When shopping for wedding rings you will find yourself inundated with various options, from the finish to the shape to the material. What is right for you will heavily depend on your taste, budget, lifestyle and personal style. Platinum is known as the most expensive of precious metals, so can feel like a daunting choice for wedding rings. However, platinum wedding rings have been a popular choice for decades thanks to their durability, quality and beauty.
Investing in precious metals is a big step to take, and certainly a choice that you shouldn’t go into blind. Doing your research and speaking to experts is key to making the best decision. We have spoken to Tom from Wedding Rings Direct to learn some more about platinum, why it is good for wedding rings, and whether it’s worth the price.
Why is Platinum So Expensive?
Tom: “Platinum is what is known as a noble metal. This essentially means that it has an amazing resistance to oxidisation. Unlike other metals which need to be refined, platinum occurs in its pure state naturally. Only a few hundred tonnes of platinum are produced every year, making it incredibly rare and an extremely precious metal!
Platinum is not just used for jewellery either. It is actually a common material in car and electrical manufacturing due to its unique properties. This makes it even more scarce, which drives prices up.
Due to platinum’s unique properties, it can be quite difficult to work with. This means that jewellers responsible for creating things like platinum wedding rings usually need to be more experienced, more skilled, and each job will take up more of their time. The workmanship in jewellery is a huge factor in its cost as it is so highly skilled. You really are paying for quality.”
How Much Should a Platinum Wedding Band Cost?
Tom: “Ultimately this is sort of a “how long is a piece of string” kind of question, as platinum rings can vary so widely. At Wedding Rings Direct we aim to price our products as fairly as possible based on the price of metal. The price of your wedding rings will be based on their weight, as well as the amount of workmanship that has gone into creating them.
A lot of jewellers offer a flat price for a ring in a certain style, no matter what size the ring is. This is something you should watch out for as a red flag, as it means you are paying the average cost for every ring size, rather than paying the value of your specific ring. This can result in you really overpaying, particularly if you have smaller fingers.”
How Much Platinum is in a Wedding Ring?
Tom: “Again, this really can depend on what style of ring you want to purchase as well as your ring size. We aim to be as transparent as possible with our rings, so we include the expected weight of every plain wedding ring alongside the other specifications on our website.
Unfortunately we cannot offer this with engraved or diamond set rings, simply because the removal of material in each case can change from ring to ring and we would not want to provide misleading information. However if you want to know the rough weight of the finished product you can contact our customer service team for more information.
If your jeweller cannot give you at least a ballpark weight for your wedding rings then this could indicate that they are trying to mislead you. Terminology such as “lightweight” or “heavy” is not standardised across the jewellery industry, so you will find that rings are not always comparable across brands.”
Is White Gold or Platinum Better?
Tom: “What metal will work best for you really depends on a number of variables. The first thing to take into consideration is whether or not you need to match an engagement ring. We would not recommend pairing a platinum engagement ring with a white gold wedding ring and vice versa, as the difference in hardness can cause the two rings to damage each other.
In terms of durability and maintenance, platinum is far superior to white gold. This means that if you lead an active lifestyle and use your hands a lot then a platinum ring would be better for you. While platinum is not scratch proof, it will not tarnish, fade, or oxidise.
A lot of people are surprised to discover that 9ct white gold can actually be quite brittle and is able to shatter, unlike platinum which is more malleable.”
Would You Recommend Palladium as a Platinum Alternative?
Tom: “Palladium is actually fairly similar to platinum due to them being from the same group of metals. Like platinum, it is considered hypoallergenic and keeps its colour without need for plating. It is also less dense than Platinum, with a similar weight to 18k Gold. This means it takes less palladium gram for gram to make the exact same specification ring in platinum.
Palladium used to be a great seller for us as the price was significantly lower than platinum, which made it a fantastic affordable alternative. However, due to a shift in more industrial use of palladium the price has skyrocketed and it is now much more expensive, even than platinum. At today’s prices, I will always recommend platinum over palladium.”
Are Platinum Wedding Rings Worth It?
Tom: “Platinum really is a fantastic investment. It is remarkably non-reactive and resistant to corrosion, even at high temperatures. This means that unlike jewellery made from other white metals such as silver or white gold, platinum jewellery requires very little maintenance. For example, platinum bands do not require rhodium plating, and they will not discolour from being worn in the shower.
Another bonus is that platinum used in jewellery is extremely pure and inert, so it should not trigger metal allergies even in the most sensitive people.
Platinum is very hard and has good metal memory, which is another plus when you are making wedding rings. Scratches in platinum only displace metal instead of removing it – so you won’t lose any of your precious metal even if you damage your ring.
The main thing to keep in mind when purchasing your wedding rings is to keep within your financial means. If you have the comfortable budget for platinum then I would absolutely say platinum wedding rings are worth the spend. There is a good reason why a lot of heirloom jewellery is made of platinum; it is made to last!
However, if you feel pressured to overspend on your wedding rings then do not do it. Nothing is worth going into debt for, and there are so many other affordable options which will make brilliant wedding rings. Remember, it is about what the rings symbolise – not their cost! If your heart is set on platinum then you can always set a savings goal and get the rings of your dreams a little bit further down the line.”
With special thanks to Tom Hall & Wedding Rings Direct.
