DESIGNER SERIES | 14K Gold Fill
Gold fill is made by bonding a layer of solid gold to a base metal core, usually brass, using heat and pressure. The gold layer has to constitute at least 5% of the total weight of the piece. That's a legal requirement. A 14K gold fill piece has a substantial layer of 14K gold on the outside.
Compare that to gold plating, which is a microscopically thin layer of gold applied through electroplating. Gold plaiting can wear off after months of daily wear, depending on how often you were or how well you take care of it. Gold fill, if cared for properly, can last decades.
The difference matters because its changs how the piece ages. Gold fill wears like gold because it essentially is gold at the surface. The layer is thick enough to withstand daily contact, cleaning and the kind of life a piece of jewelry actually lives. It won't tarnish the way plated pieces do, and it won't leave a green mark on your skin the way some base metals do when the plating wears away.
Something to factor in, because gold fill is not solid gold due to its brass core, if scratched deeply, or worn heavily over many years, eventually the base metal can show. The longevity depends on how the piece is made and how it's worn. But for everyday jewelry at an accessible price point, gold fill will last and it looks beautiful.
In the past, used to make studs and pendants and even rings with 14K gold fill. I learned how to solder silver posts or jump rings onto gold fill using a torch. Thing is, when using a torch to solder gold fill, it can slowly shift the layer of the solid gold that's bonded on the surface of the brass core. Which then can expose the brass core and overtime, begin to tarnish like brass does naturally. There's nothing wrong with it honestly, but if you can't wear brass, then it doesn't make sense to solder with it. Or in another case, if the brass is exposed, why not just make the piece in brass? These statements were questions I would ask myself over the years when working with gold fill. That's why I decided to make the change and only use the gold fill to hand forge and shape instead... Hence is why I only use I use 14K gold fill when making my hoop and threader earrings.
I love the warmth and presence of gold without the weight of solid gold driving the price with the hoops and threader earrings. It lets me make things that are genuinely wearable and reached for every day, pieces that are not saved for special occasions but loved as a staple to your collection. That's always the goal.
Each listing notes the precious metals used to make that piece, so you always know exactly what your jewelry is made with. Explore CLJ's entire hoop and threader earrings collection.
Cheers!
