22K / 18K / 14K Gold – Which is Better? Clearing the confusion for once and all – Part 2

In continuation of the previous blog , lets clear more air in the topic: 22K/18K/14K Gold which is better?

24K gold – 100% Pure Gold

Thus, 1K Gold =  = 4.167% Pure Gold

Thus, 22K Gold = (4.167 * 22) = 91.67% Pure Gold

The remaining 8.33% of 22K gold consists of other metals like Zinc, Nickel, Silver.

Even though the addition of these alloys make 22K gold harder and more brittle, however this form of purity is still not hard enough to make jewellery with studded gemstones, diamonds or Swarovski crystals. Hence 22K gold is ideal for making plain gold jewellery, however an 18K or lower form of purity like 14K, 10K, 9K etc is used to manufacture studded gold jewellery.

The purity percentage of these forms of gold are explained below –

18K Gold = 75% Pure Gold

14K Gold = 58.33% Pure Gold

10K Gold = 41.67% Pure Gold

It is now understood that the hardness of the gold alloys increases with the decrease in purity of the gold. It must also be noted that there is a significant change in the colour of the gold too. With each composition, the gold tends to get duller. You may notice while buying gold that the purity sometimes is denoted in numeral form rather than Karat. No need to worry, we have made those conversions below for you understanding.

24K = 99.9% Pure = 999

22K = 91.6% Pure = 916

18K = 75% Pure = 750

14K = 58.3% Pure = 585 & so on

Yellow Gold, White Gold & Rose Gold

The colour of gold is naturally yellow. And as the composition of gold decreases the yellowness tend to fade a little, which is a given fact since the gold is being mixed with alloys of different colours. Hence the colour of 22K gold is bright yellow golden, 18K in a bit more dull and 14K or 11K is almost red or pink. It is understandable that this is a naturally occurring phenomenon, but we can also alter our desired colour by mixing gold to the alloys of the colours which will result in desired results.

Now let us get rid of a few myths about gold purity.

Is White Gold/Rose Gold equally pure?

As discussed earlier, we have made it clear that for any purity of gold, any colour can be achieved, hence while buying white gold from a genuine jeweler like Panjab Jewelry you need not worry about the purity of gold just because it is white in colour. So let that white gold nose pin shine bright on your nose without fear!

Can gold jewellery be available in colours like blue, green, brown and black?

Colour of gold jewellery that is completely different from their natural colour is achieved from different mechanisms. The process used to change the colour of gold is called rhodium plating. In this process the gold is washed with chemicals and then plated with Rhodium. Rhodium is a very rare and noble metal. During the very last step of the silver and gold jewellery making process, an extremely thin coating of rhodium metal plating is applied. This layer allows the colour of the gold jewellery to change from its natural yellow gold colour. Since Rhodium is naturally hard and brittle, it provides a protective coating over your precious gold jewellery and allows it to remain scratch free for a longer time period. However it must be noted that this coating is not permanent and would fade away depending upon the wear and tear your jewellery goes through. It is estimated to maintain on the surface for 8-12 months. With the magical use of Rhodium, gold jewellery can now be available in almost any desired colour without hampering the purity of the gold.

Can gold jewellery be of two colours or dual toned?

Creativity is truly acknowledged with dual toned gold jewellery. One way of achieving dual toned gold jewellery is to manufacture the two separately and soldering them later. Second way of achieving this is to make the complete jewellery at once and then during rhodium plating, selectively plate it to achieve the two tones.