1. Defining Terms
- What is Fading? – Fading refers to the gradual loss of colour or brightness over time. It can occur due to exposure to various factors such as sunlight, chemicals, friction, moisture or other environmental conditions.
- What is Discoloration? – Discoloration refers to any change in colour, not necessarily a loss of colour like fading. Discolouration can occur due to exposure to chemicals, heat, or reaction with other substances. It can result in a change to a different colour or shade, or it may involve the appearance of spots, stains, or blemishes on the surface of the material.
- What is Tarnishing? – Tarnishing refers to the dulling or darkening of metal surfaces caused by a chemical reaction between the metal and substances in the environment, such as oxygen, sulfur, or moisture. It can give the metal a dull, matte appearance or cause it to develop a patina over time.
- What is Bonding? – Bonding is a process where a thick layer of precious metal, like gold, is permanently fused to a base metal using high heat and pressure, creating a durable and long-lasting piece. Unlike plating, which applies a thin layer that can wear off over time, bonded jewellery offers superior durability and longevity, maintaining its rich appearance far longer.
- What is a Karat? – often abbreviated as “K” or “kt” is a measure of the purity of gold. It indicates the proportion of pure gold in a gold alloy, with 24 karats being the highest purity, meaning the gold is 100% pure.
- What is an Alloy? – An alloy is a mixture of two or more metals or a metal combined with one or more non-metallic elements. Alloys are created to enhance or modify the properties of the base metals, such as increasing strength, hardness, durability, or corrosion resistance.
2. What Causes Fading?
- Exposure to chemicals: Chemicals present in cleaning agents, perfumes, lotions, and even the oils from your skin can react with the metals or coatings in jewellery, causing them to fade.
- Abrasion: Continuous rubbing or friction against surfaces can wear away coatings or finishes on jewellery, leading to fading.
- Poor quality materials: Jewelry made with low-quality metals or coatings may fade more quickly than those made with higher-quality materials.
- Environmental factors: High humidity levels, prolonged exposure to sunlight or ultraviolet (UV) radiation and environmental pollutants can contribute to the deterioration of jewellery over time, leading to fading.
3. Glassbox Choice of Materials
Our Gold Jewellery is made with a rich 18K Gold layer bonded to a Premium 316L Stainless Steel base.
Our Silver jewerly is made with a rich 18K White Gold layer bonded to a Premium 316L Stainless Steel base.
Our Black Jewerly is made with a Black Rhodium PVD coating on a Premium 316L Stainless Steel base.
a) What is 18K Gold and Why do we use it?
One of the most common metals used for jewellery is gold in either 10K, 14K, 18K or 24K variants. Knowing the difference will justify your decision to choose GLASSBOX.
24K Gold: This is pure gold, with no other metals mixed in. It’s completely bright yellow and relatively soft. While 24K gold is extremely valuable with unique properties that make it desirable for certain applications, it’s softness and high cost often limit its use in practical everyday items. In jewellery making, for example, 24K gold is typically alloyed with other metals to increase its strength and durability, creating lower karat alloys such as 18K, 14K, or 10K gold.
18K Gold refers to a gold alloy that contains 18 parts gold and 6 parts of other metals making it 75% pure gold and 25% other metals. In jewellery making, these other metals are typically copper, silver or zinc. It has a rich, warm colour, and a high-contrast appearance. It’s valued for its balance between purity and durability (meaning it stands well to daily wear and tear), making it a popular choice for fine jewellery.
18K White Gold refers to a gold alloy that contains 75% pure gold and 25% silver. The silver metal added helps give white gold its characteristic colour and increase its durability.
14K Gold: A 14 karat gold alloy contains 14 parts gold and 10 parts other metals, making it 58.3% pure gold. It’s also popular for jewellery and offers a good balance between durability and affordability. Due to its lower gold content, its appearance is not as rich in colour giving it a less luxurious appeal compared to 18K Gold. It also has the potential to cause allergic reactions from its lower gold content.
10K Gold: A 10 karat gold alloy contains 10 parts gold and 14 parts of other metals, making it 41.7% pure gold. While it’s more affordable and durable than higher karat gold alloys, it contains less pure gold making it more prone to tarnishing or discoloration and causing allergic reactions.
Why Glassbox Uses 18K Gold?
- It has a perfect balance between purity and durability meaning it stands well to daily wear and tear while requiring minimal maintenance.
- Due to its high gold content it is hypoallergenic, meaning it causes zero allergic reactions.
- Its richer, warmer and vibrant colour makes its appearance appealing and luxurious, acting as a great compliment and elevating the simplest of looks.
