Jewelry Gemstone Insiders Guide

Clear coating Question: I have a 14K Yellow Gold 1/4 Carat t.w. Three-Stone Diamond Ring from Kay, and love it.

I got a 10K Yellow Gold Band from them as well.

My engagement ring has never bothered me, but the wedding ring makes my finger itch constantly.

I've noticed some smeared clear substance on the inside of my ring, and showed it to my husband. We bought some jewelry cleaner, hoping that would solve the problem, but it still itches.

My husband suggested that maybe they put some sort of a coating on the inside of the ring after we got it sized down, I was wondering if that's something jewelers do.

Answer: G'day and many thanks for your query

Firstly there is no coating on the inside of any ring placed there by jewelers. There is no point as it would soon wear off.

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What this sounds like to me is a slight allergy reaction to the metal in the 10K ring, as you say it is yellow gold.

The main clue is the gold quality. The 14K ring contains 585 parts per thousand of gold while the rest of the mix is usually mainly silver and a small amount of copper.

You 10K ring on the other hand - no pun intended contains a lot more copper - and I think this is what you are reacting to.

This is affectionately known as a 'Good Taste' reaction. ie: people with good taste and the desire for the better things in life, can't wear a lower quality gold - Nice, don't you think?

Better warn your husband it's going to cost more in the future. 14k minimum - 18k even better.

People who wear lower quality gold earrings get the same reaction. They can only wear fashion or silver earrings for a short while before they have to put good quality sleepers or studs back in the ear to stop any infection.

You are having a mild reaction the same way.

One last point - jewelers do sometimes plate over any repair area which makes it look a little shiney. This will soon wear off.

You might like to add this to the Members Forum. Sometime we find others with a similar problem.

Hope this helps....

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Tags: quality gold, 14k yellow gold, silver earrings, gold earrings, gold quality