18ct White Gold Rings

18 carat white gold is comprised of an alloy of 18 parts pure 24 carat gold and 6 parts of at least one white metal, usually nickel, manganese or palladium.  Like yellow gold, the purity of white gold is given in carats.

White gold's properties vary depending on the metals and proportions used.  As a result, white gold alloys can be used for different purposes; while a nickel alloy is hard and strong and therefore good for rings and pins, palladium alloys are soft, pliable and good for white gold gemstone settings, sometimes with other metals like copper, silver, and platinum for weight and durability, although this often requires specialised goldsmithing.

The term white gold is used very loosely in the industry to describe carat gold alloys with a whitish hue.  It is believed that the colour of the rhodium plating, which is seen on many commercial pieces, is actually the colour of white gold.  The term "white" covers a large spectrum of colours that borders or overlaps pale yellow, tinted brown and even very pale rose.  The jewellery industry often hides these off-white colours with rhodium plating.