- The higher gold composition makes the jewellery maintain its colour and value for long.
NOTE: GLASSBOX prioritises Durability, Appearance and Comfort, and 18K Gold provides all of this. Our best and most satisfied customers found that this choice has worked for them not for months but for years.
b) What is Premium 316L Stainless Steel and Why do we use it?
Premium 316L stainless steel refers to a specific grade of stainless steel highly regarded for its quality, durability, and resistance to corrosion. Stainless Steel grade 316L is highly corrosion-resistant, making it suitable for a wide range of applications, including marine environments, medical devices, food processing equipment, and jewellery.
Why Glassbox Uses Premium 316L Stainless Steel?
Its combination of strength, durability, and aesthetic appeal, makes it an ultimate choice for our Premium-quality jewellery.
c) What is Black Rhodium and Why do we use it?
Black Rhodium is a type of metal plating used in jewellery making. It is created by electroplating rhodium onto the surface of a jewellery piece to give it a dark, gunmetal, blackened finish. Rhodium itself is a rare, silvery-white, precious metal that belongs to the platinum group of metals. It’s highly reflective and highly resistant to corrosion and tarnishing, making it an excellent choice for plating jewellery to enhance its durability and appearance.
Why Glassbox Uses Rhodium?
- Enhanced Appearance: Rhodium plating gives our jewellery a bright, reflective finish that resembles white gold or platinum. It enhances the appearance of the underlying metal, by creating a shiny, lustrous surface.
- Durability: Rhodium is highly resistant to tarnishing, corrosion, and scratching, making it an excellent protective coating for our jewellery. It helps prevent the underlying metal from reacting with air, moisture, or chemicals, thus preserving its appearance and longevity.
- Hypoallergenic Properties: Rhodium is hypoallergenic, making it suitable for individuals with sensitive skin or metal allergies. The rhodium plating creates a barrier between the skin and the underlying metal, reducing the risk of allergic reactions.
- Easy Maintenance: Rhodium-plated jewellery requires minimal maintenance, as the rhodium coating helps keep the piece looking shiny and new for longer. It’s easy to clean with mild soap and water, and it doesn’t require frequent polishing like other metals.
4. Care and Maintenance
Fine jewellery is delicate. The more intentional you are about your jewellery, the longer it will last.
While your fine jewellery is often something you want to wear every day, precious gemstones and metals are not indestructible. Your jewellery is exposed to a lot throughout the day, and you don’t always realize what activities can cause wear and damage. Using lotions and perfumes, lifting weights at the gym, or just bumping our hands all contribute to normal “wear and tear”, but there are ways to ensure the longevity and beauty of your precious pieces.
NOTE: Our Jewelry is Gold-bonded not pure gold which means constant reactions with chemicals can reduce its shine and the plating.
To keep gold-bonded jewellery from fading, it’s important to take proper care of it. Here are tips to maintain the appearance of your jewellery:
How to Maintain the Appearance of your Gold-plated jewelry:
- Avoid water and chemicals: Remove your gold-bonded jewellery before showering, swimming, or using cleaning products, as exposure to water and chemicals can damage or cause the bonded layer to fade.
- Apply lotions, perfume and cosmetics before putting on your jewellery. This helps prevent the bonded layer from wearing off prematurely from the reaction with the chemicals in these products.
- Avoid friction: Remove your jewellery before engaging in any activity that involves aggressive physical contact. Minimizing friction and contact with hard surfaces prevent scratching and wearing away of the bonded layer.
- Clean gently: Use a soft, non-abrasive cloth to gently clean the jewellery, and avoid using harsh cleaning agents or abrasive materials that can scratch the bonded layer.
- Store properly: Store gold-bonded jewellery in the Glassbox jewellery box to prevent exposure to moisture and air which might cause it to tarnish.
- Remove before bed: While we hope you love your jewellery with all your heart, try avoiding wearing it in your sleep. With all the movement that can happen in sleep, jewellery like necklaces can get tangled together and accidentally damage the chain or scratch the pendant. Take care of it by removing it before bed.
By following these tips, you can help maintain the appearance and longevity of your Gold-bonded jewellery.
How to Clean Your Jewellery?
Materials You’ll Need:
- Mild dish soap
- Warm water
- Soft-bristle toothbrush or a soft cloth
- Microfiber cloth
Steps:
- Fill a small bowl with warm water and add a few drops of mild dish soap to the water.
- Soak your jewellery in the warm, soapy water for 10-15mins. This will help loosen any dirt, oils, or residue on the jewellery.
