How to choose the right precious metal for your jewelry needs
Which is the ideal metal for jewelry ?
Besides traditional gold , other metals available include
silver, platinum and titanium
Here are the pros and cons of each metal
Gold by nature is
yellow and is soft. It is mixed with other metals to form an
alloy making it stronger. Gold in pure form is known as 24 karat
gold. 18 K gold means 18 parts gold and the rest of the 6 parts
come from another metal.
Gold is also alloyed with other metals to create different
colors of gold. Adding copper to gold gives you rose gold.
Adding silver to gold gives it an appearance of green color.
Adding nickel or Palladium turns yellow gold to white gold. Your
gold jewelry can also be made using a combination of two or more
colors. They are called two toned or three tone gold.
Higher content of gold in yellow gold makes the metal more
yellow than yellow gold with lower gold content. Similarly, 18K
rose gold gives a more subtle rose color compared to 9 K rose
gold which has a darker rose color. The color of both yellow
gold and rose gold will not chip or fade away with age.
People have prefer white gold to yellow gold because diamonds
match better with white gold. It is cheaper than
platinum.However some people develop allergies due to the
presence of nickel.Actually, the color of white gold is light
grey but it is coated with a layer of rhodium. Rhodium is very
white and very hard but eventually the coating wears off. You
need to go for re-coating of Rhodium every one and a half years
to keep it shining white.
Silver is a white grey
metal which is softer than gold, platinum and titanium. It is
best used for jewelry that is worn only occasionally. I would
not recommend it for use as an engagement ring or wedding ring.
Silver also turns blackish in color due to its tendency to
oxidise easily.
Platinum - this is a
very interesting metal because it is rarer than gold . It is 60%
denser than gold and is white in color which matches diamonds.
The advantages of platinum are that it is stronger than gold and
is resistant to tarnish.
This metal has a long history. The ancient Egyptians used it
2,500 years ago. Platinum does not wear away as a result of wear
and tear unlike gold. It simply forms a furrow that pushes the
metal to the sides. Platinum is hypoallergenic. The platinum
jewelry is almost pure platinum with 5-10 % of metals such as
Iridium, palladium, Ruthenium or Cobalt.
The most slender section of platinum permanently retain their
shape and providing a secure setting for diamonds. This is known
as tension setting diamond jewelry. This means the diamond in
the setting is held in place only by the tensile strength of the
platinum metal.
Titanium is also getting popular because of its incredible
strength and lightness. Titanium is silver gray in color and is
3 times stronger than steel and much stronger than gold , silver
and platinum.
Titanium can be available in different colors such blue,
purple, bluemoon, night sky, black rainbow, solar ash and
sunburst colors besides the natural titanium color. You get the
color effect through the process of oxidation of titanium. Even
though titanium is very strong and highly scratch resistant the
layer of colored titanium can be scratched. The good news you
can re-oxidise the ring and the color looks like new again.
Pure titanium is also 100% hypoallergenic . Another selling
point of titanium is that it is more scratch resistant compared
to gold, platinum and silver. However a ring made from titanium
cannot be resized because it is so hard. Therefore, if you
intend to get a titanium engagement ring make sure it fits your
finger well otherwise you will be stuck with a ring you find
uncomfortable for wearing.