Precious Metal Details
Harriet and her team work in three types of precious metal - silver, gold and platinum.
Silver
Mined by pre-historic man, silver is a lovely blue/white colour and a relatively inexpensive choice for an engagement ring. Harriet and her team only work in Sterling silver which is 925 parts in a 1000 - in other words at least 92.5% pure silver - most imported silver (from places such as India) is far more impure than this and so very brittle. Silver is more prone to corrosion than gold, for example it will react with sea water, so is not really ideal for setting valuable stones.
Yellow Gold
Mined since before 4000 bc, the Egyptians were the main producers in the ancient world, but at one time or another many countries have been large producers, especially in the new world. Pure gold (24 carat) is a very soft metal and not ideal for jewellery, so it is normally alloyed with other metals such as zinc to add hardness. 9 carat gold is 9 parts in 24 (or 37.5%) pure gold, while 18ct is 18 parts in 24. 9ct gold is a paler yellow colour as compared with richer 18ct gold, but either is a lovely yellow colour and the classic choice for eternity rings.
White Gold
This is yellow gold that has been alloyed with other metals such as silver, palladium and platinum to give it a warm white coloured metal. A very popular choice at the moment, 18ct white gold is more of a 'gun metal' colour than 9ct which is a slightly yellowy white.
We have available to us pre-certified fair trade white gold in simple shapes that could be used for your eternity ring.
Rhodium Plating
Rhodium is pure metal that can be plated on top of white gold to give it a steely white platinum like appearance. This is a good way to achieve a platinum looking ring without the extra expense of using platinum. However this plating will wear off over time to reveal the more yellowy coloured white gold underneath. The speed at which this wearing takes place can vary hugely between people, from only a few months to several years. However it is simple and cheap to have a ring re-rhodium plated and Harriet or any jeweller are always happy to do this.
Rose Gold
Gold that is alloyed with copper is called rose gold. The 9ct alloy is a beautiful pinky colour and very popular whereas 18ct rose gold is a much darker metal similar in colour to 'old gold' (22ct) yellow gold.
Platinum
The most expensive and hard wearing of the precious metals and a wonderful contemporary steely-white colour. The combination of diamond and platinum in an eternity ring is a wonderful sight and unsurpassed in brilliance.
Palladium
Similar to platinum in appearance though much less expensive! It is much less dense than platinum though, so it feels lighter on the hand - if you are looking for a chunky ring in platinum it will feel quite solid on the hand - if it was in palladium it would feel less dense. Environmentally, it's not bad. Palladium is generally extracted as a byproduct of other mining, and along with platinum is mainly used in catalytic converters. The amaount we use in the jewellery industry is tiny compared to this. As of July 2009 the palladium hallmark is available from the Assay Office.
Finishes
An eternity ring can be finished in a number of way:
- Polished
- Satin/Brushed
- Rhodium Plated
- Hammered
- Pin End/Moon Dust
- Beaded
- Tunstall/Crushed Diamond
- Ripple
- Wood Grain
- Roman
- Fake Pave
Some of these finishes will wear over time but can easily be re-applied by Harriet or any jeweller. The satinised finish in particular can wear very quickly to a dull shine.
Related blog articles
- Harriet's blog article: UK Hallmarking.
- Harriet's blog article: Carat vs Karat.
- Tracy's blog on palladium.
- Harriet's blog on How to choose a white metal for your ring.
- Michelle's blog article: Precious metals for rings.
