Silver, once the lesser metal, has become trendier than gold in luxury jewelry.

Tiffany & Co.'s CEO said this year that it would be focusing on expanding its silver collection. New York Fashion Week was full of silver accessories.

And retailer Pommellato announced it would be premiering a silver jewelry line at Milan Fashion week.

When even the highest echelon of jewelers are featuring silver over gold, there has to be something going on.

We believe that two factors contributed to this trend:

1. Gold has become too expensive and silver's perceived value is shifting

With the price of gold skyrocketing, many jewelers can't afford to take a risk on creating fashion pieces that won't sell. But the price of silver has gone up too, adding to its perceived value. Silver is now pricey enough to seem valuable, but cheap enough for retailers to buy.

2. Luxury consumers won't shell out for gold jewelry

With the rich getting poorer, many of Tiffany's customers are holding back. While they can't justify shelling out for gold jewelry, luxury silver jewelry is usually priced at under $400.

Retailers are even getting creative with silver. Tiffany added small amounts of gold and copper to the metal to create a rosy-colored hybrid called Rubedo. Pommellato used an oxidizing process on some pieces that make them appear smoky and dark.

Even with this recent trend, we believe that gold will reign supreme as the ultimate jewelry metal.