Titanium is lighter than most other types of metals, but it’s also one of the most durable options you could ever have.
When it comes to jewels, titanium is just as popular as silver. People like titanium because it’s more durable and won’t tarnish.
With that said, what are the real differences and similarities between these metals though.
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Understanding titanium
Titanium is a unique metallic element that comes in silver, greyish, and is mostly used to make jewels. It’s utterly strong that most people use it for different kinds of jewels.
The unique characteristic is that the metal is very light to wear and the strongest for making jewels.
Titanium in jewelry comes in two forms; you can have pure titanium or titanium alloys. The purest form of titanium is hypoallergenic, thus ideal for those with sensitive skin.
However, when you are talking of titanium alloy, it will mostly depend on the extra metal that you used.
Some of them will be safe, while others may cause allergic reactions like any other metals alloys.
The pros of using titanium
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It’s lightweight
It’s the hardest thing to use a jewel that’s very heavy since you can’t wear it comfortably throughout the day. Whether you are using rings, earrings, or anklets, it will be easily comfortable when you use titanium.
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It’s strong
Still, it’s the strongest of the two metals and can stand everyday wear. For this reason, titanium is also famous for being durable.
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It’s versatile
You can use titanium for the different kinds of jewels. Therefore, if you want, you can combine it with other gemstones, gold, and silver to make it even more precious.
Besides, if you wish, you can use colored titanium to make different kinds of jewels. You only need to anodize it to achieve these colored styles.
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It’s durable
Titanium will work for you, especially if you’re an active person. You can go with it under the sun for long hours or play in the water and just do about almost anything and still have it maintain its shape.
You will rarely never find that people complain that they damaged their titanium jewel while outdoor.
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It’s cheap
Of course, other precious metals with such characteristics are very costly, well, not this one. It’s surprisingly cheaper than most other metals, even with its perfect properties.
Cons
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It can’t be soldered
Titanium is tough, so if you made a ring, for example, that doesn’t fit, it will be impossible to resize it to make it fit once more.
Silver
We have talked a lot about silver before. But notice that silver is greyish yet it’s very soft you can’t use pure silver to make your jewels. You will always need to make the alloys stay in shape or make them manageable and durable.
You can use copper and other metals to make it work. Unfortunately, when you mix the silver with other metals, it will tarnish quickly as well as corrode sometimes. This doesn’t affect the fact that they will make the best jewels.
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Pros of silver
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It’s affordable
Let’s just say that silver jewels are more affordable than most other types of metals. You won’t spend as much as you even spend on different types of metals
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It’s versatile
You can use it for different kinds of jewels for both your special occasions or everyday wear.
It’s even ideal for those with a darker skin tone. Notice that you can match it with your different outfits comfortably.
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You can resize it
If you bought the wrong size, don’t worry, you will comfortably resize it making it fit. So the good thing is you don’t always have to get it right at the3 very first time.
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You will enjoy the shine.
Its color and shine make it look as good as new. Besides, its shine and color make it look as precious as it is.
Cons
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Purity
You can’t use the silver in its purest form because it’s very soft that it won’t even maintain its shape. So you have to make alloys which then make it hard and manageable, but that introduces other disadvantages as below.
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It tarnishes easily
Silver, when exposed to the air a lot, will start to tarnish, making it lose its natural shine and luster. But don’t worry, you can wipe it all out.
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Sometimes it’s not hypoallergenic.
Depending on the extra metal content, you should expect it to either cause skin allergies or not. Mostly though, sterling silver is made using copper, which is safe. In other cases, though, you will have it mixed with metals like nickel. Such will cause skin reactions for some women.
It will need constant maintenance. Remember, if you don’t polish it often, then the tarnish will eventually destroy it.
Differences
The color
Of course, the most distinctive feature of any metal is the color you see first. Notice that titanium comes in a natural grey silver color. But it’s the one metal that will let you anodize it to other different colors.
On the other hand, silver will come in a greyish white color with the perfect shine for different metals. This is to say that you will most likely not tell the difference between them by looking at the color.
They come in almost the same color.
The density
We should note this here; the silver is much denser than the titanium. So if you took the same volume of silver and titanium and placed them on a weighing scale, silver is weighty. Silver can be up to twice the weight of titanium.
Now you may not see the difference if say you want to wear the rings, but if you’re going to wear a long necklace for different events, that’s when you will notice a difference. Anyone who wears the jewels for long hours may just like to use titanium as opposed to silver.
