Whats The Difference Between Karat And Carat
Both are a form of measurement in the jewelry industry, but whats being measured is very different. Carats are used to describe the weight of diamonds and other precious gemstones. In this case, however, well be delving into the term karat, or the measure of purity when referring to gold, as well as which karat of gold would be best for you.
In its pure form, gold is a very soft metal. Its too delicate for everyday wear, so its often alloyed with other metals such as silver, copper, nickel, and zinc to improve its strength and resilience.
The most common mixtures of gold are 14K, 18K, and 22K, but 14K and 18K are the most ideal for jewelry.
Gold Karats In A Nutshell
Lets start with a basic explanation of what a karat is and why its an important determining factor when choosing a piece of jewelry.
A karat is a measure of the fineness, or purity, of gold. To be specific, a gold karat is approximately 4.1667 percent of a pure gold alloy – in other words, 1/24 of pure gold. A piece with 24-karat gold, therefore, contains gold that is totally pure.
So what about golds that are rated at 18k, 14k, and 10k?
Is 18k Gold Good For Wedding Rings Why
The other common option for wedding bands is the 18k gold wedding band, a common durable, highly-priced, and great value wedding band option.
18K gold is made of 75% pure gold, and though it costs more than 14k and 10k gold, 18k gold could be the best option for you. The 18K gold is richer, the color is a lot more intense, and it looks great for grooms and brides.
For some people, it might be hard to tell the difference between 18K and 14K, but 18k gold wedding bands allow for more simplistic designs and styles than 144 or 10k gold pieces of jewelry. 18K gold offers brighter color tones, and you will be happy to know that its a great option for you if you have sensitive skin.
With only a 25% composition of metal alloys, there is a lower risk or chance of reactive metals like nickel causing skin irritation and allergies.
Therefore, if you are looking for a great wedding band that will not cause any irritation to the skin, you might want to get the 18K gold wedding band.
That said, 18K gold wedding bands scratch easily because of the high gold content, and they would also bend, which means that if you will be wearing the wedding ring throughout, it would only be safe for you to do that if you wont be engaging in harsh conditions or carrying heavy equipment.
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Caring For Your White Gold Jewelry
It is important to note that Rhodium-plate will wear off over time revealing the true color of the white gold beneath. How long will this process take? That depends on how often you wear the jewelry, and how hard you wear it! The good news is that Rhodium-plating can be done by your local jeweler, and it is relatively inexpensive. To keep your white gold jewelry shining bright, we recommend that you have your piece Rodium-plated annually.
Understanding Gold Purity: 9k 10k 14k 18k 22k And 24k
Many of us, at one point or another, will shop for gold in the jewelry department of a department store or in a jewelry store.
If you’ve ever gone shopping for jewelry, you are probably familiar with the word karat as applied to gold. The higher the karat, the more expensive it will be. But have you ever wondered why? The short answer is that higher karats mean more gold, but theres more to it than that.
What does it all mean? And what is all of that fine print stamped into your piece of gold? What are karats really? How do you know how pure that gold really is? This article will answer these questions and more.
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Pros And Cons Of 24 Karat Gold
Ah, finally we get to the creme de la creme of gold jewelry pieces!;
24K is the purest form of gold you can get out there. It also means that there is no amount of gold that is 25K or 28K! Pure gold dazzles in a bright yellow, distinctive hue. Generally, it is the most expensive and due to its soft nature, it is used in other industrial applications like electronic devices.;
24K gold is also used in bullion and gold bars and most people buy them as an investment. Honestly, 24K gold jewelry is a needle in a haystack kind of rare. Even if you find one, youll need to keep a close eye to avoid scratching the surface.;
But if you really need one, youll definitely get it. Just remember to keep this important tip in mind
If it’s an engagement ring, you should watch out for gemstones with more than 6Mohs. Certain ring settings will make it easier to add scuff marks on the gold.;
For instance, it is not advisable to have a diamond engagement ring with 24K gold as the base metal. Of course, you dont want your 24K gold ring to be ruined by a tiny stone.;
Advantages Of 14k Gold
14K gold has several advantages. First, its affordable. Because pure gold makes up 58.3% of the metal content of 14K gold, an engagement ring made from 14K gold will usually cost slightly less than the same ring made from 18K gold.
For example, this 2mm solitaire engagement ring from James Allen costs $560 when 14K gold is chosen as the metal. In 18K gold, the exact same ring from James Allen costs $680.;
Second, 14K gold is fairly durable. Gold is quite a soft, malleable metal that scratches, bends and warps easily. This means that the purer a gold engagement ring is, the easier it becomes to scratch it on door frames, desks, tables, the ground and other surfaces.
