Problem with our wedding bands...am I expecting too much? (pics)

[jesterjigger]

We bought our wedding bands last May, we spent the last year in Korea and saw them again in November...they looked a little gold. Looked at them again yesterday and they were *really* gold. They are supposed to be white gold. My fiance took them back to the store and they said that they are going to re-rhodium them or something alone those lines and they''ll be silver colored again and they won''t turn gold. Is that true? Is this common with white gold jewelry? My engagement ring is platinum, so it needs to look white gold. I''m very annoyed with the store, and feel like we were lied to, but I also don''t know if this is common. I had a very nice diamond band from another store that has been white since I got it in 2002, so that''s my only experience. Click on the links to see the pictures of the two wedding bands (both turned yellow) and my engagement ring. They told my fiance that they turned yellow because of the heat they were exposed to when they were resized and they must not have been re-rhodiumed after that. The only problem is...my ring fit when we looked at rings so we left the store with my ring, my fiance''s had to be ordered.

I''m really leaning towards trying to get the store to just take them back. To me they seem to be really poor quality if they turn yellow in less than a year and the staff of the store is seeming less than stellar. Fiance hates confrontation and doesn''t want to even ask if they are white gold. The ring is stamped with 14k on the inside of the band. His dad has given this store all of his business for a very long time, so it''s kind of viewed as the family''s "store" which is why I was ok with getting the rings there, even though I had to argue with the guy for 15 minutes that we wanted white gold, not yellow gold for my fiance and white gold for me.

So, what would you do? Is this normal? Thanks a lot for any help, I really appreciate it. The wedding is September 8th, but I hate the thought of replacing the bands in a couple of years (which is what my fiance wants to do), I want to wear the bands we were married in for the rest of our lives. I don''t think these are the bands I want though...unless what''s happened is normal and routine...


http://www.jesterjigger.com/pictures/wedding/dressangelo/fittingrings/yellow.jpg

http://www.jesterjigger.com/pictures/wedding/dressangelo/fittingrings/yellow2.jpg

http://www.jesterjigger.com/pictures/wedding/dressangelo/fittingrings/yellow3.jpg

http://www.jesterjigger.com/pictures/wedding/dressangelo/fittingrings/yellow4.jpg

 

[neatfreak]

Gold is YELLOW and over time, most white gold will turn a bit yellow. Depending on your body chemistry, it could be fast or slow, but it will probably happen. Rhodium will help, but it will never be exactly the same gray tone as a platinum ring.

It's also important to remember that you shouldn't ever wear platinum rings next to WG rings as they can get damaged. So if it were me, I would get platinum. WG will never look exactly the same as it will always have a different tone to it.

 

[jesterjigger]

Thanks for the quick reply! Will the platinum ring damage the white gold ring? Unfortunately we can''t even blame body chemistry on this...the rings have been sitting in a safe other than us taking them outside to look at them once in November and yesterday. That''s what makes me so angry. And of course, the salesguy assured us that the white gold would be fine with my platinum e-ring. I trusted them since fiance''s family has been doing business there for so long and know all of the people that work there really well. Ugh, I''m so frustrated and my fiance just wants to pretend like nothing is wrong.

 

[WorkingHardforSmallRewards]

Yes, if you are expecting gold to be white then you are expecting too much. Well, more specifically that which doesn't exist. If you are doubting if it is white gold or not ask them what metal they alloyed the gold with. 14k gold is not 100% gold. It is the other metals that are mixed with it that give it the whiter appearance. While there could be some discussion of other metals I would be willing to bet the bank your Gold is alloyed with nickel. It was, based on what you said, probably never rhodium plated for whatever reason, which sure is pretty irritating but its not a big deal and they can get it done.

Per my own observations I can't imagine with that little metal showing you could possibly notice a difference in the whiter rhodium color and the platinum color.

As to the safety difference I can't say for sure, but I imagine it may well make some micro scratches rubbing against your band that you may want polished out in future rhodium platings. But I doubt there is a major security risk simply because the metal is so thick on either side of the diamonds that its going to take a long long time to micro-scratch down those babies....and if so you will have insurance, but perhaps someone with more knowledge than me can speak to the security issue.

An interesting chart is found here: Look for the chart at the bottom

 

[Hest88]

#1 Yes, white gold alloyed with nickel needs to be rhodium-plated periodically to cover the yellow tinge. How often depends on many factors, including your body chemistry, but I am amazed that they did such a poor job that just sitting in a vault removed the rhodium so fast!

If you want white gold that doesn''t need to be rhodium-plated you should seek out white gold alloyed with palladium.

#2 Platinum is harder than gold. I wouldn''t wear them next to each other every day, because the plat is bound to rub against and damage the gold faster than gold would.

 

[oldminer]

but I hate the thought of replacing the bands in a couple of years (which is what my fiance wants to do), I want to wear the bands we were married in for the rest of our lives. I don''t think these are the bands I want though...unless what''s happened is normal and routine...


It looks to me by the tone of the above quote and in other places in your message that you are getting to be under pressure already for the wedding. The choice was made to buy these rings and owning them will not pose any more problem than you make of it. I don''t think there is a quality issue here at all, but once you confront a jeweler with a complaint of that sort, they tend to naturally get defensive. Have the Rhodium plating done and see how well they will then match.


After the wedding, have the wedding ring soldered at the base of the shank to the engagement ring so they will never rub eachother or wear eachother out. Getting the set rhodium plated ever few years won''t be a big deal and will give you reason to have both rings looking like new from time to time. Its a beautiful time of your life where happiness should reign supreme. I am certain you can stress out on more important problems. This little problem is not the one to target.