Holdbarhet handler om karat og dekning.
Jo større karat jo mer holdbart stykket. 24 karat gull er “ren” gull. Men rent her betyr ikke at det bare er gull når det blir omgjort til et smykke.
Gull is a soft metal.
Så, i smykker, som krever en viss holdbarhet, alloys are often used. An alloy is a metal that is combined with gold to increase durability.
Like all gold jewelry, vermeil follows suit. If you are looking for the most durable kind of jewelry, you’ll look for 24 karat gold plating on the piece, but even 10 karat vermeil is better quality than other gold-plated alternatives.
Thickness is also important. The thicker the plating, the longer it will last.
You will want to look for the quality of the core alloy. Vermeil makes this easy for you. As genuine vermeil will always have a core alloy of sterling silver.
If there is a base metal over the sterling silver, it must be disclosed per U.S. forskrifter.
Micron plating is what it is all about.
This is the thickness of the gold. Micron plating at minimum is 1 Micron, where it becomes measurable. But for this type of jewelry, the required minimum is 2.5.