Quality, Affordable Jewelry

RCHL's Secret: Gold Filled

Gold filled is a special type of jewelry material made by fusing a layer of gold to a layer of base metal. The resulting material is sturdy, resists water and wear, and won’t rub off like the gold plating used in most affordable jewelry.

Gold Filled vs. Gold Plated

Both gold plated and gold filled jewelry are made by putting a layer of gold over a less expensive base metal, but the similarities really stop there. Gold plating is applied using an electrochemical solution, and the resulting layer is incredibly thin (the Federal Trade Commission categorizes gold plating as 0.175 micrometers thick, or about 7/1,000,000 inch).

Gold filled is made using a mechanical process, where a sheet of metal is fused to a base metal with heat and pressure. Gold filled is federally regulated and must be at least 5% gold by weight. The gold layer in gold filled is many times thicker than gold plating, and many times more durable. Typical life estimates for gold plating range from six months to a year, whereas gold filled ranges from five to ten years.

Gold Filled vs. Gold Vermeil

Gold vermeil is the best version of gold plating, so it's more durable than regular plating but still has many of the same problems. In the US, the gold layer in vermeil is required to be 2.5 microns thick (about 1/10,000 inch) and the base metal is required to be sterling silver. That's a big step up from regular plating, but it will still rub off over time, leaving your jewelry in that gold-silver twilight zone.

RCHL's quality is great, but so are our prices.

We sell directly to our customers from our website. We don’t wholesale our jewelry to retailers because it introduces huge markup! To keep our prices low, we also intentionally keep our margins small. We make up the difference by selling to a wider audience. The crazy thing about gold filled and solid sterling silver is that both are not very expensive to produce! Even though our materials are more expensive than plating, they are still affordable enough that we can keep our prices low.

Quality Guarantee

All RCHL pieces are guaranteed to be free from defects in material or workmanship for one year from the date of delivery. This guarantee does not cover damage incurred by wear (including but not limited to scratching, bending, or snagging of the jewelry or jewelry components). If you believe your RCHL piece is defective, please send us a message from our contact page and describe the defect. We take the quality of our pieces seriously and will respond shortly.

Ethical, Sustainable Style

Ethically Sourced Materials

RCHL partners with a US-based supplier for all of our jewelry materials. It is a top priority for both RCHL and our supply partner to ensure that our materials are gathered from safe and fair sources and with minimal environmental impact.

Sustainable Packaging

RCHL uses all-paper packaging to ship our pieces. Even as a relatively small operation, we are aware of the impact our waste can have on the environment. Continuing to eliminate plastic from more of our processes is a top priority for RCHL.

Recycling

We capture and recycle excess metal left over in production. In the rare event that a delivered piece is found to be defective, we also pay for our customers to send it back to be recycled.

Quality (Not Disposable) Jewelry

Plated jewelry is not made to last, and too often it comes to rest in a landfill once it has tarnished. RCHL jewelry is made to be water and wear resistant, not disposable.

Additionally, we make our jewelry in small batches. This prevents overproduction, another common source of waste in the fashion industry.

You have better things to worry about than your jewelry.

Caring for Your RCHL Jewelry

RCHL jewelry is made to be low-maintenance. Wear it all day– even when you wash your hands or shower. Occasionally washing your jewelry with light dish soap and warm water will help it keep its shine.

Sterling Silver

Sterling silver pieces, specifically, can tarnish faster depending on the skin-type of the wearer, among other factors. For light cleaning, let the piece sit in warm water with several drops of dish soap for about 15 minutes, then rub clean any spots of tarnish with your fingers or a soft cloth (such as a flannel or microfiber cloth).

If your pieces have gathered significant tarnish, you may need more intensive cleaning. On the stove, bring 1 cup of water to boil, then add 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Place your jewelry in a bowl lined with aluminum foil (the foil is important!) and pour the boiling baking soda solution over the jewelry. Allow the solution to sit for several minutes until the tarnish is removed, then rinse and cool your jewelry with cold water. Use a non-abrasive cloth (such as a flannel or microfiber cloth) to dry your jewelry.