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Did you know that by 2026, it's expected that the jewelry industry will be worth around 307 billion USD?
The jewelry industry has always been and will always be very popular, especially thanks to rings for proposals. Engagement rings can come in any shape or size, but in recent years, it seems that a rose gold ring, in particular, has been getting more popular.
If you're unsure where to start when it comes to buying engagement rings, you've clicked on the right article. Here, you'll learn about the different types of gold rings and why a rose gold ring design is unique.
To start off, let's take a closer look at the different types of gold used for rings and how rose gold is different from other variations of gold.
The Different Types of Gold You Should Know About
Yellow gold is the most common type of gold and the one most people think about. As the name suggests, it is yellow, but yellow gold can come in different variations of yellow depending on how much gold is actually in a given piece of jewelry.
Knowing the details of the gold jewelry is important because otherwise, you might not realize you're overpaying for a ring that barely contains any real gold. Most jewelry is 18k gold which means that it contains 75% gold while the rest of the metal is made out of some kind of alloy. 18K gold is the most popular because it is much more durable than purer types of gold.
For example, while 24k is pure gold, most jewelers avoid making jewelry with 24k gold because it damages too easily. Because 24k is pure gold, it has the deepest yellow color out of any other kind of gold. 18k gold is slightly less yellow and more of the typical yellow color that comes to mind when you think of gold.
When buying rings online, you may also come across 14k or 10k gold rings. You will immediately notice that these rings are cheaper and paler in color compared to 18k gold rings. This is because 14k and 10k pieces of jewelry only have low concentrations of gold with the rest of the piece being made up of alloys.
More often than not, lower-quality gold jewelry can cause skin irritation because of the high concentration of nickel. Gold itself is hypoallergenic, so the more gold there is in a ring, the less chance there will be for skin irritation. While yellow gold is the most popular type of gold overall, white gold has traditionally been the most popular for engagement rings.
What Is White Gold for Rings
Even though white gold is a popular choice for engagement rings, it might not always be worth the hype. As with yellow gold, white gold can come in different purities. However, unlike yellow gold, the color of white gold is not proportional to its worth.
For example, for yellow gold, the yellower the metal is, the more it's worth because there is more real gold in the piece of jewelry. The opposite is true for white gold because the point of white gold is for it to be very pale. To accomplish this, there cannot be too much real gold in the metal otherwise it will look too yellow to be white gold.
To create white gold, gold is mixed together with white metals such as silver. The more pale metals and the less gold present, the whiter the resulting metal will be. White gold may also have a plating of chemicals or pale metals to make it appear whiter.
Many people like white gold because it can complement the appearance of a diamond. However, because so many engagement rings use white gold, getting a white gold ring is not all too special. More than that, when comparing ring prices, white gold rings tend to be more expensive because of the manufacturing process even though the result is not especially spectacular.
If you want a truly unique ring, you might be better off looking for a rose gold ring instead. But what is rose gold exactly and how does it compare to other kinds of gold?
What Is Rose Gold for Rings
While gold jewelry has been around for thousands of years, rose gold jewelry is actually a very modern invention. It only came into being when the jeweler of the Russian Imperial family created it in the late 1800s. Back then, rose gold was reserved only for the most prestigious members of the Russian aristocracy, but today, anyone can buy beautiful rose gold jewelry.
As we have already seen, certain metals when mixed with gold can give gold a unique color. Yellow gold is often mixed with cheap metals that don't heavily impact its color such as nickel. White gold is instead mixed with silver or other white metals.
The way rose gold is created is through the mixing of copper with gold. When a jewelry maker mixes these two metals together, the resulting gold is a very delicate blush-pink. There are different variations in rose gold rings.
If there is more copper in the ring, the ring will have a deeper and richer pink shade. However, keep in mind that even though a deeper pink color might be very attractive, there will not be as much gold in the ring but instead more copper. Most rose gold rings are 18k so they are still 75% gold while the rest is mostly copper.
A benefit of rose gold is that the added copper gives rose gold jewelry special durability against scratches and dents, although it may not always be as durable as other types of gold. More importantly, rose gold boasts a shade that no other type of jewelry can match, and rose gold can go with just about anything.
