So, what is the difference between materials like gold-fill and gold vermeil?
Gold-fill — I use only 12/20 gold-fill materials. Gold filled is a gold overlay where a thick layer of 14k gold is heat and pressure-bonded to a brass core. the “12/20” notation is the ration of karat gold to brass core by weight. If you keep your gold fill away from moisture and nicks, it should resist tarnish well. You get the rich look of gold with gold-fill, without the cost. Gold vermeil — Gold vermeil is when gold is layered over a sterling silver. Typically, this layer is of 22-18k gold at 1000 millionths of an inch — 50x heavier than a standard gold plate! Again, you get a rich 24k gold look without the cost. If you keep your gold vermeil away from moisture and damage, this should also resist tarnish. However, it does have a silver core which is subject to tarnish. Peggy Li Creations does not use a gold plate or other base metals unless noted. I do use 10k, 14k or 18K golds for special occassions!
