Education:Guide to Precious Metals

Gold

Gold is a metal that has several intriguing characteristics, including its brilliant luster and the relative ease with which it can be shaped. These two qualities probably led to its extensive use in jewelry throughout history. Today gold is used for all varieties of jewelry and comes in a variety of different forms.

Because pure gold is far too malleable to sustain everyday use, gold is mixed with other metals to form an alloy. Depending on the proportions of other metal used, the finished gold has different qualities. Some of the other metals used in these alloys include silver, copper, zinc, and nickel. The relative amount of silver in the gold alloy determines the end color. For example, white gold has a silver content of 70% or more.

The gold content in gold alloy is measured in karats (K) (not to be confused with "carats" which are a unit of weight used in diamond grading). Karats range from 1 to 24, with the higher numbers representing proportionally more gold content. Typically, the larger the number of Karats, the more valuable the gold.

When purchasing a piece of gold jewelry you should be aware that the price will be determined not only by the karatage, but also by the quality of the craftsmanship and the design of the piece. Every piece of jewelry should be stamped with the karatage (24K, 18K, 14K, etc.). In the United States, it is illegal to sell anything less than 10K as gold.

Palladium

Palladium is a wonderful metal that makes a great affordable alternative to Platinum and is actually not new to the jewelry world. Palladium was used in jewelry making more than sixty years ago. Palladium is in the same family of elements of the periodic table as Platinum. The group includes the following elements: Ruthenium, Rhodium, Osmium, Iridium, Platinum, and Palladium. William Hyde Wollastone identified the metal in 1803. He named the element after Pallas, the Panion of Athene, the Greek Goddess of Art. Because Palladium is in the Platinum group of metals it shares many of the same wear factors and attributes of Platinum. Palladium is: rare, hypoallergenic, a pure metal, naturally white, and durable. Palladium is whiter in appearance than Platinum, it is 12.6 percent harder than Platinum, and is more durable and can take more of the day-to-day wear than Platinum. Palladium is lighter in weight compared to Platinum, as the metal density level is lower. This is why Palladium is significantly less expensive than Platinum. Metals are priced by weight and rarity. Palladium is as rare as Platinum, but because of the significant difference in weight it is amazingly less costly than Platinum. Palladium in the 950 alloys will usually contain 95 percent Palladium, 5 percent Ruthenium or 5 percent Rhodium, depending on the manufacture, and also small amounts of silver and gallium.

Palladium does have its downside, in the fact that it wears much like Platinum. It will not hold a mirror finish as long as gold jewelry and is expensive to repair: because of the high levels of heat in the jeweler's torch, the jewelry must be brought to its melting point. Platinum requires these similar levels of heat, and it is usually necessary to remove stones - including diamonds - from the piece so that they won't be damaged by the high heat levels. Usually, once Platinum needs repair, over time it will again need repair in the same area because of the brittleness of the metal. Palladium does have similar challenges in regard to the repair, but not as severe as Platinum. Platinum also has no metal memory, which means once it is cast or altered into a position, it does not want to revert back to its natural state unlike its competitor, gold. Palladium does have more metal memory than Platinum and can be pushed to limits in the design process that Platinum cannot sustain. Palladium and Platinum do have a few characteristics in common, though: both are tough in the scientific sense, meaning they resist corrosion and reactions with chemicals and other elements, but are not hard in any sense of the scientific meaning of the word. Platinum and Palladium scratch, and they do not resist scratching like gold does. Platinum and Palladium are very soft in the sense that they will not hold a polish or a design finish for very long.

From our point of view, Palladium is a great alternative to Platinum,,but from our experience we suggest 18Kt Palladium White Gold for all our custom jewelry. We have found that using 18Kt Palladium White Gold over any other metal comprises all the best characteristics of what gold and Palladium have to offer to create a great metal for daily wear. Instead of alloying the gold with nickel, we alloy it with Palladium. Nickel tends to cause skin reactions and will react with the skin's sweat and turn the metal a yellowish tone over short period of time. In the past, we tried using 14Kt White Gold alloyed with Palladium, but found that the 14Kt is mixed with so many other things that it is too brittle. The purity levels of 18Kt Gold mixed with Palladium create a perfect harmony for the alloys, the gold, and the Palladium. Repairing this combination is much more affordable and is not hard on stones already set in the piece. Diamonds and most colored stones can remain in place during repair work, and best of all, the gold stays white and holds a mirror finish for years, not months. This combination results in great workability and reparability for years to come. At Diamonds of Palo Alto we are committed to bringing you the most current and up to date information. We will educate and help you make the best choice of metal type to create your one of a kind piece of jewelry.

Platinum

Platinum is a very strong and heavy metal with a beautiful silver-white appearance. Because of its unique properties, it is one of the most durable precious metals used to make fine jewelry. Many people insist on using platinum for diamond settings because it does not add color to the stone's appearance. Interestingly, platinum jewelry, because of its purity, is also hypoallergenic, as opposed to some gold alloys.

Because platinum is rarer than gold, it is also more valuable. When purchasing a piece of platinum jewelry you should look for the marks that differentiate platinum from other metals such as silver or white gold. Platinum jewelry will be marked with 950Pt or Plat. In the United States this means that the piece must contain more than 50% platinum.

Silver

Silver is an extremely shiny metal that can be polished to a higher sheen than platinum. Like most metals used for jewelry, silver is very malleable and durable. Silver is plentiful throughout the world and has played a major role in jewelry since as far back as 4000 B.C.

Like gold, silver in its purest form is relatively soft, and therefore it is often alloyed with other metals, such as copper. When referring to the composition of silver (in parts of silver per thousand of alloy) the term "fineness" is used.

When purchasing a piece of silver jewelry you should be aware that silver of varying fineness can be sold. For example, Sterling Silver is 92.5% silver and carries a fineness of 925.