What Is Your Favorite Metal For Jewelry White Gold, Platinum or Silver
Posted by les in Uncategorized, tags: gold, jewelery, jewellry, jewelry, Uncategorized, white gold, womens interestsWhen it comes to selecting a metal for jewelry, there is so much to chose from. You not only have the basic pure metals, you also have alloys formed by combining two or more metals. Gold is a perfect example of an alloy and you can tell the amount of gold by the carat grading. 24K is pure gold with 18k being 75% gold and 14k 62.5%.
Platinum and silver are often used in their pure form without the need for any alloys. Gold is too soft to be used in its pure state so it is blended with harder metals to increase the overall hardness of the finished product. The amount of gold, measured in carats, indicates the hardness. Nine carat gold is much harder wearing for example than 18 carat gold.
Creating an alloy can be difficult. We want to preserve the look of the natural metal yet the addition of other metals can change the overall look. If want gold then we want to see that natural gold look. Owning gold is also a symbol of wealth - the more gold, and the purer that gold, the wealthier you are thought to be.
By mixing gold, silver and palladium you arrive at an alloy that is gold based yet has the shine, color and luster of platinum. This alloy is known as white gold and does look a lot like platinum. The difference between silver and platinum is purely color. Platinum is white whereas silver is - well silver.
When it comes to selecting the best metal for jewelry, there are several things to consider. First, the hardness - how easy is it to bend into shape and how long will last. For example, a pure gold wedding band will wear away in several years. On the other hand, a pure gold broach could last for decades.
Silver is hard and will last a long time. Platinum has the same reputation - it is hard and will last a long time. Unfortunately with platinum, it is not easy to reclaim the waste when making jewelry. Because of the high initial price, plaltinum jewelry can be very expensive.
When selecting jewelry you have a choice. Silver is by far the cheapest - however it does not have the look of white gold or platinum. Platinum is the most expensive and it is long wearing. If you are looking for something in the middle in your jewelry white gold is the answer. It’s priced midway between silver and platinum - is reasonably long wearing and looks great.
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