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Gold

Gold has been a measure of wealth for centuries. It has been used as a food additive, in dental practices, to some extent in electronics and also as an investment, but the biggest source of gold consumption nowadays is certainly jewelry. Rings, earrings, necklaces made of this precious material are greatly desirable by both women and men all around the world. Here is some information you may want to know about gold if you are about to buy a golden piece yourself.

What is the difference between 24K, 18K and 14K gold? What does “K” stand for?

K stands for Karat or Carat and is a measure of purity of the material. It is calculated as 24 times the mass of pure gold or platinum in the material divided by the total mass of the material. Hence, 24K gold is pure gold alloy, 18K gold has 75% of gold in it and 14K gold consists of 58.3% of gold and 41.7% of other metals. Fine gold is too soft to produce jewelry of it, therefore other metals such as silver, copper, nickel and zinc are usually added to the alloy to strengthen it. 18K and 14K are the most common types of gold alloys used in jewelry production.

Which colors can a gold piece of jewelry be?

Being yellow by nature, gold could be made white and pink by adding certain metal elements to its alloy. Thus, white gold is a combination of gold alloy with metal alloys which occur white in nature and plated with white rhodium. To create a pink colored or as it is usually called - rose gold, copper alloy is mixed with gold. Not so common but also feasible is to form gold of such colors as gray, green, black, purple, blue by adding other metals to the alloy.

Why is gold valuable?

There is a fair amount of reasons why gold became so valuable over time. These reasons are different from the ones which made gold a jewelry material in the first place. And the main cause of gold being so valuable is an extreme convenience in using it as a money equivalent. Gold is exceptionally dense, which means that you could easily pack your fortune into the compact bag in case you need to. It does not corrode, and therefore does not lose its value over time. It is somewhat easy to test if gold is pure; the supply of it is more or less stable and it is widely recognized around the world. All these characteristics make gold extremely liquid. Adding up to it gold’s relative rarity and difficulty of mining process, we get a valuable commodity which due to its physical attractiveness is perfect for jewelry manufacturing.

How do I take care of my gold jewelry?

Aside from common sense in order to keep your gold jewelry in good condition it is advisable to avoid taking a shower or a bath with it on. And if you decide to clean your golden piece at home, please use either one of the commercial cleaners or soft chamois cloth for polishing, mix of soap, water and ammonia against tarnish and alcohol against grease. Ultrasonic method could be a good option for pieces without gems.