Metal Colors / Alloys

What do we understand by alloys and how are the precious metal colors created?

Precious metals are metals that are corrosion-resistant, i.e. that are permanently chemically stable in a natural environment when exposed to air and water. Because of this stability, gold and silver have been used to make jewelry and coins since ancient times. In the last four centuries, the platinum group metals were also discovered, which are similarly resistant to corrosion as gold. These are also noble metals, have high densities and similar chemical properties.

The term “alloy” comes from Latin and describes the joining or melting together of different metals or metals with non-metals. The color and quality of the precious metal are determined by the type of precious metal and the precious metal content. Pure gold (Latin Aurum; chemical symbol AU) is called fine gold. In its pure form it is free of other metals such as silver and copper. Fine gold has a light yellow color, which does not change in the air because it does not combine with the oxygen in the air. This particular property classifies gold as a precious metal.

In its pure form, gold is the most ductile and softest metal. For this reason, it is alloyed with other metals before processing. These alloys are of decisive advantage in jewelry and especially in wedding ring production, because they often have different, more durable physical properties than metals in their pure form. Wedding rings can often be made harder and more resistant, and each alloy gives the ring its unique shimmer of color. With the addition of silver or palladium, the original yellow shimmering color of the gold manufacturer becomes darker or reddish with the addition of copper.

The degree of purity of gold can be expressed in different ways. A common measure in the 19th century was – and in some cases still is today, especially in the United Kingdom and the USA – the “carat”. The number of carats (kt) refers to how many parts of 24 total parts of an alloy are pure gold (e.g. 24kt gold means that 24 of 24 parts are gold, i.e. 24kt denotes 100% pure gold). The 8kt, 14kt, 18kt and 21kt containers we use contain 33.3%, 58.5%, 75% or 90% gold, respectively. In Europe today, the indication that the proportion is based on 1000 parts by weight is more popular. This means that in alloy 585 a total of 585 out of 1000 parts by weight consist of fine gold. With a hallmark (embossing) in each of the rings, the actual fineness is guaranteed.

The origin of our gold: 100% recycling

Back in 2009 we asked ourselves how we could offer our gold products without further fueling the harmful process of gold mining, in order to take responsibility for ourselves and our planet. The solution was to completely switch to using recycled gold. Gold, which moves in a constant cycle in the cities and is therefore already “stored” there in considerable quantities. Gold, which by its already existence no longer creates new incentives for harmful mining.

The fact is: there is already enough gold!

Instead of buying from large primary sources, since 2009 we have been sourcing our gold 100% from trustworthy, long-standing suppliers in northern Germany, for whom we sometimes even carry out the recycling process ourselves in Hamburg-Eimsbüttel. This gives us direct control over what we process into rings in the next subsequent steps. All of our partners are also RJC-certified (Responsible Jewelery Council) and are therefore part of an association of companies that are committed to responsible corporate practice along the entire supply chain and comply with the high legal standards for gold purchasing in Germany.

With the gold products from amodoro you can appreciate what gold was originally about: imperishable beauty.

Warm Colors

White Gold Variants

Platinum & Palladium

Other Possibilities

There is nothing like a real picture of the colors on your own skin

Colors look different in every light and create their own unique shimmer on every skin type. You wear nothing as long as your wedding ring. Choosing the right color of wedding rings is therefore associated with many emotions and we therefore always recommend taking the time to seek advice from local experts.

Our amodoro partners look forward to helping you! You can find a partner here:in near you.