Why yours has started looking yellow
White gold is an alloy that is naturally a pale, slightly warm colour, and it is finished with a thin rhodium plating to make it bright white. That plating wears. On a ring worn every day it usually starts showing after a year or two, most often on the underside and the high points.
Nothing has gone wrong with the ring. It is doing exactly what white gold does, and a replate puts it back.
What we do
- Rhodium replating — the piece is cleaned, polished and replated so it is bright white again.
- Ring sizing, with the replate done afterwards so the join does not show.
- Prongs and stone tightening while it is on the bench.
- Chain and clasp repair, with the solder colour matched.
- Earring posts and backs.
- Polishing before plating, because plating over a scratch just gives you a shiny scratch.
Order matters
If a piece needs sizing or a prong and a replate, the metalwork comes first and the rhodium last. Done the other way round you can see where the work was, which defeats the point.
How long the plating lasts
It depends entirely on the wearer. Hands, soaps, gym bars, a job that uses them. Some people get three years and some get eight months, and neither is a fault.
Bring it in and we will look at it
Every piece is different and white gold especially so. Put it on the counter, tell us what has happened, and we will tell you what we see and what we would do about it. You decide from there, before anything is agreed.
Questions we get asked
Why is my white gold ring turning yellow?
The rhodium plating is wearing and the gold underneath is showing. Normal, and a replate puts it back.
How long does rhodium last?
Anywhere from under a year to several, depending entirely on how the piece is worn.
Should sizing be done before or after plating?
Metalwork first, plating last. That way the join does not show.
Can you replate a ring with stones in it?
Usually, yes. We look at the stones first because a few do not like the process, and we will tell you at the counter.
Will you tell me what you find before doing any work?
Always. We look at it with you at the counter, tell you what we see, and you decide.
Not sure we can fix it?
Send a couple of details and we will call you back. Or just walk in — it is quicker, and we can actually look at the piece.
Drop it off, shop the mall, wear it tonight
We are inside Orland Square Mall in Orland Park. Walk in during mall hours, no appointment. Most repairs are finished the same day and a good number while you wait.
Where we are
Julio's Jewelry, 800 Orland Square Drive, Orland Park, IL 60462 — inside Orland Square Mall. Mon–Thu 10am–8pm · Fri–Sat 10am–9pm · Sun 11am–6pm. We are also at North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 W Cermak Rd, North Riverside, IL 60546.