When we think of gold we usually think of yellow gold. But there are other colours of gold available, of which white gold is one of the most popular and fashionable. Pure gold is generally too soft to be used for jewellery, so other metals are added to it. Creating gold in different colours is done by mixing gold with other metals thus creating an alloy. White gold alloys are just as "real" as their yellow gold counterparts.
If you look at a piece of your own jewellery, it’s highly likely to be hallmarked either 18ct, 14ct or 9ct to indicate how much pure gold is present in the mix.
White gold is an alloy of gold and some white metals such as silver and palladium. White gold can be 18ct, 14ct, 9ct or any carat. For example, 18ct yellow gold is made by mixing 75% gold (750 parts per thousand) with 25% (250 parts per thousand) other metals such as copper and zinc. 18ct white gold is made by mixing 75% gold with 25% other metals such as silver and palladium. So the amount of gold is the same but the alloy is different.
Traditionally nickel was used in white gold; however nickel is no longer used in most white gold made today as it can cause reactions with some people.
When white gold jewellery is made it is coated with another white metal called Rhodium. Rhodium is a metal very similar to platinum and Rhodium shares many of the properties of platinum including its white colour.
The rhodium plating is used to make the white gold look whiter. The natural colour of white gold is actually a light grey colour. The Rhodium is very white and very hard, but it does wear away eventually. To keep a white gold ring looking its best it should be re-rhodium plated approximately each 12 to 18 months. Most local jewellers are able to rhodium plate jewellery for a cost effective price.
White Gold jewellery has seen its popularity rise greatly over the last decade and is firmly established as THE metal of choice for today’s image conscious consumer.
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