Everything You Need to Know About Metal Types
The world of metals is a fun one. There are a few main metal options and too often jewelers hear that someone wants “silver.”
This article will let you know why when you say silver, you’re actually saying White Gold, and why if we made your ring in silver, your ring wouldn’t last.
What is actual silver?
Silver is just that: Silver. It is a white-grey colored metal that is common and lightweight. Silver is often used in costume jewelry or wire-wrapping styles of jewelry but it is almost entirely left out of the fine jewelry world.
Why is this?
As far as using silver when you are soldering or torching, silver has a really low melting point. I actually think silver is much more difficult to work with than brass or gold because it is so easy to melt on accident.
Silver is also too soft, hence the low melting point. When you polish silver, it will stay shiny for roughly 5 minutes before you will notice scratches forming. This is not because it wasn’t well made, this is because the metal itself is closer to butter than it is steel. Silver also tarnishes quickly, much quicker than White Gold ever will, which requires consistent upkeep if you will be wearing it daily.
What makes something 10k Gold vs 14k vs 18k vs 20k Gold?
This needs to be quickly understood so you can grasp the differences between White Gold and Yellow Gold. 24k is pure gold.
24k gold is VERY soft.
So soft, you could scrape a piece out of a gold bar with a butter knife. Because of this, we mix other metals into the 24k gold to give us different levels of gold. The higher in number (18k or 20k gold), the more expensive because it has a greater percentage of pure gold. The lower the number, the greater the percentage of “alloying metals.”
What is an alloy metal?
“An alloy is a material made from two or more metals, or a metal mixed with one or more nonmetals, that are melted and mixed together to form a new, harder, and more durable material than the pure components.”
For example:
10k White or Yellow Gold is 41.7% pure gold.
14k White or Yellow Gold is 58.3% pure gold.
18k White or Yellow Gold is 75% pure gold.
20k White or Yellow Gold is 88.3% pure gold.
The greater the number, the higher the percentage of pure gold. This increases the value of your piece, and makes your piece brighter in color.
18k Yellow Gold vs 14k Yellow Gold is always fun to look at because you will notice the 18k being just slightly brighter in yellow color.
What is White Gold?
Now that we understand the percentages, it is easy to explain the differences of gold types. 14k White Gold has the same percentages of pure gold as 14k Yellow Gold. What makes White Gold silver in color instead of yellow in color, is the alloying metals used.
White Gold commonly has nickel as an alloying metal which brings out a nice silver color in the gold. Nickel can be reactive for people, which is why if you have sensitive skin and want a white colored metal, we strongly encourage platinum.
White Gold is often considered stronger than yellow gold. By stronger, we mean less prone to scratching. This is again because of the alloy metals used. On the other hand, white gold will require upkeep to bring it back to life when it begins to tarnish. If you ever notice your ring beginning to tarnish you can take it to a jeweler for a fresh rhodium plating to bring the color back to its original.
What is Yellow Gold?
Yellow Gold is the same to White Gold entirely, the only thing that changes are the alloying metals used. Copper and silver are often the alloying metals used in yellow gold. This improves the golds strength and allows the Yellow Gold to be a wearable piece.
What is Platinum?
Platinum is the metal that most haven’t heard of unless they’ve been in a jewelry-adjacent context. Platinum is a pure metal option, thus the cost of platinum increases.
Platinum is much softer than White Gold, and jewelers often describe working with it as “working with butter.”
Though platinum is soft, it is also incredibly dense and heavy, being one the heaviest metals we have on earth. It also will never tarnish or require rhodium plating like gold will.
Understanding the world of metals can be overwhelming,
but eventually, it feels like explaining the differences between paint colors. They’re all paint, they just have different colors mixed in to give you a different result. They all each have pros and cons and it is always a good idea to weigh out what is most important to you. Cost, wear, look, or durability? Only you know.