Palladium, Pave'', perplexities!!!

[jasper11]

I am having a bad time here folks. I picked out a setting I really liked, ArtCarved palladium set, with a knife edge and pave''.
I look up info here on rocky and pallidium is ill advised, as are pave''.

http://www.artcarvedbridal.com/ - go to bridal collection, it is called Belle
(I found the set at a jeweller)

Also - I really love the antique looks but 1) they can be pretty pricey 2)they also have pave'' 3)the band can cover a lot of detail on the engagement ring because the antique''s are filigree, milgrain and pave'' all over the shoulder and shank (if I''ve got my wording correct).

Now I''m thinking of white gold with a knife edge as that give the illusion of diamonds on the sides, with beading rather than pave'' - sound right?
Thanks.

 

[Sundial]

I don''t have any personal experience with palladium, but I wasn''t aware that it was such a terrible choice. I have a white gold ring and a platinum ring and each has its own pluses and minuses. And personally I am a fan of pave. My three stone ring has three sided micro pave on the shank and I also own pave hoop earrings and a pave heart pendant. I have never had any problems with any of them. I do think if you are really hard on your rings and wear them to do absolutely everything then pave might not be the best choice. A well made ring with pave from a reputable manufacturer should not normally have a lot of issues.

 

[kcoursolle]

I have a palladium ring and I love it!! I even ordered my fi''s wedding band in that metal because I liked it so much. It''s priced between WG/Platinum and it has the silvery look of platinum. I love that it doesn''t need rhodium plating. I''m really not sure why it''s such a hated metal.... I love my pave rings as well, but I think it''s important to remember that pave rings require special care and more maintenance than other rings. You can''t put it in an ultrasonic and sidestones do occassionally fall out

 

[jasper11]

I feel a little better now! I figured if artcarved has palladium - if anything it could be sent to them if there is a problem.
I liked the way it looked and how light it is.
The pave'' I adore but will look for beading that ''looks'' the same.
thanks for the input!

 

[ladykemma]

my engineer hubby gives his engineering seal of approval to your ring. no metal fatigue here!

 

[Cehrabehra]

Date: 1/13/2007 4:17:24 PM
Author: kcoursolle
I have a palladium ring and I love it!! I even ordered my fi''s wedding band in that metal because I liked it so much. It''s priced between WG/Platinum and it has the silvery look of platinum. I love that it doesn''t need rhodium plating. I''m really not sure why it''s such a hated metal.... I love my pave rings as well, but I think it''s important to remember that pave rings require special care and more maintenance than other rings. You can''t put it in an ultrasonic and sidestones do occassionally fall out

You can put pave in an ultrasonic! There''s lots of argument here that says better they fall out there than on the street!

One of the reasons given for why pave falls out after a clean in the US is that after years of wear and multiple layers of gunk in/around/under the tiny diamonds - when that is gone after a good cleaning the stone is then loose.... but a brand new ring kept in good maintenance shouldn''t have an issue being cleaned in the US - at least that''s what oldminder always says!

 

[jasper11]

okay, I feel a LOT better now - thanks.

 

[Sundial]

I put my pave jewelry in the ultrasonic cleaner at least once a week and I have never had a stone fall out. There are only a few people on this board who have actually had problems with their pave, but of course it draws a lot of attention when it happens. Issues can occur with any type of setting.

 

[oldminer]

The "problems" of palladium have pretty much been worked out by the magic metallurgists over the past 60 years since it last was a fashion metal. During WWII it replaced scarce platinum, but at that time it was not as satisfactory a metal as it has become more recently. It is a grey white metal, not quite the same whiteness of platinum, but has no yellow tint like many white gold alloys show. Some white gold alloys today show no yellowness at all and need no rhodium plating, either.

Palladium is about the same weight as 14Kt gold. It is not as heavy a metal as platinum. It has its features and problems as all metals do. You will have to make sure jewelers realize you have a palladium ring if you ever need it sized or repaired. Until its acceptance increases it still is rather a special case for many metalsmiths.

Palladium is durable and should not be a problem for keeping stones in place. I don''t see it as an advantage over the whitest white gold modern alloys, but it is a viable choice for those who want something a little different.