guide has the measurements.

Because our Hill Tribe rings are made by hand. Stamped patterns land in marginally different places and textures vary, so no two pieces are identical — that's the nature of the craft rather than a flaw.

Hill Tribe silver is slower to tarnish than sterling, thanks to its higher purity — but it's a softer metal, so it wants a little more care against knocks than a hard-wearing sterling band.

To keep your Hill Tribe pieces looking their best:

• Store them separately rather than loose with harder items, in an airtight container away from air, water and light.
• Put jewellery on last — after makeup, perfume, hairspray and creams — and remove it before bathing or showering.
• If tarnish does appear, buff with the polishing cloth included with your order, or use a silver cleaning solution to restore the shine. Go gently around stamped detailing so the pattern stays crisp, and avoid abrasive polishes and dip solutions, which can flatten hand-worked texture.