GOLD
As the most malleable and ductile of all precious metals, Gold is an excellent choice when crafting designs with very intricate details. Its unique chemical characteristics make it resistant to corrosion, tarnish, rust or fire, making it a sustainable store of value.
In its purest form, Gold is too soft to withstand the stresses of everyday, making it prone to scratches and bends; therefore, it is alloyed with a mixture of silver, copper and zinc, to give it strength and durability. Alloying Gold increases its strength and hardness in making jewelry to last many generations.
KARATS OR CARATS?.... CARROTS?
Karats (K) Karatage, denoted by a number followed by “k” (example: 18K), indicates purity of Gold. The higher the Karatage, the higher the purity of Gold. Gold’s weight is measured in grams.
Carats (Cts) are the units for measuring the weight of Diamonds and gemstones. One carat equals 200 milligrams (0.200 grams) or in simpler terms a fifth of a gram.
Carrots, delicious root vegetables and that have absolutely nothing to do with Gold, Jewelry or Gemstones.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 24KT, 22KT, 18KT AND 14KT GOLD:
- 24KT GOLD: This is the purest form of Gold i.e., 24 parts pure Gold without traces of any other metals. Being in its purest form, it takes a bright luxurious yellow colour making it the most expensive form of Gold. The 24kt Gold is used to make coins, bars, and also used in industrial equipments, electronics and medical devices. Gold in its purest form is soft and pliable, thereby prone to bending, scratching and warping easily, making it unsuitable for making regular forms of jewelry.
- 22KT GOLD: This implies that 22 parts of the metal amounts to pure Gold and 2 parts comprises of metals like silver, zinc, nickel and other alloys. It is this addition of metals that makes the texture of Gold more durable and sturdy as compared to 24kt Gold. Nevertheless, this blend should be treated carefully as it is still too soft for making Diamond and heavily studded jewelry. The more active your lifestyle, the less pure Gold you will want in your jewelry.
- 18KT GOLD: This blend consists of 18 parts of pure Gold and 6 parts of metals such as silver, zinc, nickel and other alloys. Due to the lower percentage of Gold, this is less expensive compared to 22kt and 24kt Gold, but a relatively higher percentage of alloy makes the texture of Gold harder and more durable, making it a popular choice for everyday wear.
- 14KT GOLD: This is an alloy composition comprising of 14 parts of pure Gold and 10 parts of other metals like silver, zinc, nickel and other metals. Greater percentage of alloy metals in its makeup, making it a perfect choice to use in intricately designed jewelry.14kt Gold provides the best combination of rich colour, good durability and reasonable affordability and is the most popular choice for fine jewelry.
NYAMAH GOLD
We make jewelry that is crafted in both 18kt and 14kt Gold. Our 18kt range is an alloy of 75% Gold with other metals and our 14kt range is an alloy of 58.3% Gold and other metals lending it a rich colour and strength for generations to last.
We also offer our designs in 22K and 24K Gold upon request and take orders for customised designs. Write to us on info@nyamahjewelry.com to bring your designs to life with us.
THE COLOUR OF GOLD
Gold in its purest form has a distinctive bright yellow colour, however depending on the Karatage it can take on different hues. Based on the type and percentage of metals included in the alloy, the three most popular colours seen in Gold jewelry are yellow, silver/white and rose.
Nyamah’s fine jewelry is available in all three colors: Yellow Gold, White Gold and Rose Gold.
WHAT IS YELLOW, WHITE AND ROSE GOLD?
YELLOW GOLD: One of the oldest precious metals, yellow gold has a very warm and elegant look, making it a timeless gift for many different occasions. It’s also one of the easiest precious metals to maintain and repair. Yellow gold is made by blending pure Gold with copper, silver and zinc which gives yellow Gold its rich shine; most closely resembling real Gold.
WHITE GOLD: In order to give white Gold jewelry its modern silvery-white colour, pure Gold is often alloyed with a mixture of nickel, palladium and silver. The piece is then plated (covered with a layer of another metal) with a precious metal called ‘rhodium’ which adds further strength, durability and importantly a lustrous white surface sheen.
ROSE GOLD: Also known as ‘pink’ or ‘red’ Gold, Rose Gold gets its romantic pink hue by mixing pure Gold with copper. A greater content of copper in the alloy yields as rosier hue. Rose Gold has the same amount of pure Gold as yellow or white Gold, but the difference is the ratio of other metals that make up the remaining percentage of the mix.
HALLMARKING
The process of certifying the purity and finesse of Gold is called hallmarking. Gold is commonly stamped with a hallmark which indicates the authenticity and credibility of the Gold used for making jewelry according to international standards. Under federal law, Gold jewelry must be accompanied by the maker's mark or registered trademark for it to be hallmarked.
All the jewelry at Nyamah comes with Gold Hallmarking.