White Gold Engagement Rings: 2012 Collection - Diamond Settings

White gold engagement rings feature a brilliant white surface for diamond settings, based on the classic gold material that has been used in making fine jewelry for centuries. Because of the natural softness of gold, it is first alloyed with other white metals (such as nickel) to bleach its color and strengthen its ability to secure a diamond in place. However, nickel alloys will produce an allergic reaction in about 12% of people when worn over long periods of time, which is one reason that jewelry experts may suggest platinum as a material for your engagement ring.

The karat level of white gold indicates the percentage of gold used in its alloy, up to 24-karat complete purity. (For example, 14K gold is 14/28ths pure, or 58% pure, and 18K gold is 75% pure.) However, simply mixing gold with another white metal is not enough to produce a consistently solid white surface; the resulting alloy is typically off-white, slightly brown or yellow. To complete the appearance of white gold, it is coated with a layer of rhodium, which gives off a shiny, brilliant white texture.

Rhodium is actually a variety of platinum, and applies a very durable finish over the white gold used in engagement rings. However, over a lifetime of use, even rhodium will start to wear down by constant contact with skin and with the natural oils and acids that occur in that environment. When that occurs, the actual gold color will begin to show through. Many people appreciate this slightly worn patina in their engagement ring, but if you want your jewelry to retain its original shine and white color, it will need to be re-plated with rhodium approximately every 10 years.

Rhodium plating is something many jewelers offer, but a poorly applied coating may result in unsightly spots to appear on your engagement ring. Be careful whose services you enlist in maintaining your wedding jewelry; you should expect it to last a lifetime (and more!), and inexperienced jewelers can unintentionally damage your jewelry.

All that being said, white gold engagement rings have grown in stature and popularity over the years, and offer many advantages. Compared to yellow gold, a white diamond setting causes diamonds set in it to appear brighter and whiter, because the color of the metal setting has an effect on the light passing through the facets of the diamond. White gold is also more budget-friendly than other white metals such as platinum, and most of our settings can be produced in whatever metal you select. Every engagement ring in our white gold collection has been hand-selected from designs by some of the world's most renowned and experienced designers, and we are proud to offer some of the most exquisite wedding jewelry available.