Black Rhodium

spend4zen · ‎12-17-2010

Am I the only one who is tired of seeing black rhodium used to darken gemstone's and colored diamonds on QVC? This trend is getting old and going the way of Bronzo, in other words, seriously overdone!! All this dose is hide the flaws on bad stones or darken them to the point of not being there natural color. I won't pay the prices that some of these peices are listed at for hidden flaws and dull stones. Please stop making so many of these darkened gem pieces.

PINKdogWOOD · ‎05-13-2010

@spend4zen I've always been against the black rhodium and gems. I don't like the look at all and would not have any of it. IMO it takes so much away from the color of the stones. It gives false impressions of the true stone color.

No, never liked the look.

Bronzo is way overdone as well

ValuSkr · ‎03-15-2014

Antonella said it only accelerated the process, that the diamonds in question would turn that color anyway in a million years, give or take. I caught only the end of the conversation, so I hope we're talking about the same thing.

AliJoi5 · ‎03-10-2010

Hi @ValuSkr - I think you're referring to the irradiation of diamonds to alter their colors. Irradiation is a gem treatment. I believe OP is referring to the plating of metals with rhodium, in this case - black rhodium. Rhodium is in the platinum family of metals. I think rhodium plating can be used to great effect when done properly and on the right pieces. But I agree, it's overdone, especially on sterling items where lesser quality gems are used.

This is a 2.70 ct. white and black diamond 18kwg ring of mine that is plated with black rhodium. IMHO, I don't think this piece would be as interesting without the blackened metal as a backdrop. I call this my "starry night" ring. hee hee

Dallas-Dame · ‎07-01-2011

@AliJoi5 wrote:
Hi @ValuSkr - I think you're referring to the irradiation of diamonds to alter their colors. Irradiation is a gem treatment. I believe OP is referring to the plating of metals with rhodium, in this case - black rhodium. Rhodium is in the platinum family of metals. I think rhodium plating can be used to great effect when done properly and on the right pieces. But I agree, it's overdone, especially on sterling items where lesser quality gems are used.

This is a 2.70 ct. white and black diamond 18kwg ring of mine that is plated with black rhodium. IMHO, I don't think this piece would be as interesting without the blackened metal as a backdrop. I call this my "starry night" ring. hee hee

Your ring is simply stunning, @AliJoi5! Thanks so much for sharing.

LancerHawkFriar · ‎11-14-2010

Don't like the black plating at all. If I wanted to wear something that looks tarnished I would just go into my SilverSafe Keeper and pull something out.

AliJoi5 · ‎03-10-2010

Thanks @Dallas-Dame! The cool part was that my local Ross-Simons decided to go with a different configuration of the ring (everything else being the same), and since this was a one-off sample piece, I received a great price. So even though we all love to shop online, sometimes it's a good idea to pop into our local jewelry store to see what special pricing they might have. Though I'll admit I'm rarely in the right place at the right time myself! Enjoy your weekend!!