Platinum Explained
Platinum is a beautiful white, precious metal that has become very popular choice when making engagement rings. Platinum does not rust, corrode or change colour over time.
What Is Platinum?
Platinum used in engagement rings and jewellery is not pure. The purity found in engagement rings and jewellery is from 95-99% in an alloy with rhodium and silver. Platinum has the advantage of being more durable than gold and is the heaviest of the precious metals. Platinum is around 50% more dense than gold, so it will tend to cost more than gold in equal-sized pieces of jewellery simply because the platinum weighs so much more than gold. Visually, it is almost impossible to tell platinum apart from white gold.
In the UK, all platinum items weighing over 0.50 grams must be stamped with a hallmark that certifies the purity of the metal in the article. Below are the most popular platinum purities used around the world when making an engagement ring:
At David Ashley 950 platinum is what we use as default to make our beautiful crafted engagement rings and wedding rings.
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The Advantages and Disadvantages of Platinum in Jewellery
The Advantages of Platinum
- Platinum is hypoallergenic to a higher degree than even white gold.
- Platinum is rarer than gold and has become associated with wealth and quality. That’s why platinum credit cards are higher status than mere gold cards.
- The higher weight than gold gives platinum jewellery an increase ‘heft’, it feels even more substantial, more quality, than gold.
- White gold looks very good when worn by a person with white or rosy skin colouration.
The Disadvantages of Platinum
- Although it looks almost exactly the same as white gold, it tends to cost more due to its greater weight as compared to white gold.
- Platinum picks up scratches over time, giving the platinum a dulled appearance. A smooth finished ring can look significantly dulled after just a few months of wear.
- Every year or so platinum will need a thorough clean and polish. Cleaning can remove a small amount of platinum.
The Advantages of Platinum
- Platinum is hypoallergenic to a higher degree than even white gold.
- Platinum is rarer than gold and has become associated with wealth and quality. That’s why platinum credit cards are higher status than mere gold cards.
- The higher weight than gold gives platinum jewellery an increase ‘heft’, it feels even more substantial, more quality, than gold.
- White gold looks very good when worn by a person with white or rosy skin colouration.
The Disadvantages of Platinum
- Although it looks almost exactly the same as white gold, it tends to cost more due to its greater weight as compared to white gold.
- Platinum picks up scratches over time, giving the platinum a dulled appearance. A smooth finished ring can look significantly dulled after just a few months of wear.
- Every year or so platinum will need a thorough clean and polish. Cleaning can remove a small amount of platinum.
Working on platinum to make engagement rings and jewellery or to repair it requires special tools and very high temperatures, this adds to the cost of creating engagement rings and jewellery and also to the cost of repairing it.
