# Silver or gold? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 1, 2012, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481 "2012-03-01T20:17:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/21 "2012-03-02T05:45:03Z")
Not reading the thread, but “gold” isn’t specific enough. Yellow gold is a mixture of mosly gold, copper and silver, with a little zinc. White gold is a mixture of gold, copper, nickel, and some silver. The nickel turns it a white color. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/22 "2012-03-02T07:00:22Z")
I wear both, sometimes together. I also have items of jewellery which are two-toned. It doesn’t surprise me that the ‘both’ count is low but I am surprised at the preponderance of silver lovers over gold. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/23 "2012-03-02T10:14:17Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > This is pretty stupid but I’ve always worn a Mickey Mouse watch which happens to usually have a gold frame around the face and gold clasp. When it breaks I buy a new one on eBay so that is why I say “usually” cuz sometimes I have to replace it. In my Mickey Mouse watch, everything is gold except the circle immediately around the face, and the back. In general, I love gold. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/22080_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/24 "2012-03-02T12:05:03Z")
I said neither - I’m not a jewelry person. My very plain wedding band is yellow gold. My cheapie wristwatch is “silver” - probably chrome. I think the most recent costume jewelry I bought - 4 years ago - was in the silver family. But if it all went away, except for not knowing the time, I doubt that I’d miss any of it. ---
**Author:** ![Scholar\_Beardpig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de053/32.png) [@Scholar\_Beardpig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scholar_Beardpig)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/25 "2012-03-02T13:14:46Z")
They both have their place in the universe; I have a little of each. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/26 "2012-03-02T16:44:05Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Gold. I’m Indian and I still have a love for the deep yellow gold of my people. I love silver and even ‘lesser’ gold but my favorite is still 22K. See, you went and made me learn something ;)… _India is the world’s largest single consumer of gold, as Indians buy about 25% of the world’s gold, purchasing approximately 800 tonnes of gold every year, mostly for jewelry. India is also the largest importer of gold; in 2008, India imported around 400 tonnes of gold. Indian households hold 18,000 tonnes of gold which represents 11 per cent of the global stock and worth more than $950 billion._ From wiki ( I was curious because I knew India was a moderately significant silver producer, but not a significant gold producer ). ---
**Author:** ![Corcaigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Corcaigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corcaigh)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/27 "2012-03-02T16:48:22Z")
Silver, I was too poor to afford gold (or any shade) so only bought silver jewellery. Now I just don’t like yellow gold. Rose gold is quite pretty though ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/28 "2012-03-02T18:07:46Z")
I was all-gold for a long time (due at least in part to having Italian grandparents who tended to buy gold jewelry for their granddaughter), but in my early 30s I started “experimenting” with silver. I gradually started wearing more and more of it, and when my ex bought me a pair of platinum-set diamond stud earrings in 2008 I officially switched to all-silver. The ex and the earrings are no longer around, but I find that I still prefer silver. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/29 "2012-03-02T18:09:46Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > Nevermind that gold is already associated with overly flashy douchebags and scum bags that wear their shirt unbuttoned halfway down their ugly chest. And look like Ron Jeremy and drive a red 1999 Trans Am. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/30 "2012-03-02T18:12:40Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > I wear both, sometimes together. I also have items of jewellery which are two-toned. It doesn’t surprise me that the ‘both’ count is low but I am surprised at the preponderance of silver lovers over gold. I am also. I don’t actually wear any jewelry except on rare occasions when I put on my wedding band (gold). But I buy a lot of jewelry for my wife, and the best values come from gold jewelry. The lower cost of silver seems to increase the profit margin for the sellers. I can usually find gold jewelry at just slightly higher prices than the raw material (because I shop around). With a lower investment in the silver, jewelery stores won’t be as eager to discount the product. And the way gold has shot up in price the past few years, a jeweler may have pieces that were obtained when the price of gold was much lower than it currently is. I recently picked up a gold heart for my wife from a small jewelry store going out of business, for $250. It’s about 1/2 ounce of 14k gold. That’s a rare find, but it shows what great values are available if you look for them. Of course some people just care what the jewelry looks like. Seems like a foolish way to spend money to me. But I did overspend on a gold oak leaf broach because I though she’d like it. She did. After all, foolish is in the eye of the beholder. ---
