Carat or Karat?
When we talk about gold we often hear the term carat (or karat). Bugs bunny preferred to be paid in carrots, but that’s another item all together. When you are paid in carats, well, then you are really talking about some major money. In jewelry terms, the carat has a double meaning. It is used as a measurement of weight for gemstones (one carat is usually equivalent to 1/5 gram), but in some countries it can also be used to denote the amount of pure gold in a piece of gold jewelry. In the United States, when we want to indicate the gold content rather than the weight, we use a “k”, such as “karat”, to avoid any confusion that may arise.24K gold (in most instances) is too soft to be used in jewelry. In some areas of the world they prefer to use 18K or 20K because of its brighter yellow color and for the simple fact that it is closer to being pure 24K gold. In the United States 14K or 18K is preferred above the rest because it is more durable.
For more info check out our blog at open heart jewelry. We discuss various forms of open heart jewelry and the metals and gems that are often used. We give free advice and even showcase some jewelry items that we think you will like. We have an area for you to leave comments if you have any suggestions on what you think we should talk about or how we can improve.
