Wedding Rings: Making the Right Choice

Buying platinum wedding rings takes thought and consideration. It's all very well thinking it's just a metal band, but remember you'll be wearing your wedding rings for the rest of your life – for some people who stay together for most of their adult life, that could be up to 60 or so years!

Choosing the right wedding rings then is crucial: your wedding rings need to be durable, timeless and comfortable. It's easy to get carried away with trends or fashions, but ask yourself if you'll still feel the same about your wedding rings in ten or twenty years time before you make an investment.

Wedding rings – Not just Gold Glitters

Engagement and wedding rings come in a variety of precious models – dazzling silver, lustrous gold or durable, modern platinum. Choosing the right metal is important. There are a number of factors to take on board including:

• Allergies: some people are allergic to precious metals, especially gold. You don't want to exchange wedding rings then find out weeks later that you can't physically wear the ring.

• The economy: it sounds shallow, yes you can't buy love but money counts, especially when the economy is in trouble. Make sure you check the cost of gold and platinum which can rise and fall drastically depending on the economic conditions and inflation.

• Endurance: it's a given that metals such as gold and platinum will be durable, choosing a simple wedding ring will give it aesthetic appeal ensuring the classic simple style will ride through changing fashions.

Wedding rings – Platinum

Platinum is a relatively recent phenomenon in wedding rings, but one that is an increasingly popular alternative to gold and white gold. It's a strong white metal, that became of strategic use during World War Two, when it was banned for commercial use such as wedding rings. Since the 80s, platinum wedding rings have become in vogue in bridal jewellery.

Wedding rings – Gold

Yellow and white gold wedding rings are more traditional. If you're opting for gold, remember the greater the gold content, the richer the colour. White gold is a mix of yellow gold and other alloys such as palladium or nickel. Gold needs more care than platinum, and although platinum wedding rings cost more, it's worth remembering that white gold in particular will need treatment or re-plating, whereas true platinum is eternally white. You can find a mixture of precious metals – more often in engagement rings as a platinum band may use gold, which is easier to work with, to secure stones.