Gold Colours

[Lady_Disdain]

Every once in a while, the subject of gold colours comes up on PS. I was alloying gold yesterday and thought it would be fun to have a few pictures of different alloys side by side. I made these little test plates (they are unfinished and unpolished) to share. These are traditional 18k gold alloys, using only gold, copper and silver, except the little plate off to the top, which is 22k (and a gorgeous, buttery colour). From left to right: green, yellow, peach and red. A true rose gold would be between the peach and the red.

This isn't a perfect comparison, since the colours are somewhat distorted in the pictures. I will take the photo gear out and take proper pictures later.

ETA - ok, there is some major colour distortion going on when I upload these. Bear with me while I try to fix this.

 

[GemFever]

Cool! Looking forward to more pics. I've always been curious if it is possible to replicate the color of "Russian gold" (close to American rose-gold) that half of my gold jewelry is made of. Thanks for posting!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

It probably is, by experimenting with alloys and proportions. Getting a close match may end up rather expensive, though.

Isn't Russian Gold 22k? If so, and based on your description of close to rose colour, I would say it is a simple 22 part gold, 2 part copper.

 

[Enerchi]

Thanks Lady D! That is pretty cool - love the look of the green gold and the red - christmas ring anyone???
Neat that you can post that for all to enjoy - thanks

 

[minousbijoux]

Thanks for posting the pic - its really helpful. I'm curious what the alloys are besides silver and (I imagine) copper? What makes it green? What makes it peachy?

 

[Lady_Disdain]

These examples are all gold, copper and silver, nothing else. The green is 75% Gold, 25% Silver. The red is 75% gold, 25% copper. The yellow is 75% gold, 12.5% silver and 12.5% copper. The peach is 75% gold, 6% silver, 19% copper.

There are a lot of proprietary alloys out there, which use all sorts of different metals to influence colour and work characteristics. For example, whitish gold can be made with nickel or palladium, silicon (the element) can be added for better casting, etc. Take a look at Strong and Hoover's catalog of gold alloys: http://www.hooverandstrong.com/category/Casting+Grain+Specifications/

This is a traditional alloy diagram. Each point represents a specific combination of gold, copper and silver. All 18k gold alloys are along the 75% line near the gold vertex. 14k is along the 50% line.

 

[minousbijoux]

Very nice. I never would've guess that green gold is just silver and gold.

 

[movie zombie]

nice demo. i so love 22k gold!

i could have gotten my 18k red gold chain in green......almost did. i really think an 18k green gold ring would be lovely with the right stone.

 

[T L]

Lady D,
Thank you for the informative post!!

 

[JewelFreak]

That is so interesting! Thanks for the info, Lady D. I love the green gold & also didn't expect it to be only gold & silver. Really neat stuff to peruse.

--- Laurie

 

[iLander]

This is very cool!

I would love to see some "colors" of silver, I've been looking for a substitute for gold for a long time . . .

 

[chrono]

Oh....can't wait to see your adjusted picture! I've been wondering forever about side by side comparisons. Thank you!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

iLander - there isn't a lot of variation is silver colour, since sterling silver standard dictates 92.5% silver (compared to gold, this would be roughly equivalent to 22k). Fine silver (99.9% pure) has a lovely white colour, but it is very soft so any design would have to be carefully considered. For example, soldering fine silver over sterling, for a sturdier piece. Argentium is also quite white. There are also silver casting alloys, like silicon silver, which have better casting characteristics (less porosity, etc) but are pretty much indistinguishable from common sterling. There are also some new silver/platinum alloys which are supposed to be tarnish resistant and stronger, but I don't have access to them.

The Japanese have some wonderful alloys, such as shibuichi and shakudo, which generally have much higher copper contents and lower precious metals percentages. They take patinas beautifully for a wide variety of colours and effects.

Chrono - I will try to take them today, as soon as I finish some last minute things (yup, I am playing hookie!)

 

[iLander]

LD,

I have to say this about argentium, it didn't resist tarnish for me at all. I'm pretty close to the ocean, and it turned a golden color within a month. I think if you locked it in a box with a bunch of salt, I think it would turn pretty quickly. But then again, I have stainless steel door hinges that are pitted and oxidized, and my metal cookie sheets rust within a month. Baker's Secret gets rusty within 6 months.

So maybe I've found my gold substitute!

I did wonder this; I saw three bracelets, all the same size and design. The rose gold and white gold were $177, and the yellow gold was $220+. Is there a justifiable reason for this in terms of alloys or something?

 

[iLander]

Oop! I made the 13th post, posting again so I've made the 14th.

Avoiding the unlucky number . . .

 

[briolette]

OOoh! Thank you for this thread and pictures. I didn't know red gold and rose gold were different until fairly recently. I really like that alloy diagram too.

 

[Lady_Disdain]

LD,

I have to say this about argentium, it didn't resist tarnish for me at all. I'm pretty close to the ocean, and it turned a golden color within a month. I think if you locked it in a box with a bunch of salt, I think it would turn pretty quickly. But then again, I have stainless steel door hinges that are pitted and oxidized, and my metal cookie sheets rust within a month. Baker's Secret gets rusty within 6 months.

So maybe I've found my gold substitute!

I did wonder this; I saw three bracelets, all the same size and design. The rose gold and white gold were $177, and the yellow gold was $220+. Is there a justifiable reason for this in terms of alloys or something?

Has this happened to several argentium pieces or just one? The tarnish resistance comes from germanium oxides on the surface of the metal. The last step of making an argentium piece is to heat treat it, to form those oxides (they are worn away during sanding and polishing). If this isn't done correctly, then the tarnish resistance just isn't there. If it is just one piece, that is where my bet would go. Then again, the sea is killer on metals (I grew up by the sea as well and it is amazing how fast things rust through) and I am no expert on argentium, since it is way too expensive to import it.

Were all the bracelets the same karat gold? That would be my first guess. From a working point of view, the white gold should have been more expensive, because of the rhodium plating. Rose gold is a bit finicky to work with, but nothing to justify a price difference.

 

[iLander]

Has this happened to several argentium pieces or just one? The tarnish resistance comes from germanium oxides on the surface of the metal. The last step of making an argentium piece is to heat treat it, to form those oxides (they are worn away during sanding and polishing). If this isn't done correctly, then the tarnish resistance just isn't there. If it is just one piece, that is where my bet would go. Then again, the sea is killer on metals (I grew up by the sea as well and it is amazing how fast things rust through) and I am no expert on argentium, since it is way too expensive to import it.

Were all the bracelets the same karat gold? That would be my first guess. From a working point of view, the white gold should have been more expensive, because of the rhodium plating. Rose gold is a bit finicky to work with, but nothing to justify a price difference.

You might have hit it on the argentium; it is just one piece from DanielM. I don't have any other argentium, so I was thinking it was the material.

On the bracelets, they are all 14K. That's what confused me. They are at Costco, and they usually don't have any hanky-panky there, but maybe their bracelet supplier sold them a bill of goods. I find it odd . . .