At this time of year, with Christmas fast approaching, everyone needs a little extra cash, and whilst the price of gold may have reached record highs, not everyone wants to sell their treasured possessions. A more direct way of unlocking the value of your items is to pawn them.

When you pawn items such as jewellery, watches, antique silver, you are using your own assets as collateral (security) for a loan.

Typical pawn loans are for a period of six or seven months, and you simply pay the interest due and redeem your item with a single payment – either at the end of the six or seven month term , or earlier if you wish.

So when you need to pay unforeseen bills, and easy way of raising quick cash can be to use your own valuable items as security for a loan, either until things improve, or next pay day, or until the end of the loan term. Usually, you can repay the loan and then immediately take it out again; you simply continue to pay the monthly interest- in fact a high percentage of people who pawn their items become repeat customers.

Following the recent banking crisis it has become more difficult to borrow or obtain a loan from banks, so pawnbroking offers a very viable and convenient option. It is important to check and compare interest rates as these differ, and also whether the pawnbroker makes any additional charges for early redemption, lost ticket, or storage.

The internet is now proving a very popular comparison site, and new companies such as www.PawnDirect.co.uk process the majority of transactions and loan requests on line. This discreet and confidential service avoids the need to visit a shop. All dealings are direct and secure and provide a quick, safe and secure solution to short term cash and cash flow problems.

Gerry Barnett is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and a company director of www.pawndirect.co.uk. Pawndirect.co.uk are experienced pawnbrokers, members of the National Pawnbrokers Association.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/jewelry-articles/pawnbroking-convenient-alternative-for-a-crisis-1598037.html

We have adorned ourselves with jewellery since time immemorial, so has the recession impacted on the jewellery we are buying?

Undoubtedly because of the record highs in gold prices this year, there has been a down turn in the in the sales of gold jewellery with silver jewellery and beaded costume jewellery becoming ever more popular.

However to see how the market has really changed, turn on the TV and observe the female newsreader and presenters most of whom are all wearing brightly coloured  large pieces of costume jewellery. Browse through celebrity magazines and you will see the same pattern. Large beads strung on long chains in all colours and it seems the bigger and brighter the better.

Is this a case of bad times are here but I want to cheer myself up by wearing this gaudy trinket. Remember that colour can have a big affect on mood.

It’s not just at the cheaper end of the market with costume jewellery that we have seen this change. There has been a proliferation of charm jewellery with young women clambering for the latest must have bracelet which she can customise with individual beads and charms. One can only sympathise with any parent or boyfriend faced with the demand for the this latest craze as these items of jewellery don’t come cheap. By the time you have filled your bangle with those tacky charms, you will have kissed goodbye to several hundred pounds at the cheaper end or goods made in the far east. It is possible to pay into the thousands for these trinkets which are being mass produced and on sale on every high street and all over the web. Whatever happened to individuality and taste?

How quickly before this latest novelty wears off. This latest craze has sparked off a huge rush to copy these must haves and fakes are all over the internet at more realistic prices. At least shoppers can bag a bargain on items that are likely to fade out of popularity very fast as the fashion craze changes.

For those that would prefer something a little more tasteful and individual, even though times are tight, why not invest in a classy affordable item that will last for many years and won’t date. There are still many small independent designers in the UK producing beautiful quality hand crafted silver jewellery at prices to suit all budgets. In the UK we have lost much of our manufacturing base. lets not lose our jewellery designers.

Written by John Lewis

Of Love2Have

Love2have specialises in quality handcrafted designer jewellery made here in the UK by small independent designers.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/jewelry-articles/jewellery-through-the-recession-1513514.html