If a buying rose gold ring sounds like an attractive idea to you, you might be wondering how you can find the perfect rose gold ring.
Finding the Perfect Rose Gold Ring for Your Engagement
Finding the right engagement ring is always tricky, but the process can be made easier when you know a few tips and tricks. One of the first things you need to consider before buying a ring is how many karats the ring should be. As discussed before, the number of karats in a gold ring can greatly change the resulting color, especially for rose gold rings.
The tone of rose gold rings can vary very slightly, but for an engagement ring, finding the perfect color is crucial. For the best results, you might want to bring your significant other with you when you browse jewelry in a jewelry store or online. This way, your future spouse will be able to pick the exact color that he or she prefers.
For a very bold and reddish ring, the fewer the karats, the better. If your significant other loves pink, less copper and more gold will likely be the best result.
On the topic of counting karats, you should remember that the fewer gold karats there are, the more likely the ring might cause skin irritation. This is important to consider if your significant other has sensitive skin. 18k gold is your best bet for avoiding skin irritation since it tends not to irritate even those with the most sensitive skin.
Besides skin irritation, you should make sure that your significant other isn't allergic to certain types of metal such as copper or silver. Your significant other to have an irritating allergic reaction to an engagement ring is not the best of results when you decide to propose.
Keep Jewelry Insurance in Mind
There's nothing worse than losing a wedding or engagement ring, especially when that ring is very elaborate or expensive. Rings can get lost in a variety of ways, especially if your significant other is a particularly active person. A ring may get lost in the garden, on a hiking trail, or in the laundry room.
Losing such a precious ring is immediately a nerve-wracking event. However, you can make it far less nerve-wracking if you invest in insurance for the ring ahead of time. You can learn more about insurance for engagement rings from a banker or from your jeweler.
When you have an engagement ring insured, you won't have to worry so much about potentially losing thousands and thousands of dollars if that ring happens to get lost.
There’s No Need to Stick To One Type of Gold
At this point, you've no doubt decided that a rose gold ring is the right choice. However, you should keep in mind that the engagement ring you buy for your proposal doesn't have to be all rose gold. This is because there are plenty of ways to design a ring and incorporate all sorts of different metals.
If you're buying a custom ring, you can have bands of different types of gold intertwining to create a very unique ring. After all, weaving together yellow, white, and rose gold would certainly create a very eye-catching ring. You might not even need a custom order for such a result.
Many more jewelry stores and online jewelry shops are experimenting with different ring designs. Even if you want to stick with rose gold alone, there are still plenty of possibilities for the ring's final look. For example, instead of a simple band, there are bands that weave together or curl in unique ways.
However, the structure of the band may interfere with certain gemstone placements. So, keep this in mind if you plan on getting an especially elaborate ring. And, of course, the more complex your ring is, the more it will cost compared to an ordinary ring.
Keep Your Significant Other’s Finger Size in Mind
There's nothing worse than buying an engagement ring only to find that it doesn't fit well on your significant other's finger. A ring that is too tight or too loose is always bad news. But finding the size of your beloved's finger can be difficult, especially if you're planning on a surprise proposal.
A good method is asking some relatives of your beloved's. If they don't have any idea about ring size, they might have similar finger sizes to your significant other's fingers. If your significant other already wears various rings, you can try to compare those rings with the ring you plan to buy.
If you don't plan on a surprise proposal, your job will be much easier. All you need to do is measure your significant other's finger with a finger. You could also go to the jewelry shop you plan to buy the ring at and have your beloved try on different rings until you find the right one.
Keep in mind that with age, fingers tend to plump up somewhat. So, as you and your future spouse grow old together, the engagement ring you choose may start to feel a little tight on your beloved's finger. So, when you first choose the ring, try to avoid rings that are a little snug since they will only get snugger with age.
Finding the Right Rose Gold Ring
By the end of this article, you should know all the details of finding the perfect rose gold ring for your significant other. Out of all the other types of gold, rose gold offers the most unique look and a rose gold ring will certainly withstand the test of time.
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