# Korean Rhinestone Quality



## jwaldmann (Aug 12, 2012)

Hi guys,

Can someone explain the following to me?
Are there various grades of Korean crystals? Grade A... Grade B?

What is the difference between the two?

Also... is there such a thing as Eco Friendly Lead Free Korean rhinestone crystals?

Thanks.
J.


----------



## BlingItOn (May 29, 2008)

I can't answer the question about the grading system for rhinestones. I've seen some suppliers mention Grade A, AA and AAA in the description title but there was never any details explaining how it was graded. It might represent a Chinese, Korean or Machine Cut?

There is however a leaded and low lead version of the Korean cut rhinestone. This is becoming very popular to purchase because of the new lead laws that took in effect for items being sold to children 13 years and younger. If you are planning on selling any of your items to this age group then you will want to consider purchasing a low lead version of the rhinestone. I don't think there is a low lead version offered in the Chinese rhinestone but I'm pretty sure that someone mentioned that Swarovski now has a low lead rhinestone. Not sure if any other higher quality rhinestones come in the low lead.


----------



## tankueray (Apr 16, 2010)

jwaldmann said:


> Also... is there such a thing as Eco Friendly Lead Free Korean rhinestone crystals?


Pet peeve of mine....

No, Lead Free would have to be be plastic, low lead is more accurate. There's a small amount of lead in everything on the planet, even you. At levels lower than detectable limits or health-effects thresholds, a product is often mislabeled as "Lead Free".

Eco Friendly is a marketing term, there are no standards to meet and no authority that grants license to products that label themselves as such. Just like "green" and "environmentally friendly"...It's called greenwashing.

The only word in that product that may be accurate without being contradictory is "Korean".

As far as grading, it's not standardized either. The factory makes it up. The "#1 Shiny Korean Triple Quadruple AAAA+++!!!" stone from one factory may be poorer quality than the cheapest Chinese stone from another factory.

Yes, Swarovski's new product line is of a lower lead content than its prior line, however there are some colors that still will not meet CPSC standards for children's products. They also have a different glue that is harder to counterfeit, it's a metallic copper color (see below).


----------