The hardness and strength
Notice that titanium has a higher strength-to-weight ratio. So although it’s light, it’s still one of the most durable metals you have. Because of this hardness, the titanium will not bend easily or even crack.
This has an advantage when you are setting the stones on the metal because it will never loosen. You will have the metal bond with the stone you set for ages. Be informed that this piece is just as flexible as the softer metals.
Silver is not as hard as titanium remember naturally silver is very soft, and even the addition of copper doesn’t make it as hard. Note that silver is a soft metal of all the precious metals in the market.
Since silver is very soft, it can easily bend if you keep wearing it. Notice though that it will never break; instead, it just bends.
Is it ideal in its pure form?
The purest metal at any moment, the better always. When you mix the metals with other metals, then you get it to start causing skin sensitivity.
But we must say titanium is perfect in its pure form. Although it’s light, it’s still a durable metal to use when making your jewels.
Unlike silver, you have to make an alloy you can leave your titanium in its pure form. It will always make the perfect jewel without the additional alloys.
Silver is a great and precious metal that was in the past, most preferred than even gold was. But although it’s a very precious metal, you can use it by itself to make jewels.
You always need to add other elements like copper, sometimes nickel, and the like. This will make it manageable and, therefore, durable. In most cases, though, people like sterling silver or Argentium silver. They are the best type since it has a lot of silver in their pure form.
Tarnishing
One of the most popular things that will quickly destroy the jewels is to develop the tarnish layer sooner.
Like we have said before, though, you can’t use silver to make any jewels because silver is the softest metal we have. So we have to use the alloy of silver, and when this happens, the silver will tarnish quickly.
The metals added are often meant to make the silver strong and manageable, but the problem is that with the addition of copper, then the silver jewels tarnish faster.
You may also be interested: in Jewelry Metals That Don’T Tarnish
But what about the titanium?
We need to note that the titanium will never corrode nor tarnish quickly. This also means that you will maintain the titanium jewels with a little effort. It doesn’t matter if you bathe with the ornaments or even go with it to the pool. You will never hear of tarnishing.
Just remember to polish it from time to time to maintain the shine and perfect look.
Hypoallergenic
The term hypoallergenic is meant to show you the jewels that cause minimal to no allergic reactions. However, it doesn’t always mean that it won’t 100% cause allergic reactions.
With that said, then most of the metals that are made using alloys are the same ones that will cause skin allergies.
If you are therefore using titanium, then you have the best and most hypoallergenic metal. Let’s just say that these metals are safe to use even by those who have sensitive skin. With that said, if you react to titanium, let’s say you may just be one of the susceptible types.
Pure silver, too, is one of the very precious metals that’s also hypoallergenic. It’s very safe to use pure silver, but since you can’t find pure silver jewels, they contain alloys. Most of the time though the moment you create the alloys, then the skin sensitivity starts to occur.
Luckily for you, most sterling silver contains about 92.5% pure silver, then 7.5% copper additions. If you are sure it has no other metals like brass or nickel, then it’s hypoallergenic.
However, most factories will add traces of nickel to the silver, which will sometimes react with your skin.
Alloys
You can comfortably make your jewels using titanium only, but most people create the alloys. Remember, titanium has all the positive features by itself.
However, this doesn’t mean that people don’t use it in the form of alloys. You can make different alloys from titanium.
As for silver, there’s no way you can use it to make jewels in their pure form. It will also work only when you make the alloys from it. The most common ones are sterling silver. Nonetheless, there are so many other different styles of sterling silver. You can create different alloys from silver at any time.
The cost varies
Notice that the prices of titanium or silver will vary. Remember, different factors will influence the cost of the jewels.
In general, though, even with its goodness, titanium is cheaper than silver. Sometimes though, you may find that they are almost the same prices. But let’s just say that they don’t have very high price variations.
Caring
Of course, the only way to have any metal last longer is to take good care of it. Sterling silver or silver requires more care because of the way it tarnishes easily.
You have to be careful where you store the jewel. Nonetheless, if you make it a habit to polish it frequently, it will serve you longer.
Titanium is great and is rarely affected by the outside environment. Still, don’t use it when you know you will be catching harsh chemicals. You can even use the soft cloth just to wipe its parts, making it look as good as new.
Which one is better?
I would say it all depends on what you are looking for in the jewels. They are both magnificent metals to use for different events. Remember, they almost look alike, so it will be more about the kind of ornament you choose.
Remember, if you want a hypoallergenic piece, then you should choose titanium.
Also, if you like the one that you can resize, you can choose the sterling silver. We have given you all about the two metals, so then you can use the guide to choose either silver or titanium.
