I’m looking into buying everyday rings, but there’s so many different kinds materials used and I don’t know which is best so the rings won’t tarnish, turn finger green etc? Could someone explain like gold plated, white gold, yellow gold, tungesten, silver, sterling silver.
In: Other
>gold plated
It’s not all gold. It is coated with real gold, but if you cut it in half, you would see the cheaper metal inside.
>turn finger green
Fake gold is copper chemically enhanced to look real. It is usually sold as a scam. So you don’t realize it was a scam until your finger turns green
>white gold
Pure gold with other metals, such as nickel, palladium, silver, or zinc, to make it look different.
>yellow gold
Regular gold
>tungesten
It’s super heavy, so people think it’s cool
>sterling silver
90% pure silver it has other metal in it to make it cheaper than 100% pure
>tarnish
100% pure silver with no coatings gets a dark ashy rust on it when left exposed to air. You must clean it regularly or it will turn black. It’s kind of like rust but it’s specifically for pure silver.
Gold plated: the ring is made of a different metal (titanium or steel or something), then a layer of gold is added on top.
White gold: an alloy of gold and a “white” metal (silver, nickel, platinum, or palladium usually) that makes the ring look silver. It was made as an imitation platinum, since a solid ring of platinum would be far more expensive
Yellow gold: gold that looks like gold! No other metals were added to change the colour
Sterling silver: a silver alloy that is at least 92.5% silver. Worth buying if you are allergic to the metals used in “common” silver alloys
Tungsten: tungsten carbide alloy (pure tungsten is toxic). Extremely strong, but inflexible
The only kind that “won’t tarnish” is tungsten. Silver and gold are fairly soft metals and will scratch and tarnish without care.
If your finger is turning green, it’s most likely that your gold plating is wearing off. Or you, like my mother, are allergic to nickel and need to upgrade to sterling silver or gold
a lot of rings can be coated with Rhodium (though likely not worth it on cheaper jewelry). If you wear the ring all the time you have to have it replated 1-2 times a year. But, it is hypoallergenic and doesn’t tarnish. So even if you were slightly allergic to the base metal, you could wear it with this coating.
Latest Answers