What do you look for when searching for the best gold chain necklace? As you already know, some versions of the karat gold chains make better necklaces than others, depending on what you are looking for. Unfortunately, the search for the best karat gold for necklaces might be a little too confusing for most people, which means that an understanding of the different types of karat gold and their features is an important factor to keep in mind as you look for the best gold necklace.
In this article, therefore, we’ll take a look at everything you need to know about the best karat gold for necklaces. But first, what are some of the important considerations you need to keep in mind as you search for the best karat gold necklace.
The first important thing to keep in mind is the strength of the chain and its quality. Essentially, these two factors are determined by the karatage of the gold, with the strength and the durability of the gold necklace determined by the karatage of the gold used. The best necklaces are often made of the most durable version of gold, which means that you should be looking at the lower karatage gold for the most impressive features. The karatage also determines the quality of the gold jewelry.
In most cases, the higher karat gold jewelry with a nice balance of pure gold jewelry makes the best choice of jewelry because these options are valued higher and fall into the fine jewelry category. But you also don’t want the highest karat gold like 22k gold for your necklace because pure gold is too soft, and it isn’t the best option for you if you are looking for something durable or the version of gold that can be worn daily. On the other end of the spectrum, you have the cheaper and extremely durable gold jewelry, but these are the low karat options like 10k gold – these often contain nickel and other allergenic metals, which cause adverse sensitivity reactions for people allergic to such metals. Since most of us don’t want to end up with irritated red and itchy necks, the low-karat gold necklaces are not a go-to option for most people.
What karat gold is best for a necklace?
With the considerations shared about gold and what makes the best gold for jewelry, it is safe to say that the best karat gold for necklaces is 14k and 18k gold.
But between these two versions of gold, 14k gold is a more popular choice, and it is preferred to 18k gold across the jewelry world because of its durability. While there is no doubt that 18K gold makes the best fine jewelry, it isn’t the most durable option and most people who choose 18k jewelry, for example, only do that when looking for necklaces that they can occasionally wear, which leaves the rest of the jewelry world with a deeper liking for 14k gold.
Why this karat gold is best for the necklace?
14k gold is the most popular gold alloy used not just in making necklaces but also for earrings, rings, bracelets, etc. The reason for this is that 14k gold is quite versatile and allows for all kinds of designs and styles of gold jewelry. This stems from the high degree of durability of 14k gold, a quality that results from the alloying of pure gold with stronger and more durable metals like copper, zinc, palladium, silver, and in other cases, nickel. You can read a detailed post reading this post!
Essentially, 14k gold contains 14 parts of pure gold out of 24 parts (which makes pure gold or 24k gold). To create this alloy of durable gold, 58.3% pure gold is mixed with 41.7% metal alloys. The metal alloys added to pure gold are quite durable and strong, features which are transferred to the resultant 14k gold alloy. These metal alloys added also result in the three main types of gold alloys – rose gold, yellow gold, and white gold. 14k gold is also significantly cheaper than 18k gold, and this competitive pricing of 14k gold enhances its desirability across the jewelry world.
When it comes to jewelry creation, specifically the manufacture of necklaces, the most important features that people look out for is how well the necklace will hold up to daily wear, how much it costs, and whether it’s valuable or worth the money or not. Well, 14k gold wins on all these fronts, which is why it’s a preferred metal option for most people looking for the best of gold necklaces that can be worn daily. So, if you are looking for a piece of good quality gold necklace, one that would easily be worn as your go-to daily necklace that can be worn in and out of the office, we recommend 14k gold necklaces.
There’s just one caveat we’d like to bring to your attention – the fact that 14k gold might have nickel present. The nickel content in some types of 14k gold is a little too much for people with sensitive skin and metal allergies, and since a bigger percentage of alloys is needed in the creation of 14k gold – 41.7% rather than 25% in 18k gold, there is a high risk of allergies around 14k gold necklace.
To be safe, confer and confirm with the jeweler about the quality of the metals used in creating the necklace and how safe it is. If you aren’t sure, you might want to opt for 18k gold necklaces. Alternatively, get a 14k white gold necklace or 14k yellow gold that has no nickel. With white gold necklaces, any nickel present in the alloy is coated by the non-allergenic rhodium, leaving you with jewelry that is safe on your skin as long as it is re-dipped in rhodium before it turns yellow. Avoid 14k rose gold necklaces if you have sensitive skin because you may suffer from green discoloration from copper and irritation from nickel.
Pros and cons of this karat gold for making necklace
Pros
- 14K gold necklaces are quite durable thanks to the high content of metal alloys added to the gold to enhance its durability
- It’s much cheaper than 18k gold necklaces thanks to the lower content of pure gold in the 14k gold
- A good range of design and style options available for you to choose from, including white gold, yellow gold, and rose gold
- The 14k gold necklaces can be set with diamonds easily
Cons
- Small risk of nickel allergies and other metal sensitivity and hypersensitivity reactions
- The 14k rose gold doesn’t look as good on necklaces, and 18k yellow gold looks quite elegant when used for necklaces.
- Some people would still opt for the more expensive 18k yellow gold necklaces over 14k yellow gold necklaces because the former looks better than the latter.
Related Questions:
Is 14K gold good for a necklace?
Yes. 14k gold is strong, durable, and looks great, which is why it can be used for making necklaces. It’s also more affordable compared to the higher karat gold necklace options.
Is 18K gold good for the necklace?
If you are looking for the finest quality gold necklace that you can wear occasionally, then a necklace crafted out of 18k gold would be a good option for you. It is more expensive, though, and also quite soft, meaning it’s more susceptible to scuffing, scratches, and bending, which is why it is not the best option chosen by most people.
Conclusion
In its pure form, gold is extremely soft and delicate to wear. This is the case with higher karat gold which are also soft and not the most durable versions of gold to be used in jewelry. For a balance of value and quality, 14k gold is the preferable karat gold for necklaces.
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Tiger is a fashion&jewelry lover. He is also a fashion jewelry manufacturer that help thousands of small business to grow and also do business with some big fashion jewelry brands. He is a truly metal expert and he will share some information you are looking for.