Saturday, June 7, 2008

Paul Deasy Spills the Beans about Technibond!

Technibond. That word will cause fights to break out. It's a loaded word in certain circles. The best deal in gold jewelry or the biggest bunch of bubble-gum-machine-crap ever manufactured. Which is it???

Paul Deasy has spilled the beans on what really happened with the controversial line:

I was at HSN when technibond was originally launched. There have been many changes over the years. The first product was 18kt over sterling silver with a very thin polymer coating over top of that. This made it hypo-allergenic and helped to prevent the gold from coming off. This also is why the original product had a lifetime guarantee. Then somebody in their infinite wisdom decided to save money and not put the coating on. The resulting disaster nearly killed the product line. Then they fixed the problem for a couple of years. When I returned to HSN, they changed the formulation again and switched to 14kt gold over sterling silver. They also discontinued the guarantee. The bottom line? I figure that over time with wear the gold may begin to come off. That being said, I think for the price it is a pretty good value, especially with the cost of gold today. If you want something with a bit more gold over silver, always look for something classified as vermeil. That has a minimum standard (120 mils of gold over silver) and should last a bit longer.

And what does he think of QVC's plated jewelry lines?

I always liked the epiphany collection. Platinum clad over silver makes lots of sense to me, as far as helping anti tarnish. The only downside there, is when you are coating with platinum you can't size rings, but that is a very minor point. I like the veronese, but I admit I am not up to speed on what is the thickness of 18kt over the silver. I can find out, though, as I know very well the person who brought it to QVC.

So, in reality, EVERYONE WAS RIGHT! It really was that good and it really did get that bad. I just wish that these shopping channels would get it through their collective thick skulls that their customers aren't as dumb as they'd like to think they are (or wish they were anyway).

ETA: Click here to find out what Paul and Judy are up to now!


  1. I hope Paul doesn't get in any trouble for saying what really happened. I always liked him and Judy too. -Ami

  2. Is there a link to where he's saying this? Not just to his website? Thanx!

  3. I have had my Technibond for years and I only had a problem with one pair of earrings.

  4. I've only been buying technibond for the past couple of years and it seems okay but I know the gold wears off because the back of one of the earrings has already tarnished and gave me an infection (I have really sensitive skin). I wish these places would get with the program and sell QUALITY jewelry!!!!!!!!!

  5. The exact link to the Technibond quote is:


  6. The Technibond is advertised as 40 mils thick. It is not. It it 40 microinches thick, 1000 times thinner. I see by your article that you don't know measurement units either. You say that vermeil is at least 120 mils of gold over silver. Well, 125 mils is 1/8th inch, so that would be a pretty thick coating!

  7. While I appreciate the info, Anon, I--me personally--didn't say anything. I'm no jewelry expert. I was quoting Paul Deasy.

    Here is what I found on the issue (again, this isn't me, this is whoever wrote the info at this link:

    Vermeil (pronounced “vermay”) refers to a sterling silver piece that has been coated with a heavy layer of gold. This is done by putting a negative charge on the sterling silver piece, and then immersing it in a positively charged solution that contains gold in a suspended state.

    We abide by the definitions set forth by the Federal Trade Commission, whose standards require at least 100 millionths of an inch (or 2.5 microns) of gold of at least 10k fineness (we use gold of 24k fineness) to be deposited onto a piece in order to use the term “vermeil.” Standard gold electroplating requires 7 millionths of an inch (or .175 microns), so vermeil is a layer of gold that is more than 14 times thicker than that.

    For more information on jewelry standards, you can read “Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries” at

  8. Well, I can sure see WHY Paul is at Shop NBC. QVC and HSN will not give him the time of day and rightfully so. You have to be loyal, even if it means keeping your mouth shut sometimes. He's a worker bee, not an executive and by now, he should know better! What a dummy.

  9. TRUTH IS TRUTH! QVC'S CORPORATE could contact him if he is full of it! QVC does not incourage TRUTH or anything close to it! Everyone does not just deserve loyalty, earn it! More people need to tell the truth,and help others do right. Maybe corporations would run better if more people STOOD UP and righted the wrongs! The Truth hurts! QVC Corporate could care less about Paul, ME, and YOU!!!!

  10. "Anonymous"
    December 17, 2009 10:18 PM


    Dear Anonymous--

    Reread in full above>
    Paul Deasy's statement (a little snippet to highlight his main statement)

    "Paul Deasy has spilled the beans on what really happened with the controversial line:

    I was at HSN when technibond was originally launched." HSN...not QVC

    whereas QVC >... plated jewelry lines?

    "I always liked the epiphany collection.
    The only downside can't size rings...

    I like the veronese, but I admit I am not up to speed...I can find out...I know very well the person who brought it to QVC"
    I occassionally shop at QVC HSN SHOPNBC,
    over 20 years,no qualms with any of the companies I purchase what I like return what I don't.
    My problem is that when specifically stating the "PROBLEM IS QVC"<paraphrase is outright WRONG it needed to be corrected

  11. I have heard that Paul has a drinking problem.
    I know on the Q I saw him on air and you could tell something by the way he was acting. That was on two occasions, then he was gone. I wish him the best because him and Judy seem like such good people.

  12. I just sold a bunch of Technibond rings to a refinery to get paid for the silver and some gold. It turns out that most of it is Chinese silver which is less than 45% pure and a lot is just costume jewelry without any silver or gold. Now some of the rings and bracelets was also purchased at QVC. Everything was stamped 925. The lesson here is to be very careful of what you buy at any of these companies. They don't do QC on the items for metal analysis.

    1. Thank you for posting that info. Good to know!

  13. I always thought that Technibond from HSN was gold over sterling. But I recently checked some of my Technibond jewelry and it's picked up by a magnet! So it's definitely NOT gold over sterling! What a rip-off!

  14. I agree with everyone who says Carolyn Gracy
    on QVC is NOT A SIZE LARGE. She needs to put on
    a 1x. She is so full of it. Everytime she sells
    a product she says she has it and that everybody should get 2 or 3 of them. Does that
    idiot know what shape the economy is in, people
    are lucky to get one. I hate it when she is on.
    I can't believe there are alot of othe people
    who feel the say as I do.

    1. I think many of the lines are what's referred to as 'vanity sizes'. Much larger, sometimes even by 2 sizes larger than true sizes. I wear an XS in Dennis Basso, but in reality a medium.

  15. Truth is good. Not a dummy. God provides. Shame for bait & switch

  16. I have a few rings that have revealed the chinese silvery metal underneath. They are 7 or less years old. I have so much jewelry no way I wore it out.
    Hsn made a REAL BIG DEAL getting the testimonials on. Which sold me. Fraud!

  17. I received some pieces that were a friends after she passed that she purchased years ago and they look brand new. I purchased a piece several years ago after watching a show where they said u could live even swim in it. Yea right it turned in a few months. So sorry to say I stopped buying it,only real gold for me now. Sadly I won't buy that from here either the last two pieces I got in Jan this year are already broken so pretty much done with them for jewelry. It's too bad they use to have nice stuff, but not anymore. So that being said I did get a piece from a friend as a gift this week and am trying it to see what happens I put it on Yesterday. I feel bad cause I don't want to hurt her feelings by telling her it's not good I said thank you and she helped me put it on. It is pretty and my style I'm just sorry she spent the money on it.



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