There are many type of earrings you can wear, but one of the most enduring styles of earring is the hoop earring. This style really kind of started in the 1970’s, but grew and endured throughout the last few decades, and has recently made a comeback. Many pop icons are wearing hoop earrings in photos you see of them, and this is causing this fashion trend to endure. Hoop earrings can also be worn on virtually any occasion, depending on what kind of dress or outfit you wear with it. The size of the hoop also matters when choosing whether to wear hoops to something more formal. Too large may be considered inappropriate in some circles, and too small may look out of place, or you should choose a different style besides hoop earrings. Hoop earrings are available in many different styles and fashions.

Hoop earrings made out of gold are some of the most common type of earrings worn today. The gold can be of various different qualities, from gold plated to full 24k gold hoops. As with any gold plated jewelry, it will have a tendency to discolor the skin where it makes contact with the gold plating, and will eventually wear or flake off from handling and wearing. Full 24k gold hoop earrings need to be handled gently, since the gold can be very soft, and the potential to bend the hoop is great. Hoop earrings should be as completely round as possible, since a bent or smashed earring will not look good. Any of the other common weights of gold should be handled normally, since most hoop earrings are not 24k gold, or gold plated, but have a small mixture, such as 4k or 10k.

Silver hoop earrings come in a close second, or maybe beats out the popularity of gold earrings. Some of the same considerations apply to silver as they do to gold. However, silver is a harder metal and different mixtures of silver will be harder than an equivalent mixture of gold. Care should still be taken when handling silver hoop earrings, especially the really big hoops, that you don’t bend them out of round. Most silver earrings are actually made from sterling silver. Sterling silver hoop earrings use a mixture of silver and copper in a 92.5 to 7.5 percent ration of silver to copper. This allows the earring to be strong, yet still have the beauty of silver. However, because of the copper in the metal alloy, it will tend to oxidize or tarnish over time. Usually, however, this can be cleaned pretty easy.

Anything with diamonds in it is going to be more expensive, and that is certainly the case with diamond hoop earrings. These earrings usually have the diamond on the mounting stud on the ear, or in a pattern along a flat part of the hoop. Depending on the number and weight of the diamond, this style of hoop earring could run several hundred to several thousands of dollars. The diamonds could be an array of very small stones, or "diamond dust" and cover the entire hoop, to give it a sparkling effect. The problem with this type of diamond hoop earring is that the diamonds can be dislodged with wear, and lost, which is always bad with expensive jewelry. Hoop earrings with diamonds on the stud part are also popular. These types of earrings have one larger diamond on your ear lobe itself, and the hoop hangs or attaches right below it. These can be worn on more stylish occasions, where you want a cool, yet sophisticated look.

If you look at white gold hoop earrings, you notice right away they are different than silver or platinum earrings. White gold has a different luster and color to it because of the metal that is mixed in. White gold, when first mixed as an alloy, is actually not white, but has a brownish or yellowish tint to it, due to the other metals mixed in with it. Usually it is then coated with a layer of rhodium, to give it a true white tone. These earrings can be very classy, especially since white gold has an almost ghostly appearance.

As you can see, there are many different types of hoop earrings to choose from when you are shopping online for jewelry, so you might want to take some time to really evaluate what kind of earring suites you best, whether it is hoop earrings, or any other kind of earring.