- After soaking, use a soft-bristle toothbrush or a soft cloth to gently clean the jewellery. Be very gentle, and avoid scrubbing vigorously to prevent scratching the jewellery.
- Remove the jewellery from the soapy water and rinse it thoroughly under running warm water to remove any soap residue.
- Gently pat the jewellery dry with a clean, microfiber or lint-free cloth. Avoid using paper towels or tissues, as they can leave lint or scratches.
- Use a separate, dry part of the cloth to buff the jewellery gently. This will help restore the shine to the surface.
- Once the jewellery is completely dry and shiny, store it in a clean, dry place. Consider using the individual Glassbox jewellery box issued during purchase to prevent scratching and tangling with other pieces.
NOTE: Soap contains chemicals, but when diluted with water, mild dish soap is generally safe for cleaning gold-bonded jewellery. The key is to use a gentle soap solution and avoid harsh chemicals or abrasive cleaners that can damage the delicate gold plating.
We recommend mild dish soap because it effectively removes dirt, oils, and residues without causing damage to the bonded layer. However, it’s essential to use only a small amount of soap and to rinse the jewellery thoroughly afterwards to remove any soap residue.
If you’re concerned about using soap, you can also clean your gold-bonded jewellery with just warm water and a soft cloth, gently wiping away any dirt or debris. Avoid using hot water, as it can cause the bonded layer to wear off more quickly.
5. FAQ’s
1. Will my Gold-Bonded Jewellery fade?
It is possible if you’re not careful. Our Jewellery is made with 18K Gold and Premium 316L Stainless Steel. Pure Gold and Stainless Steel do not fade under normal conditions. 18K Gold is made by mixing 75% Pure Gold with 25% of other metals (copper, silver, and zinc) These other metals are susceptible to fading from constant reactions with chemicals (as we have seen in the care and maintenance section) and when that happens, it affects the appearance of the 18k Gold and therefore your overall Jewellery. To prevent this, see the care and maintenance section.
2. Can I shower with my Gold-Bonded Jewellery?
While the gold itself won’t tarnish in water, the metals in it will. You can wear your Jewellery in the shower, but we don’t advise it. Water won’t damage the jewellery, but it may reduce the shine. If you keep exposing your Jewellery to water, its appearance will change over time. That’s why you should avoid getting your Jewellery wet all the time. The same thing applies to other varieties of solid gold.
3. Can I work out with my Gold-Bonded Jewellery?
While 18K gold bonded jewellery can withstand everyday wear, it's best to remove it before engaging in strenuous activities like workouts. Sweat, moisture, and friction from exercise equipment can accelerate the wear and tear on bonded jewellery, potentially causing the gold bonded layer to wear off over time. To preserve its shine and longevity, take off your jewellery before hitting the gym and store it in a safe place away from moisture and abrasive surfaces. If you still choose to go ahead and workout with the jewellery, gently wipe the jewellery with a soft cloth to remove any sweat or residue after the workout and before storing it.
4. Can I swim with my Gold-Bonded Jewellery?
It's best to avoid swimming with your 18K gold bonded jewellery. Chlorine in pools and saltwater in the ocean can cause damage to the bonded layer and may lead to discolouration or tarnishing over time. To maintain the appearance of your jewellery, we recommend you remove it before swimming and gently clean it with a soft cloth after wear to remove any sweat, oils, or chemicals that may have accumulated.
5. Will my Gold-Bonded Jewellery Discolour?
It’s rare to see discolouration in your 18k gold bonded jewellery since it contains mostly nonreactive gold (75%). But daily exposure to oxygen and chemicals in soap or perfume can discolour your 18k gold jewellery. It won’t happen immediately, but eventually, you’ll begin to see discolouration if you’re not careful. So, you should always store your jewellery in a dry place to avoid discolouration. While you won’t notice any immediate effect when you get your jewellery wet, discolouration may happen in the long run.
6. Will my Gold-Bonded Jewellery Tarnish?
Like every plated item, 18k gold bonded jewellery will tarnish with time and expose the metal underneath. You may think a higher value of gold plating will prevent tarnish, but that’s not true. It may take a while before your 18k gold bonded jewellery starts tarnishing, but it will tarnish eventually. Gold is inert, so the issue with the tarnishing is from the base metal and not the gold. Also, due to the inert nature of gold, it does not rust or corrode. On the other hand, the base metal is prone to oxidation, which affects the gold layer. The base metal’s oxidised molecules transfer to the gold layer and change their appearance. The thinner the gold layer is, the faster it takes for the tarnishing to show up, that's why we bond a thick layer compared to the usual industry standard of plating a thin layer. However, plating the base metal with nickel is a good way to slow down the tarnishing process. The only problem with this solution is that many people are allergic to nickel-plated jewellery, the main reason we don’t use nickel.
