Stainless Steel Wedding Bands

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tainless steel is emerging as a hot new metal for mens wedding rings. Along with titanium and tungsten, stainless steel is one of the non-traditional jewelry metals that is gaining in popularity for fine jewelry, designer jewelry, and wedding jewelry. Stainless steel has an edgy look and metallic gray color that tends to have a more masculine appeal, making it an attractive alternative for mens wedding rings.

The look and design of stainless steel wedding rings is what first attracts attention, but the attractive prices and high durability makes them worth serious consideration. Mens wedding rings fashioned out of stainless steel can be found in many styles, from simple bands to unique designer styles. The gray color of stainless steel makes a great combination with yellow gold, and many stainless steel wedding bands feature inlay patterns of gold. If you want a wedding ring with diamonds, you can also find many stainless steel wedding bands with diamonds.

The emergence of stainless steel in the wedding ring market is a natural progression of its appeal and popularity in other aspects of the jewelry market. Many people are familiar with the use of stainless steel in watches, even in the upscale market, because of its durability and hypoallergenic properties. Many upscale watches are all stainless steel construction, but even watches fashioned out of other metals still usually use a stainless steel watch case back because of it's strength. With its industrial, masculine look, more and more mens jewelry designs are being created out of stainless steel, including rings, bracelets, chains, pendants, cufflinks and body jewelry.

Stainless steel is an extremely durable alloy of steel and chromium with a rich, deep luster. It is a hard metal which has a hardness of 5.5 to 6.0 on the Mohs scale. Stainless steel is virtually immune to rust, discoloration, and corrosion. It is fairly easy to clean and does not oxidize over time like other semi-precious metals. It is also hypoallergenic and does not discolor some skin types like other traditionally used alloys. Stainless steel wedding rings can be given a high polish finish or a matte finish, or a combination of both. When highly polished, stainless steel resembles the look of platinum.

The appeal of stainless steel wedding rings is not only in their look and durability, but in their affordability as well. Traditional styles of stainless steel wedding bands typically cost less than $100 up to several hundred dollars. More elaborate styles of wedding bands with diamonds, gold inlay, or other embellishments will cost more, as will designer wedding rings. With its lower cost and appealing color, stainless steel wedding rings are increasing in popularity and have become an attractive wedding ring option for men.