Common Misconceptions About Metal Values
White Gold, Alpaca, & German "Silver"Rose Gold
Fairs, crafters, and other public places such as flea markets tend inflate the values of their wears. Let's face it the big story often seals the sell. People are often uneducated about metal content when they are crafteres or costume jewelry retailers. Others are just desperate to sell and lie. We need to know something about jewelry metals in order to avoid making an inflated purchase or worse a worthless one. Product knowledge also lets the intentional cheats and liars know that the game is not afoot in your wallet.
White Gold
In one of my college classes I was talking to a woman about her ring collection, after all I love rings and wear 9-12 of them everyday stacked on my fingers (mostly gold and stainless steel). She noted that she still had her baby ring that was white gold as well as several others that should be "worth a huge fortune" because it was "pure white gold". White gold is not a pure gold. It is either 14k or 10k yellow gold mixed, and is almost always the 10k version or 41.7% pure in today's online markets. It is often alloyed with silver to give it the "whitish" appearance for fine jewelry. Out of all of the gold at Fort Knox, not one single bar is white. The price difference between 10k gold and 24k gold is significant.
Gold is also mixed with elements such as copper, nickel, and zinc. It is usually plated with Rhodium, a rare but tough metal that makes gold and silver retain their strength. In the case of wedding bands, when the Rhodium wears off they can easily snap or smash. This is why most people never buy 24/k, or 99% or more pure gold in rings or bracelets. They are too soft for daily wear. It is important to choose wisely in purchasing a wedding band or mother's ring because they get as the most wear and tear, but let's get back to white gold.
Antique value can add to white gold values, but newer "white gold" is often less valuable when it is mixed with nickel for a lot of reasons. Many people are allergic to nickel and need to have Rhodium plating added to "white gold" bands. Jewelers don't want to mess with nickel items because the amount of people that allergic to it. Nickel allergies can come at 2 or 80. Once you are allergic though it never goes away. Replating items can get very expensive. Again only the 10k or 14k value of the yellow gold sets the value for the piece and that is only the scrap value. Most jewelers that buy it are not going to give you retail.
Alpaca & German Silver
The stuff is rather lovely because it rarely tarnishes even though it is not as shiny as sterling silver. Pieces like in the above photo look great with many kinds of stone and enamels. The above has mother of pearl, further adding to the delish appearance of this peice. The truth about value is not what one would imagine however. Alpaca is made of copper, zinc, and nickel along with tin. The scrap value is almost nil. Only the older pieces from about before 1950 have any value, but it is only as an antique. There is no silver in Alpaca.
-- Note that German Silver is also an alloy and is not worth anything, it is copper zinc and nickel. Other than collectable value as of in antiques or other factor such as designed plate or bowl, there is none. Only silver that is graded .925 or higher is worth high dollars and even then it depends on the size of the piece. Anything lower than .925 is not sterling and should be negotiated very carefully when pricing.
Rose Gold
Rose is very valuable, but not "sky high" in value as many people tend to think. Watch out at fairs that you are not buying straight copper. Rose gold is created by increasing the copper-colored alloys normally found in gold and decreasing the silver-colored alloys. The silver color could be nickel or other metals, so it is wise to ask about the white level base contents before purchasing. 14k rose gold contains as much gold as 14K yellow gold but is slightly pinker or reddish in color. Rose gold is available in both 14k and in 18k, the value is the same as the yellow gold "k" value.
All of this being said, you have to watch out for hype regarding what people tell you about metals. A good seller should have information for you and not get testy if you ask for more information. If they are honest then they have nothing to hide. Hope you have found this helpful in avoiding any crazy purchases of jewelry! If you want to visit my online store follow this link. Online Store Thanks! ~ Josie
Good read!
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