Platinum Jewelry

Platinum is a white metal in its own right. White gold is a gold alloy mixed with white metals and then usually plated with rhodium to make it brighter and whiter.

That difference drives everything else. Platinum's colour goes right through the piece and needs no maintenance. White gold's plating wears with use and is reapplied by a jeweller periodically to keep it looking new.

Platinum is also considerably denser, so the same design feels heavier in platinum than in white gold - which some people want and some do not.

No. Platinum is white throughout, so there is no coating to wear away and nothing to reapply.

This is the main practical advantage over white gold, which is typically rhodium-plated and does need that plating renewed from time to time as it wears.

What platinum does over years is develop a patina - a soft satin surface from accumulated fine scratches. That can be polished back to a high shine whenever you prefer, but it is a choice rather than a maintenance requirement.

Patina is the soft, satin-like surface platinum develops over years of wear, as fine scratches accumulate and catch the light differently from a fresh polish.

It is not damage. Platinum displaces metal when scratched rather than losing it, so the material is still there - the surface has simply changed texture.

Opinions divide. Many owners consider patina the best thing about the metal and a record of the piece being worn. If you prefer a high polish, a jeweller can restore it at any point.

Two reasons. Platinum is scarcer than gold in the ground, and it is considerably harder to work at the bench.

It has a much higher melting point and needs different tools and techniques, which means fewer jewellers work with it and the labour costs more.

Density plays a part too: because platinum is heavier than gold, the same design simply contains more metal by weight.

Yes, noticeably. Platinum is considerably denser than gold, so an identical design weighs more in platinum than in 14K.

In a ring or a bracelet most people read that weight as substance and quality.

In earrings it is worth thinking about, since the whole weight rests on one small piercing for as long as they are worn. For a large earring design, the metal choice affects comfort more than it affects appearance.

No. Platinum does not tarnish and does not change colour with age, which is one of the reasons it is used for pieces intended to be worn for decades.

What it does do is develop a patina - a change in surface texture rather than in colour - as fine scratches accumulate.

Ordinary cleaning with warm soapy water and a soft brush keeps it looking as it should. It needs none of the anti-tarnish care that some other white metals require.

Yes, though it needs a jeweller who works in platinum. The metal's high melting point and different working properties mean the techniques are not the same as for gold.

Not every workshop takes platinum work on, so it is worth asking before assuming a local jeweller can help.

As with any metal, whether a particular ring can be resized depends on its design - a ring set with stones all the way around presents the same difficulty in platinum as in gold.

Yes, and mixing metals is entirely conventional now. A platinum necklace beside a gold one reads as deliberate rather than accidental.

There is one practical caveat: pieces worn touching each other rub, and the harder metal marks the softer one. That matters most with rings worn side by side on the same finger.

A two-tone or multi-colour piece somewhere in the mix ties the whole combination together and makes it look intentional.

Pieces meant to be worn constantly for a long time. Because there is no plating to maintain and the metal does not tarnish, platinum suits a piece that will simply stay on.

It is also a natural choice when a stone's colour matters, since a white metal adds no colour of its own to a diamond or a coloured stone beside it.

The place to pause is large earrings, where the extra density is felt all day, and any design where you specifically want a lighter piece.

Warm water with a little mild soap and a soft brush, then a thorough rinse and a soft cloth. The metal itself asks for nothing more.

Where a piece is stone-set, the stone decides the rules rather than the metal. Avoid ultrasonic and steam cleaning on anything with a coloured stone, whatever it is set in.

Keep platinum away from household cleaning chemicals, and store it so it is not rubbing against other pieces - it will mark softer metals and they will mark it.