While 14K gold isnt as durable as platinum or palladium, its more than durable enough for the average person. Its also significantly more durable than 18K gold, making it the better choice if your fiancé-to-be has an active lifestyle or works with her hands.
Third, while 14K gold isnt as pure as 18K gold, its relatively high pure gold content means that it retains the warmth and rich color that people associate with gold. Although it can look slightly dull when compared side-by-side with 18K gold, 14K gold looks stunning on its own.;
Finally, 14K gold is ubiquitous and widely available in the world of engagement rings. Its by far the most popular type of gold for engagement rings, accounting for about 90% of all rings sold in the US, UK and other Western countries. This makes it an easy option to find.;
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Pros And Cons Of 10 Karat Gold
10 karats is the likely lowest amount of purity that defines gold in the United States. 10K gold has less than half the composition of gold and about 58% is composed of silver and copper. As expected, it is the least costly but probably the most durable tier of gold purity.;
Though its price point is inviting, 10K gold is not so common among jewelers. Shops like James Allen prefer starting their inventories from 14K gold pieces. This is because 10K gold is relatively dull and not sellable. People love the bling factor in jewelry and 10k gold pieces dont make the cut in terms of gold color.
But, that shouldnt stop you from buying this piece. 10K gold is known to be the hardest gold alloy, and resistant to scuffs and scratches. The one setback with 10K gold has to be its irritability with hypoallergenic people. If youre allergic to zinc, copper, iron, or silver, you may experience skin irritation after a long period of time.
So What’s The Difference Between 9ct And 22ct Gold
Here’s how they are broken down:
- 24 carat gold
- is the ultimate gold carat it doesn’t go any higher than this. It’s the purest form and consists of 99.9% gold. It is naturally yellow and highly valuable, but very soft and malleable, so it is not usually used to make fine jewellery or intricate objects.
- 22 carat gold
- consists of around 91.6% gold and so is highly priced. It is also very soft, so it’s not ideal for stone set jewellery, being more suitable for plain gold jewellery, such as wedding bands.
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Whats The Difference Between 14k And 18k Gold
Contrary to popular belief, when you buy a piece of gold jewelry, it usually isnt made out of pure gold. Instead, almost all gold jewelry is made from an alloy created by combining pure gold with a variety of other metals.
The reason for this is that pure gold is very soft. If engagement rings, earrings and other jewelry were made using pure gold, theyd scratch, scuff, dent and warp extremely easy, often just from brushing against another surface.;
Theres also the color issue instead of the warm gold color that most of us associate with gold jewelry, pure gold is actually closer to orange in color.;
Because of this, modern gold jewelry uses gold thats mixed with other metals. The purity of this gold is measured using the karat system, which provides information on what percentage of any type of gold is made up of pure gold.
Gold karatage is expressed in parts out of 24. For example, pure gold is 24K, as all 24 out of 24 parts consist of pure gold.;
18K gold consists of 18 parts pure gold mixed with 6 parts other metals. Depending on the color of the gold , these metals could include nickel, silver, copper, zinc and palladium. Expressed as a percentage, 18K gold is 75% pure gold.;
14K gold, on the other hand, consists of 14 parts pure gold mixed with 10 parts other metal, with the other metals varying based on the golds color. Expressed as a percentage, the pure gold in a piece of 14K gold jewelry accounts for 58.3% of the total metal.;
What Karat Gold Is Best For Rings
When you are shopping for gold jewelry, perhaps a wedding band for your fiancée, the higher the karat the better, right? Not necessarily. Its true that 24K gold is the pure choice, and must actually contain 99.95% gold.
But there are drawbacks with pure gold, namely that gold is a soft metal. For that reason, you might want to consider 18K or even 14K gold for your fiancés ring. 18K gold is eighteen twenty fourths gold, which comes out to 75%. 14K gold is around 58% pure, with alloy metals making up the remaining 42%.
How is karat gold made? Jewelers melt gold together with other types of metal to create an alloy. A number of different types of metal can be used to create the alloy. Silver and copper can be used to create yellow gold, a popular traditional color for engagement rings and wedding rings.
Then there is white gold, which is often created by adding nickel .
Palladium is another metal which can be used to create white gold. Rose gold is created in a similar manner to yellow gold, but with a higher percentage of copper.
Anything ranging between 20-24K is considered relatively pure. Gold rings in this range tend to be very soft. Their colors are deep, and they are certainly considered very precious. High karats like these are the standard in certain parts of the world, particularly in Asia and the Middle East, where they are considered traditional.
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How Many Karats Is Pure Gold
Pure gold is 24 karat, meaning that 24 out of 24 parts of the metal are gold. Although the terms sound familiar, the karat system used to measure the purity of gold is different from the carat unit of mass thats used to weigh diamonds.
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Is 10k Gold Good For Wedding Rings Why
The purity level of gold is measured in karats, and 10k gold is regarded as the lowest grade of gold used in jewelry, especially in the US. Because of the low karat levels, 10K gold is a cheaper version of gold, which is also the reason why the 10K gold is the most common variety of gold used in making wedding bands.
10K gold is an alloy thats made of 10 parts pure gold and 14 parts other metals like silver and copper. Essentially, pure gold is 24k gold or 99.999% pure gold, which means that 10K gold contains a considerably low amount of pure gold.
But should you get a wedding band made of 10K gold? Well, although it might not seem like the best version of gold jewelry, we consider it one of the smarter choices for wedding bands. This gold alloy is not only affordable but also quite durable. So, if you are worried about the cost of the ring but also interested in finding the most durable ring you could find, the 10K wedding ring might be a great option for you.
Note that some gold jewelry would be made of 9k gold, but in the US, the lowest purity level of gold used in jewelry is 10K gold.
The issue with 10K gold wedding bands is that despite their affordability and durability, the ring contains more metal alloys, which means a bigger risk of metal allergies. The metal alloys in gold might include nickel, and this might result in itching, among other issues.
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Gold Purity Terminology: What Is Gold Fineness
The measure of gold purity, or fineness, refers to the gold-to-metal additive ratio. Lets look at a few terms that you may come across when studying about or shopping for gold:
- Assay: A test that determines metal content and quality
- Bullion: Precious metals in a bulk, uncoined form such as gold bars, considered in mass rather than value
- Carat: Not to be confused with Karat in North America, a Carat is a unit of weight used for precious stones. One carat is equal to 200 milligrams. Outside of North America, Carat is used in the same context as Karat.
- Ductile/Ductility: How capable a metal is of being deformed using tensile force
- Hallmark: A symbol or mark stamped on a piece of precious metal that certifies its standard of purity
- Karat: Unit of measurement for the fineness of gold, with the higher numbers containing more gold and 24K being the finest
- Malleability: How capable a metal is of being deformed using compressive force.
- Millesimal Fineness: A system used to show the purity of precious metals by parts per thousand rather than karats
- Troy Ounce: 31.1034768 grams, or approximately 1.09714 standard avoirdupois ounces
- Troy Weight: A system of measurement used for gemstones and precious metals, where a full Troy pound consists of 12 troy ounces rather than the 16 avoirdupois ounces in a standard pound
Can I Shower With 18k Gold
You can wear your 18k and other solid gold pieces in the shower, but it isnt highly recommended. Water will not damage the metal itself, but it can reduce the shine. Repeated encounters with water may change its appearance over time. So thats a good general rule for 18k and most other varieties of solid gold.
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What Is 24 Karat Gold
24 Karat gold is 99.9% pure gold. This is the most expensive. It is the purest type of gold. Karat is noted by an upper case K. Its also acceptable to spell it Carat. When pure gold is mixed with other metals it becomes 14K, 18K; and other Karats. The Karats depend on the other metals mixed with the liquid gold.
Why Should You Buy Gold
Gold is considered to be one of the;safer investments;because it seems to withstand economic lows, recover quickly, and retain its value better than other assets. Buying gold and investing in gold purchases is different than investing in stocks and bonds since gold gives you something that you can physically own. However, you can purchase stocks and bonds in gold mining companies if youd prefer to go a less traditional route. ;
Additionally, gold has been a great defender against inflation. During years of high inflation,;stock markets took a dive while the value of gold increased. During times of deflation, having gold was considered a positive for people who may not turn to banks, investments, and stocks. One way to protect your assets is to have your assets be in a tangible form, such as gold. You can also keep your gold assets private. Even though you must still report any gain on your yearly taxes, gold is one of the only assets that can be anonymous.
Further, buying and investing in gold is not something that you need significant amount of educational experience to be able to do.;Professionals can provide you with a great deal of information and can help answer any questions that you may have.;
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So Which One Is The Best 24k 22k 18k Or 14k
Truthfully, there isnt a clear answer it depends. Your decision should be influenced by how often youll wear the jewelry, what youll be doing when you wear it, the coloring you prefer, and your budget. Gold isnt a one-size-fits-all accessory and there are a few things to consider.
Heres a quick guide to understanding the different karats of gold youll encounter when shopping for the perfect piece:
