White gold is a wildly popular metal for use in all sorts of jewelry, and makes a stylish choice for wedding rings, engagement rings and eternity rings. Yet, if you have ever seen a solid gold bar, you probably noticed that pure gold has a vibrant, deep yellowish-orange tint. So where does white gold come from? Actually, there is no such thing as white gold! Gold in its purest form is exactly the color the name suggests-gold.

By the early 1900s, jewelers had developed the advanced techniques required to make jewelry from platinum. Platinum, being highly durable and a stunning silver-white color, became a superior option to the silver that had been widely used to accentuate diamonds. The rarity of platinum, however, contributed to its high value, making this beautiful silver metal unaffordable to most. White gold began to fill the public’s insatiable demand for a shiny silver yet sturdy metal for jewelry.

The purest form of gold, 24 karat gold, is not often used alone in jewelry manufacturing because of its inherent softness as a metal. Instead, gold is commonly mixed with other metals to form an alloy, which is a combination of metals. However, simply mixing gold with another metal does not make it appear white. When metals are alloyed, a change takes place in the atomic structure which causes a change in the way the metal reflects light from different wavelengths. When gold is alloyed with one of the metals used to produce white gold, the metal takes on a silver-white hue, the characteristic color of white gold.

White gold can be produced by alloying gold with one or several other metals that have a “whitening” effect, commonly nickel, zinc, copper, or palladium. Nickel has been heavily used to produce white gold in the past, though the jewelry industry is transitioning away from its use partly because of the allergic reactions some people have to nickel. Palladium, a sister metal of platinum, makes an excellent constituent of white gold, though its rarity and high melting point make palladium expensive to purchase and tricky in manufacturing. White gold alloys are not limited to gold and another metal. It would not be uncommon, for instance, for white gold to be composed of a combination of gold, silver, copper and palladium.

White gold jewelry is often plated with rhodium, a white, reflective and very durable metal that is also related to platinum. This rhodium plating serves to strengthen and brighten the color of the white gold. Eventually, a rhodium plating will wear off, so there is a need to have rhodium plated white gold jewelry re-plated periodically. The amount of time before re-plating is needed depends on the amount of rhodium present and how harshly the ring is treated.

Diamond is one of the prettiest and costliest gemstones in the world. Made of pure carbon, it is the hardest natural substance available on earth. This hardness, combined with its high dispersion of light, make it highly useful in industries and jewellery making.

It is often said that diamonds are a woman’s best friend. Gift this precious stone to a woman and her reaction will say it all.

Diamonds are rated on 4 Cs – cut, carat, colour and clarity. However, cleanliness can be easily considered as the fifth ‘C’ in this rating. When you buy this stone from a shop, you will get a well-polished one. After that, the onus of maintaining its lustre lies on you.

Expensive as they are, diamonds need to be maintained well in order to retain their lustre. And, here lies the importance of cleaning your gemstone periodically.

Cleaning a diamond does not demand expertise; but, you ought to be careful as the settings of your ornament can sometimes obstruct the process.

The surface of this gemstone takes well to hydrophobic materials, oils and grease, and therefore, it is difficult to get them off. If not cleaned on time, these materials can reduce the shine in your diamond. Coloured dye or smudges can also be harmful for your gem.

Most jewellers provide sudsy ammonia cleaning kits to the buyers of diamonds. You can either do it yourself, or get it done from a professional cleaner. Many of them use steam cleaners and ultrasonic cleaners for this task.

Then, there are a number of easy, home-based cleaning methods that can be used on diamonds. Immerse the stone in solutions made of ammonia or ethyl alcohol. You can also mix mild grease dissolving detergent with warm water and immerse your diamond in this solution.

If you are not sure of how to clean your jewellery, let the experts do it. Do not take risks with your diamond. They are extremely valuable, in both monetary and emotional terms.