**Author:** ![Why\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b782af/32.png) [@Why\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Why_Child)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/31 "2012-03-02T20:50:59Z")
> [@raspberry\_hunter](#): > > Depends. > > Silver-colored metals are what I mostly prefer, especially with gemstones, because of the icy sleekness of it. I definitely prefer silver-colored metals for modern sleek jewelry. > > But: yellow gold brings out the color of some stones, especially blue stones. (This is a big deal for me because I looooove blue stones.) Also the warm gold color is just kind of pretty. For bringing out the blue of gemstones as well as for jewelry where a bit of a warmer color is called for, I really like yellow gold, especially high karat… beautiful stuff. Hmm… I consider blue topaz and sapphires as cool colors. (Not “Way cooool,” but opposed to warm. ) I have two sapphire rings, and the darkness of the blue really stands out with the white gold. > [@Trinopus](#): > > I inherited some silver flatware, and, alas, it tends to tarnish terribly. Every so often, I make the effort to polish it up, and it’s beautiful. But, with the passage of time (and a damn short period of time, too) it loses its luster and goes back to being dirty and gray. > > I voted for Silver…but the real stuff has limitations… > > (Yes, I know, so do I. Lazy.) In between polishings, store them in an air-tight bag, with as much of the air pushed out as you can manage. They won’t tarnish near as fast. > [@rachelellogram](#): > > Silver. I don’t think white people can pull off gold jewelry without looking like an '80s-era cheeseball or a wannabe pimp (and I am no exception). My single exception would be a gold wedding ring. It’s just a color thing. Darker skin tones complement gold jewelry much better, and white people should stick with silver. > > I don’t have a problem with people wearing whatever jewelry they like, though, and I’d never say anything to someone about their choice in jewelry. But I’ll still think it’s tacky. I had to roll my eyes when my (very white) dad got a gold neck chain and earrings for his mid-life crisis. Silver would have looked a lot less tacky. I agree completely. I tried yellow gold and it changed my skin-tone completely. I looked jaundiced. I voted for silver. Also, my birthday is 9.25. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2012, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/32 "2012-03-02T22:36:53Z")
I’ve always preferred silver. Gold is nice for an accent, but to my eye it just…doesn’t work as a main component. Granted, I have some screwed up eyes, lol, but that’s my preference and personal opinion. My sweetie, who wasn’t paying enough attention to figure out that I really do NOT like diamonds, at all, got me a diamond engagement ring, but was savvy enough to get me white gold, at least. I’d have preferred silver, since to me it looks the same and costs less, but hey, it’s pretty and made him feel good. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2012, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/33 "2012-03-03T01:53:33Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I was all-gold for a long time (due at least in part to having Italian grandparents who tended to buy gold jewelry for their granddaughter), but in my early 30s I started “experimenting” with silver. I gradually started wearing more and more of it, and when my ex bought me a pair of platinum-set diamond stud earrings in 2008 I officially switched to all-silver. The ex and the earrings are no longer around, but I find that I still prefer silver. 🙂 Why’d you get rid of the earrings? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2012, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/34 "2012-03-03T03:42:31Z")
I much prefer silver, but I love my grandmother’s original gold engagement ring, so I decided to use it as my own. But if I had my druthers it wouldn’t be yellow gold, no. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/35 "2012-03-04T22:07:29Z")
Interesting. I’m definitely a silver gal myself, but I didn’t expect it to be quite so lopsided. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/36 "2012-03-04T22:51:11Z")
> [@Becky2844](#): > > Why’d you get rid of the earrings? They were too small, plus I didn’t care to keep wearing them after we broke up. I held on to them for a couple of years in case I changed my mind, but I sold them last summer. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/37 "2012-03-04T22:52:37Z")
This probably explains why I see a lot of jewelry that I’d like, if it came in yellow gold rather than white gold. Some items come in a choice of silver/white gold or yellow gold, but quite a lot of things are white gold or silver only. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/38 "2012-03-04T23:51:18Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > This probably explains why I see a lot of jewelry that I’d like, if it came in yellow gold rather than white gold. I find this as well. I see a lot of bangles and pendants which are interesting shapes/styles but are always in silver. Gold bangles tend to be quite plain and, as for pendants - butterflies and hearts seem to be the only variant on nothing at all. I had a discussion about this with a silver wearing friend who complained that the jewellery store catalogues are always 80% gold items and she’s probably right but I still maintain that there’s a lot more variety of style in silver jewellery. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2012, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/39 "2012-03-05T12:45:16Z")
I happily admit to not understanding jewellery. It all seems very caveman “ugg ugg pretty shiny metal” to me. So I voted neither. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2012, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481/40 "2012-03-05T13:21:01Z")
To me, it looks like oxidized aluminum-dull gray in color. Costs about as much as gold, and not attractive at all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silver-or-gold/614481.md?page=3)