The AVRA Times

On the first day, a plated necklace and a solid gold one can look the same. The difference shows up later, usually around the clasp, where skin and soap wear through first.

Here is what each label means.

Gold plated

A very thin layer of gold over another metal, usually brass. The layer is measured in microns, often less than one. Showers, perfume and daily wear thin it until the base metal shows through, and the color changes with it.

Gold vermeil

A thicker gold layer, at least 2.5 microns of 10k or higher, over sterling silver. It lasts longer than plating. It is still a coating, and it still wears.

Gold filled

A heavier layer of gold bonded to a base metal, making up at least one twentieth of the piece's weight. Durable, but under the surface it is still another metal.

Solid 14k gold

Gold all the way through. 14k means 14 parts gold out of 24, about 58.3%, alloyed with other metals so it is hard enough for every day. 24k gold is too soft to hold a diamond securely, which is why fine jewelry is almost always 14k or 18k.

Solid gold does not flake or peel. Scratch it and you find more gold. It can be polished back to new, resized, repaired and worn for decades.

Why every AVRA piece is solid 14k

Our diamonds are graded VS or VVS. It would make no sense to set a stone that clean in metal that wears out. Solid 14k is what lets you wear the piece in the shower and to bed without planning around it.

If you ever want to know a piece's gram weight before you buy, ask us. It is a fair question, and the answer should be easy to give.