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Platinum
Perhaps you are looking for a piece of jewelry that will stay beautiful and unblemished even longer than gold yet still perfectly matches a diamond.
Platinum is your metal of choice!
Of all noble metals, this naturally silver-white metal is without a doubt the most appropriate for use in jewelry. Platinum is the toughest and most durable noble metal available to jewelers. Furthermore, it’s bright color perfectly matches a magnificent diamond. Platinum’s silvery-white glow brings out the diamond’s sparkle making diamond and platinum a popular choice for engagement rings.
Platinum: pros and cons
For the jeweler, working with platinum is truly a privilege. Platinum’s ability to retain its shine long after the smith finished the ring ensures the piece of jewelry will shine for years to come. Because of the material’s toughness however, it will take the jeweler longer to smith the platinum into a piece of jewelry. As a result, it will take longer to produce platinum jewelry, make sure to consider a later estimated time of delivery than with similar golden or silver pieces.
Eventually the end result will be worth it. Of all the noble metals, platinum requires least maintenance, is durable and scratch-resistant, and will retain its beautifully white shine for years on end.
On top of all that, platinum is a hypoallergenic metal, this means that wearing platinum jewelry reduces the chances of an allergic reaction due to skin contact to next to nothing.
Platinum has been called ‘without weaknesses’ or ‘without impurities’. The main reason for this is platinum’s resistance to ‘oxidation’, or rust. The climate will not negatively influence the platinum coat, additionally it will not be affected by hydrochloric acid, halogens or cyanides.
Prices for platinum jewelry are higher than those of silver or gold jewelry, the main reason being the scarcity of the material. There are hardly any specialized platinum mines.
The five largest producers of platinum are: Canada, Russia, South Africa, the USA, and Zimbabwe. Due to its scarcity specialized platinum mines are rare, instead it is often discovered as a by-product in the mining of nickel.
Alloy
Platinum used in jewelry is very pure. The processed alloy has to contain at least 95% platinum for it to be legally sold as the noble metal. The other 5% may consist of iridium, palladium, rhodium, copper, titanium or cobalt. At DiamondsByMe platinum is alloyed with cobalt. We only use 950PT.
Below are some of the proof marks that are stamped into our platinum jewelry after their official appraisal.
Platinum vs. gold
Platinum is five times rarer and purer than gold. Besides, while there is no such thing as pure white gold, only rhodium plated gold alloy, platinum has a natural silvery-white shine. This white shine will not turn acquire a yellow glow over time like a white gold piece of jewelry.
Platinum is scarcer, and hence more valuable than gold. Every year a mere 160 metric tons of Platinum is mined around the world. In comparison with the 1500 metric tons of gold the difference becomes clear. Additionally the price of a precious metal is determined per weight unit, since platinum weighs more than gold it is worth more than its weight in pure gold.
Of course this does not change the fact that (white) gold is a beautiful material for use in jewelry, you can read more on that topic here.
Both metals have their own pros and cons, at DiamondsByMe our specialists are ready to advise you and help you settle for the right choice for a piece of bespoke jewelry.
Click here to read more about caring for your platinum jewelry.
For an overview of all our jewelry in platinum click here: