Silver, gold or white gold – the choice is yours. Rings from Ireland offer their selections in all of these precious metals, but which ones suit you best? We look at the features of each:
Silver
Pure silver, otherwise known as fine silver, is actually relatively soft and malleable. It is easily damaged and for that reason it is often combined with other metals to produce a more durable product.
The most popular of these alloys is sterling silver, which consists of 92.5 percent silver and 7.5 percent copper. Although any metal can make up the 7.5 percent non-silver portion of sterling, centuries of experimentation has shown that copper is the best as a combination, as it actually improves the hardness and durability of the metal but importantly does not affect its beautiful color.
Cared for correctly, your silver should last a lifetime. The best way to minimize scratches is to store your silver in a separate cloth pouch or compartment in your jewelry box. Never expose your silver to household chemicals, particularly bleach or ammonia. Remove your silver jewelry when swimming in chlorinated water also as the chemicals can damage silver.
Yellow Gold
The distinctive and beautiful yellow color of gold is the choice of many when setting it against their skin tones. Gold is actually tougher than people think and it is resistant to tarnish, rust and corrosion.
Surprisingly, although gold is very strong it is also the most malleable of all the precious metals. As pure gold is too soft for everyday wear, it is alloyed with a mixture of metals like silver, copper, nickel, and zinc to give it strength and durability. Karatage, denoted by a number followed by "k" indicates purity, or how much of the metal in a piece of jewelry is gold. Karatage is expressed in 24ths, making 24k gold, 100% gold. The color of gold is determined by the type of metal alloys included in it and also the percentage of each metal alloy. Natural gold and color-saturated alloys are what give yellow gold jewelry its rich shine.
White Gold
The silvery white color of white gold makes it very popular as a choice, particularly in contemporary jewelry. To make the gold white, it is actually combined with metal alloys that are already white in nature and they are then plated with a very hard element called rhodium. Rhodium can wear away over time but the good news is that re-plating is a simple process that can be done if you wish to restore whiteness to your jewelry.
When caring for both yellow gold and white gold, it is wise to avoid harsh chemicals such as chlorine or other cleaning products. It is advisable to remove your jewelry when using any chemicals to prolong the look of your pieces. To clean gold jewelry it is safe to use warm water and detergent free soap with a soft brush. When you are not wearing your gold jewelry, store it in a soft cloth bag or the original box and this will protect it and prolong its life.
When you buy Celtic jewelry from Rings from Ireland you are buying genuine Irish quality and ‘Hallmarked in Ireland’ is a 400 year old consumer protection seal will guarantee that your chosen piece is high quality silver or gold.