7. Can I wear my Gold-Bonded Jewellery every day?
There’s nothing wrong with wearing your 18k gold jewellery every day. You can do it, but you must be careful to avoid harming the jewellery with a lot of wear and tear. While you can wear your 18K gold bonded jewellery regularly, it's important to take some precautions to preserve its appearance. Avoid exposing it to harsh chemicals such as perfumes, lotions, and cleaning agents, as these can cause the plating to fade or tarnish more quickly. Additionally, remove your jewellery before activities such as swimming or showering, as prolonged exposure to water and moisture can also affect the bonded layer. To maintain its shine, gently clean your jewellery with a soft cloth after each wear to remove any dirt or oils. Storing your pieces in a Glassbox jewellery box or pouch when not in use can help prevent scratches and damage. Following these simple steps will help ensure that your 18K gold-plated jewellery stays looking elegant for years to come.
8. How can I prolong my jewellery lifespan and prevent normal wear?
Having a variety of jewellery pieces can help prolong their lifespan and prevent normal wear. Here’s how:
- Rotation: By rotating your jewellery pieces, you can prevent excessive wear on any single piece. Wearing the same piece day after day can lead to scratches, tarnishing, and other forms of damage. Switching between different pieces allows each one to rest and maintains their condition over time.
- Occasion-based Wear: Different occasions call for different types of jewellery. Having a variety ensures you can choose pieces that are appropriate for the setting and attire. For example, you might wear more casual pieces for everyday wear and save your finer jewellery for special events.
- Personal Style: Having a variety of jewellery pieces allows you to express your style and change up your look as desired. Whether you prefer simple and classic, bold and expressive, or eclectic styles, having a diverse collection ensures you always have options to complement your outfit and mood.
9. How often should I clean my Gold-Bonded Jewellery?
We recommend you clean your jewellery periodically to keep it looking its best and to ensure its longevity. The need for cleaning your jewellery depends on several factors:
- Frequency of Wear: The jewellery that you wear regularly is more likely to accumulate dirt and oils from daily activities. Cleaning these pieces every 4-6 weeks or as needed (once you notice visible dirt, tarnish, or dullness) can help maintain their appearance.
- Type of Jewelry: Different types of jewellery require varying levels of care. Glassbox jewellery may require less frequent cleaning (because we use high-quality materials; 18K Gold and Premium-grade 316L Stainless steel that require minimal maintenance) compared to silver or costume jewellery, which can tarnish more easily.
- Exposure to Elements: Jewelry that is exposed to elements like sweat, perfume, lotions, and environmental pollutants may require more frequent cleaning to remove residues that can dull its shine.
- Special Occasions: It's a good practice to clean your jewellery before wearing it for special occasions or events to ensure it looks its best and complements your outfit.
6. JUMP RINGS
A jump ring is a circular metal ring that connects a clasp to a necklace. It’s a simple and versatile way to join different parts of a jewellery piece together. Our jump rings are made from copper and plated with 18K Gold. Due to their required flexibility in design and fabrication processes, we’re unable to guarantee a full gold plating and therefore you might spot a small area on the jump ring that lacks that continuous gold colour. If you spot it, no need to panic, the chain is not faded. It’s completely normal and this is the nature of plated jump rings. In addition, due to the following reasons, the jump ring might experience a gradual loss of colour or brightness;
- Surface Area: Jump rings have a relatively larger surface area compared to the chain links. This means they are more exposed to environmental factors such as air, moisture, and chemicals, leading to faster oxidation and tarnishing.
- Friction: Jump rings often experience more friction and movement than chain links, since they are located at points of connection and the jewellery piece moves frequently. This can wear down the protective coatings and finishes on the jump rings, making them more prone to fading and tarnishing.
- Handling: During the jewellery-making process or regular wear, jump rings may be subjected to more handling and manipulation than chain links, which can contribute to faster wear and tear.
NOTE: To mitigate fading, see the Care and Maintenance section.
7. WARRANTY, RETURN & EXCHANGE POLICY
We stand behind our products and warrant that all jewellery will be free from manufacturing defects for the life of the products. If you believe your item has a manufacturing defect, you may return it to us for inspection.
At Glassbox, we strive to provide our customers with exceptional products and service. If you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, we offer a hassle-free return and exchange policy, subject to terms and conditions.
Read more: