Does My Real 14k Gold Jewelry Tarnish?

It's real 14k gold, it shouldn't tarnish.

Right?!?

Wrong.

It does tarnish.  

Sorry to be the one to break the bad news, but it does tarnish.

Well, why?

14K is 58.3% gold and the rest is made up of alloy usually composed of silver and copper in equal amounts. 14 karat is only 14 parts pure gold out of 24, and 18 only 18 parts out of 24.

So, yes, 14k gold can tarnish because it isn't pure gold. This DOES NOT mean that your piece of jewelry is not real gold, it's just not PURE 24k gold.

Oxygen and sulfur compounds mixing with moisture are the most common cause of tarnishing.

That means if you use lotion, hairspray, soap, perfume or sweat at all-- it will effect your jewelry. 

If you live in a city with air pollution or high humidity, guess what?

It will effect your jewelry.  

So what can you do?

1. Wipe down your jewelry after you wear it with a soft cloth or a jewelry polishing cloth.
2. Dip your jewelry in a cleaning solution made specifically for jewelry.   Make sure you let it dry completely before putting it away.
3. Store your pieces properly.

We have found that after years and years of selling jewelry it is actually the proper storage that keeps our pieces looking their best.

Here's a quick video on how to store it and even better-- prevent knots in your chain!

And for this all you need are air-tight plastic bags.  Any "ziploc" will do.

Here's a very short video on how we suggest you store your jewelry.

If you liked these quick tips, please leave us a comment.

And, you can save 10% off of your order today with code: blogger