What Are the Different Colors of Gold?

What is Gold?

Gold, a precious substance long associated with wealth and affluence, is a dense precious metal labeled Au on the periodic table of elements. Its purest form is a bright yellow color, and it is extremely durable, highly malleable, and is usually found in nature in a mostly pure form. Gold forms in the Earth’s crust and is widespread (in low concentrations) in most igneous rock.

What is Colored Gold?

Due to its highly malleable nature, pure gold is too soft for jewelry production on its own. To create jewelry that is practical for everyday wear, gold must be mixed with other metals referred to as alloys. The most common types of alloys used to solidify gold are silver, copper, and palladium. Differing combinations of gold and alloys create various shades and hues of lustrous metal.

Gold’s other redeeming qualities, aside from malleability, keep it as the most popular choice for jewelry across the world. It doesn’t tarnish (or leave marks on your skin), is durable enough to last a lifetime, it’s aesthetically pleasing, and has long since been regarded as a symbol of class and status.

Most people think of gold only in three colors – yellow, white, and rose. While those are certainly the most popular, gold comes in many more hues such as green and black.

The Origin of Colored Gold

Colored gold has existed for centuries, with rose gold being reported to have been used as early as the first millennium. Then in the 19th century, jeweler to the czars Carl Faberge popularized rose gold with his decorated Faberge eggs. Later in the early 1900s, it was widely used by high society women in fine jewelry and engagement rings.

What are the Shades of Gold?

While each shade of gold can have a different hue, there are eight main types of gold used in jewelry. Let’s look at each of them!

• Yellow gold: since pure gold is too soft to use on its own, metals such as silver and copper are added in varying ratios resulting in the yellow shade you see in most jewelry. However, the 22k yellow gold (more information on the ‘k’ rating later) usually has some quantities of zinc in addition to copper and silver.
• White gold: the white gold variation results from mixing pure gold with white metals such as silver, nickel, and palladium.
• Rose gold: (most rose and yellow gold variations use the same alloys – copper and silver – but in different quantities. For instance, rose gold has more copper than silver, while yellow gold contains less copper than silver. However, 22 karat rose gold does not contain silver. Sometimes rose gold is referred to as red gold, depending on the alloys used.
• Green gold: as one of the common gold shades, green gold is a composition of pure gold, copper, silver, and zinc. There are different shades of green gold varying from soft to deep green, which depend on the alloys used.
• Purple gold: this variation results from mixing gold and aluminum. But it’s less commonly used in jewelry due to brittleness.
• Blue gold: blue gold combines gold and indium, iron, or gallium and is also one of the less common gold shades.
• Grey gold: this shade results from combining pure gold with copper, silver, manganese, or iron.
• Black gold: various ways are used to derive the black gold shade. For instance, cobalt oxide involves mixing pure gold with cobalt and then heating it at a specific temperature. Another common method to create black gold is called electroplating, where the gold jewelry is plated with a black finish – usually with black rhodium or ruthenium.

What are Karats of Gold?

Karats, abbreviated as ‘k’, is a measurement unit that marks gold’s purity (content) when alloyed with other metals. In its purest form, gold is labeled as 24k. But you’re not likely to see this on jewelry since it’s too soft for practical use.

While there are no maximum karats imposed, different parts of the world have minimum karats requirements for gold-labeled jewelry. For instance, in the United States, gold jewelry must be at least 10k, while the UK and France require 9k as the minimum.

Here is a quick chart of the standard Karat measurements

What’s the Best Shade of Gold?

The short answer is, there is no answer! Choosing a gold color is a personal choice based on individuality, fashion sense, and style.

While white gold engagement rings have been the most popular in recent years, yellow gold rings are making a serious come back. Rose gold styles are also a lovely choice, especially when paired with striking gemstones in shades of turquoise and light yellow. Wearing mixed metal styles (styles with two or more hues of gold included) is another way to modernize traditional jewelry silhouettes and add flair to your look. Gold is used not only to craft rings but to create fabulous fine jewelry.

Importance of Buying Gold from a Trusted Retailer

As much as there are guidelines regulating minimum gold standards that gold dealers must follow, some are likely to disregard the standards and supply substandard products. For this reason, dealing with reputable dealers is crucial.

Merits of buying gold from trusted retailers include:

• Quality jewelry – Buying gold from a reputable retailer assures you of its quality. For instance, if it’s labeled 14k, you can be confident they haven’t manipulated the gold content; hence the jewelry is worth its value.
• Trained staff – A reputable retailer will most likely have trained staff, which further boosts your confidence in the quality of their products. Essentially, this provides assurance that the staff understands the products and processes involved, meaning you can count on their word.
• Ethical practices – Buying gold from a trusted retailer gives you confidence that they have sourced the products ethically, i.e., they have followed the due processes in line with the regulatory requirements.
• Customer service – Finally, dealing with a reputable retailer means you can depend on them to be responsive during the selection, buying, and after-purchase. Ideally, buying gold is a cost-intensive investment, and knowing you can rely on the retailer to attend to your concerns and questions promptly takes away the stress from the process.

Final Thoughts

When you mention gold, most people envision shiny yellow, rose, or white metal, and maybe a few others think of green. Rarely are colors such as black, blue, or purple associated with gold. If you were wondering which colors of gold are there, we hope we have enlightened you. Hopefully, next time you go to a gold retailer, and they recommend a black or blue gold, you can nod in understanding.

Meanwhile, remember, whenever you want to buy gold jewelry for your engagement, wedding, or a gift for a special someone, you can count on us for quality and custom jewelry.