How to Shop for Earrings if You Have Sensitive Ears

In the world of design, jewelry is rarely made from solely one metal. It may be more apparent with white gold and rose gold, but nearly every piece of metal-based jewelry you purchase comes alloyed with various other metals that strengthen them, alter the color, and add different qualities. The merit of doing this is apparent, but what happens if you have sensitivities or allergies? And what if you’re buying a pair of earrings that you’re going to be putting against the extremely delicate skin of your face, how do you know what to buy’

Keep reading to learn about the best metals to wear if you have sensitive ears, as well as metals you’ll want to avoid!

White Gold

White gold is one of the trickier metals when you’re sensitive and choosing earrings. All white gold is an alloy between pure gold and a white metal alloy. While reputable designers will make your favorite white gold diamond earrings with hypoallergenic alloys like palladium and silver, nickel can be used instead, which is a common trigger for allergies. It’s important to ask your jeweler if the white gold earrings you’ve picked are nickel-free.

Rose Gold

Rose gold is a much safer option than white gold if you tend to have metal sensitivities. Rose gold is an alloy of gold and copper, giving that lovely pair of hoop earrings a feminine shade of pink. But an added benefit is that gold and copper are both hypoallergenic metals. A very, very small number of people are allergic to copper, but unless you’ve already been diagnosed with the condition, you can generally assume that rose gold earrings are right for you.

Yellow Gold

When you see yellow gold described with a number, followed by the letter ’k,? that describes the purity of the metal. It might surprise you to know that most yellow gold on the market isn’t 100 percent gold, just like white and rose gold. If you see, for example, a pair of gorgeous stud earrings that say ’18k yellow gold,? that means you’re looking at a gold alloy that’s 75 percent gold! Fortunately, the two most common metals that are used to alloy with yellow gold are silver and copper, so most people will be okay with this tone.

Alternative Metals

Naturally, we have to start this section by talking about sterling silver earrings. Sterling silver is an alloy, but usually, luxury designers choose hypoallergenic materials to strengthen it, such as rhodium or germanium.

And speaking of rhodium, the common jewelry metals platinum and rhodium both belong to the same ’family? on the periodic table, and both of these metals share the fantastic trait of being completely hypoallergenic. If you’re going to choose earrings made from these materials, their lustrous white hue makes them a good substitute for white gold that you’re unsure about.

Learn More about Jewelry from the Experts at BENARI JEWELERS

Here at BENARI JEWELERS, we pride ourselves on our collections of gold earrings, as well as the other designer fashion jewelry you can find in our showcases. If you’d like to find out more about the earrings we offer, call us at 610-363-8450 for our Exton store and 610-355-1800 for our Newtown Square location.