Precious Metals

Palladium and platinum are undeniably superior to any other white precious metal used in fine jewelry manufacturing. Plenty have been written about platinum and its properties as compared to the white gold alloys. I myself wrote short article a while ago. The newcomer palladium is described as very similar to platinum. This is truth but there are differences and the major one is its price. Let`s leave now the price part for the end and put the two metals together

Palladium Engagement Ring – Precious Asset or Cheap Substitute

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It all depends on ones value system. For some people jewelry have value equivalent to the amount of money spent on the purchase. For other the top factor is the intrinsic value, uniqueness or fashion compliance. Different value systems cause one object to be placed in two opposite categories.

What about the palladium diamond ring? Is it cheating, being intrinsically cheap or it is a bargain being currently underpriced?
Let us first clarify what the diamond engagement ring should be. It should be made from rare, preferably pure precious metal, set with genuine diamond and skillfully designed and crafted. It is a courtship gift, hence expensive and beautiful. These are the rough guidelines.

Palladium - The Obvious Choice for Diamond Jewelry.

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The call for exchanging the gold with more suitable metal arose together with the preference of white metal over yellow. Gold has been the metal of choice for fine jewelry for millennia and is perceived as symbol of rarity, status and riches. It is still enjoying wide popularity making roughly 90% of the jewelry on the market. So why exchange it with anything else?
Gold is still the only precious metal with yellow color and the only option for the few, who favor yellow Jewelry, but when it comes to white is definitely not the best option. Currently the style is white, very white, especially when we consider diamond jewelry and it makes sense to utilize white metal for white jewelry instead of yellow.

Precious metals in jewelry manufacturing and their best use

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There are many articles on precious metals on the web and some of them are quiet professional with a lot of details and data. I will try not to give you just another one. Here I will offer you a simple version and avoiding extensive technicality add my professional opinion on the best use of these metals in order to utilize their unique properties. In this article we will focus on the most popular precious metals used for jewelry: gold, platinum and the fast growing in popularity palladium.

White gold vs Platinum

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What are the advantages of white gold versus platinum?
Only one - the price.
Identical item in platinum cost 3 to 4 times more than the 18 kt white gold one.
This is why:
The 18 kt. white gold alloys are about 2.5 times cheaper than the platinum standard 95% alloy. And this is just the start. Because of the greater density of platinum, equivalent volume item will be 30% heavier. At this point, without any labor involved the ratio to our gold price is X2.5+30%. Because of the very high melting point and extreme susceptibility to contamination all the tools and consumables involved in platinum manufacturing process are very expensive.

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Precious Metals

Palladium vs. platinum – The best and the better

Palladium Engagement Ring – Precious Asset or Cheap Substitute

Palladium - The Obvious Choice for Diamond Jewelry.

Precious metals in jewelry manufacturing and their best use

White gold vs Platinum