Not all gold is the same - gold alloys in jewelry

How do the extreme price differences in gold jewelery come about, what are the differences in quality and how does all this relate to gold alloys?

One of the reasons why Maren Jewelery differs in price from other brands is the high percentage of pure gold. In order to assess whether the price is justified when buying a piece of jewelry, it is worth taking a look at the composition of the precious metals used, along with a number of other factors. Because gold is not just gold. Pure gold, also known as fine gold, is unsuitable for making jewellery. Why We would like to explain this to you in the following and show what differences there are in terms of gold content. So-called alloys, i.e. mixtures of different precious metals, are used in the manufacture of jewellery.atz.

Read here everything you need to know about gold alloys in general and which alloy of gold we use at Maren Jewellery.

Fine gold is very soft and therefore susceptible to damage. Therefore, it cannot be used for the production of durable jewelry. The material properties of the gold are therefore optimized by adding other precious metals such as silver, copper or palladium. This process of fusing gold with other metals is called alloying. To create an alloy, the individual metals are melted to form a homogeneous mass and harden again. The addition of the metals gives the gold more stability, so that it can be better processed into pieces of jewellery. Depending on the mixing ratio, different gold alloys are created, each with a different gold content. When choosing gold jewelry, you can then read the purity of the gold in the form of carats or percentages..

Gold alloys vary from country to country. In Germany, the standard gold alloys are 333 gold, 585 gold and 750 gold. The proportion of gold is given in parts per thousand by weight. The smaller the number, the less gold is effectively contained in the alloy. With 750 gold, the piece of jewelry consists of 75% fine gold.

Perhaps you also know information in carats. This is an older, but still very common in the jewelry industry identification of the gold content, in which the weight percentage (also fineness) of gold is given in 1/24 parts. 8 carats then correspond to 333 gold, 14 carats correspond to 585 gold and 18 carats correspond to 750 gold..

The gold content of each piece of jewelery can usually be found out easily from the hallmark. This is a small embossing in a hidden place of the jewellery. This marking may only be missing or no longer recognizable in the case of older jewellery.

At Maren Jewellery, for our gold alloy we have chosen above all to use recycled 18-carat yellow gold and 18-carat white gold; some pieces of jewelry are also available in 14-carat gold. This allows us to craft high-quality, durable jewelry for you.

Our 18-carat gold, also known as 750 gold, consists of 75% pure recycled gold. Thanks to the high gold content in 18-carat gold, our jewelry pieces have their warm yellow-gold or bright, luminous white-gold color. The difference in color comes from the different alloy ratios. Our recycled yellow gold is made up of 75% pure gold, 15% silver, and 10% copper. Recycled white gold consists of 75% pure gold, 4% silver, 7% copper, and 14% palladium (a platinum metal).

Because we want to design our materials and processes as responsibly as possible, the longevity and quality of our jewelry are especially important to us. Unlike gold-plated jewelry, the color of our gold jewelry lasts over time. 18-karat and 14-karat gold are very durable materials that are well suited to long-lasting jewelry. That’s why our jewelry stays with you for years, and future generations can also continue to enjoy the preciousness of each piece. Compared with gold-plated jewelry, the risk of tarnishing or material wear is significantly lower. You can also find tips on jewelry care and cleaning gold jewelry in our Journal: Cleaning Gold Jewelry: How to Do It Easily.

Thanks to the 18 or 14-carat gold used, our jewelry feels pleasantly smooth against the skin. Its high fine gold content also makes it the ideal choice for people with sensitive skin, and in many cases it is also well tolerated by sensitive skin.