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White gold v. platinum engagement ring

This is not a comment specific to you purchase. But in general, platinum is better for pave. And for prongs.
 
18ct white gold is often Rhodium plated to give it a beautiful bright silvery look as unplated 18ct white gold looks a bit yellow. Rhodium plating wears off so you usually need to get it replated annually ($50 or so)
Platinium is more a grey silver colour. Better for pave and prong work as it is a dense metal resistant to bending but resizing platinium rings is more expensive and requires more experience to avoid a visible seam where resized.
 
I custom designed my fiancee's ring. She specifically told me she liked WG because it was more shiny than platinum. I was really torn as I consider platinum a more durable "forever" type metal. My previous experiences with WG was not good as the chemicals in my body eat the rhodium plating very, very quickly and I didn't want to chance that with her ring.

The ring designer, David Klass (DK), recommended I go with their WG/palladium alloy mix. It has the shiny factor of traditional WG, but because it's mixed with palladium in an alloy it never needs re-plating and the strength characteristics are better. In fact, my fiancee's ring has quite a bit of pave and I specifically asked DK about using platinum with it and DK advised the WG/palladium alloy was actually structurally stronger for her ring.

All this said, you need to consider what your girl wants. But if she has no preference and if the JA rings are traditional WG, I would spend the extra bucks and go platinum myself.
 
I prefer platinum because it never needs replating. I also prefer it’s more metallic look.
 
Sledge has a great point. And I should have specified that the alloy of the metals matters.

Many people assume that white gold is less expensive than platinum but right now the price of gold is high.

The alloy of white gold we recommend to our clients for engagement and wedding rings: 18kt white gold alloyed with palladium is quoting at the same price as platinum. So there is little or no price savings at this time. And sometimes the 18kt alloy can cost slightly more-- depending on the piece.

Neither needs plating. And 18kt gold with palladium is hypo allergenic, whereas some alloys of platinum (cobalt for example) are not. So it is a little more complicated than white gold versus platinum. The alloy also matters. And the design of the piece matters. But between 'regular' alloys of white gold that need electroplating and platinum: platinum is preferable in general for pave.

But I should have qualified my response above.
 
@LaylaR is spot on about the pricing of the WG/palladium alloy mix. Several months back when DK built my fiancee's ring, it was only $200 cheaper to use that alloy instead of platinum.

For me, it wasn't about the dollars but the strength, look and maintenance free aspect.

Also with DK, had I went with platinum I could have gotten any platinum mix I wanted. Depending on the specific platinum mix you look at some have different strengths and slight shade variations as well.

So it really is more than a WG vs platinum question. You need to analyze the specifics of the metals they offer. But generically speaking I do believe platinum > WG in most scenarios.

Just as we are all human, we each have different personalities even if we happen to be the same gender. And as we have all experienced those individual personalities allow us to form different opinions, views and feelings about a person. Metals are similar as the alloys can alter their personality slightly.
 
sledge said:
I custom designed my fiancee's ring. She specifically told me she liked WG because it was more shiny than platinum. I was really torn as I consider platinum a more durable "forever" type metal. .
Click to expand...

Hey Sledge, deep respect buddy, but I’m not quite following why you were torn? I have learnt that if the girl likes WG, then WG is what she gets, end of story no?

Just giving you a ribbing, all good.
 
If she really wants WG, then look into Stuller's X1 14k alloy, very white and does not need rhodium plating. I have several of their rings with this alloy. It does have Ni in it though.
 
I had a ring with 14kt X1. It's a very brittle alloy, apparently. And my prong broke very quickly. So, I've stopped recommending it, personally.
 
I like the second one better. Too bad that it costs a lot more. I think there is too much metal showing on the french cut band. I can't make my mind up about white gold vs. platinum for a ring for myself.

@LaylaR, I am sorry to hear that. I was hoping the X1 14 kt gold would be the perfect 14 kt gold. Have you seen it be brittle on other rings besides yours?
 
Hi Kindred,
:wavey:

Not personally, but I noticed the prong issue while I was out shopping, and checked it with my loupe. Then I became worried and went to jeweler near where I was shopping that I know has a good bench for repairs. When I showed it to the bench jeweler he looked at it and ' 14kt X1?" And I said "Yup." And he said--- "yeah, that's pretty much standard with the alloy. It's very brittle." And since I was curious I followed that up by talking to our craftsmen and they agreed.

I did not ask about the 18kt X1 alloy. So I do not know if it applies to that one as well.
 
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