Platinum vs. White Gold-Engagement/Wedding rings...

[newmomto1]

For our ten year anniversary I am wanting to change my setting.
I am actually looking at wedding sets (setting with matching diamond band).
My current setting is platinum.
When we were getting engaged it seemed like that was the metal to get.
Now it seems the jewelers are pushing white gold.
The platinum is so much more expensive so white gold would definitely be better on our wallet.
But I am just curious will it will hold up as well over time as the platinum?
And 14 or 18k???
Any advice or opinions??

[scrooks]

No... My white gold is slowly turning gold over time. I think it can be replated? I hope to upgrade it to platinum someday! I would keep your platinum setting if it were me. Fwiw my rings are 14k.

[BabyBearsMom]

No... My white gold is slowly turning gold over time. I think it can be replated? I hope to upgrade it to platinum someday!

You don't need to get them re-plated, they just polish them. I send my rings in every 2 to 3 years. I have a plan on my rings so it is free, but if you don't have the plan I think it is $75 per ring. I told DH that I want a new set in Platinum for one of our big anniversaries.

[daisysmom]

Mine are platinum. They definitely are duller and not as shiny as they were new but I still prefer platinum to gold, even white gold.

[scrooks]

You don't need to get them re-plated, they just polish them. I send my rings in every 2 to 3 years. I have a plan on my rings so it is free, but if you don't have the plan I think it is $75 per ring. I told DH that I want a new set in Platinum for one of our big anniversaries.

Thanks for the tip. I really need to have this done. The rings are showing their 7-8 years of wear....

[nfowife]

Platinum is whiter/greyer. It is denser and so stays "in round"longer (not as easy to bend out of shape, though it does happen). White gold is yellower and for the "shiny white" look will need to be replated every year (or less, depending on if it bothers you or not). It costs between $50-100 to have white gold replated with rhodium. Some jewelers offer this for free for the first year or whatnot.
White gold is not as dense (and feels lighter on the hand) and so it will bend easier but it will also scratch LESS. Platinum doesn't lose volume over time, a scratch just moves particles around a bit. You can have your platinum ring polished to remove the surface scratches and it will look shiny new again. It gets more of a "patina" over time from the scratches. Sort of like nickel finish as opposed to a chrome finish on bathroom fixtures. A white gold ring does lose volume over time and wear away so that's why you sometimes hear of the back of a ring, if too thin, wearing away and breaking.

I know it's more expensive. But over the life of the piece, it's not much more so, and if you prefer platinum I'd go for it.

[AnnieW625]

My ring is platinum as well. I have been really happy with it. I do agree 10+ yrs. ago it was all about platinum.

Can you just redesign your setting using the bands you currently have? That is what I might do if I was doing that. I have a single stone and bezels on the side so adding a larger stone to the middle of my ring is about all I could really do.

[MSWR0319]

I have a 14k band and a 18k engament ring. The higher the content of gold, the more yellow it will turn over time. My band has never turned yellow but I get both polished and replated every 1.5 years or so because my engagement ring does turn gold. We were told platinum scratches easier and dulls over time, so it's really just a matter of color preference I guess. It costs me about $25 to get my rings done by a local jeweler.

[maestramommy]

I talked to a jeweler while trying to decide on an everyday ring. It seems that white gold is simply gold that is mostly other metals.

I got platinum for my engagement and wedding ring, mostly for it's hardness. I'd really like to use platinum again for my everyday ring, but it's rather pricey. Someone was telling me about a metal that is similar in color, just as hard, but a lot less expensive. I can't remember the name of it though.

[codex57]

My original band was white gold. Turned color within a year.

Between the color change and needing to refinish it (it was two textures, one part shiny, one part matte), I ended up buying a tungsten carbide ring. Cheap and no worries about it scratching or changing colors.

[pinkmomagain]

I am about to change my engagement setting from white gold to platinum. As I wear my rings every day, and put alot of wear and tear on them, platinum will hold up better. My white gold setting has turned color and the prongs holding my stone have worn down quite a bit (of course it is about 20 yrs old).

[newnana]

I wear my grandmother's wedding band. She wore it for 70 years. I've worn it for 10. It's platinum as is the engagement band DH bought to match. I'm really sentimental about the ring and wouldn't wear it if there was any chance it wouldn't hold up. Given that this one has held up for 80 years of serious use (I wear it every day as did she), I can give a strong vote in favor of platinum. Never had to do anything to it... even get it sized. I do get the stones checked each year to make sure they aren't loose, and they never have been.

[indigo99]

As pp have said, go with platinum if you plan on having it a long time. White gold will wear away. As for it changing colors, white gold is still gold. It just has other things added to lighten it and is then coated with rhodium to make it white and shiny. When the rhodium wears off, it will need recoated.

[newmomto1]

Someone was telling me about a metal that is similar in color, just as hard, but a lot less expensive. I can't remember the name of it though.

I think its palladium.
I am just learning about it and thinking this may be what I do!
Whiter than white gold or platinum.
Low maintenance, doesn't change color, no skin reaction problems, and cost about the same as gold!

[spannaz]

I'm not sure how accessible it is in the States, but maybe look into 19K white gold? It's a newer alloy that is supposed to be more durable and less likely to yellow over time. My engagement ring is 18K white gold an my custom-made wedding band (made to fit against the engagement prongs) is 19K white gold. After 2 years of marriage I can see a huge difference in color between the two rings. My 18K ring is turning slightly yellow, but my 19K band is just as 'white' as it was on my wedding day.




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[maestramommy]

I think its palladium.
I am just learning about it and thinking this may be what I do!
Whiter than white gold or platinum.
Low maintenance, doesn't change color, no skin reaction problems, and cost about the same as gold!

Thank you!

[twotimesblue]

One thing to bear in mind is that platinum scratches much more easily than gold (which is why you shouldn't really wear the two metals together - the gold ring will scratch the platinum one). My DH has a platinum wedding band and after 3 years of daily wear it is definitely showing some scratches - they could be quite easily polished out but as an Aussie male he is quite happy with the 'worn in' look!