A decision many of us face when buying diamond jewellery, which one do we choose, will it be platinum? white gold? yellow gold? Here is some information to help you decide.
Firstly price, platinum is the most expensive, you can expect to pay around twice as much for platinum vs gold – depending on the gold purity (more on this later). Platinum is more heavy than gold,this is fine if it is a diamond ring you are buying, but this maybe be a factor to consider if buying a large bracelet or necklace, the heavier weight may feel uncomfortable.
The cheapest is yellow gold – cheap being a relative word here as gold is not cheap! The purity of gold is also a factor, typically 9 ct, 18 ct, or 24 ct. Absolute pure gold is 24 ct, but it is a soft metal, so it is not often 24 ct is used in jewellery. For many people the choice of yellow gold is its familiar colour, one glance at the yellow gold bracelet or ring, and you see it as gold right away.
Then there is white gold. This is normally where yellow gold has been plated to look like platinum. you need to take care of this type of white gold as the surface plating can wear off with time revealing the yellow gold beneath (although it can be re-plated). White gold can also be made through mixing with alloys, this creates a very similar colour to platinum, and there is no need to worry about the colour wearing away. Rolex is one company that use this type of white gold.
So, there is a brief summary of platinum, white and yellow gold. Hopefully this will be of help when going to buy your diamond ring!
