Jewellery Replating Services
Restore the Colour and Shine of Your Jewellery
Over time, everyday wear can cause jewellery to lose its original finish. Jewellery plating is an excellent way to refresh worn pieces, restore their colour, and bring back a bright, polished appearance. At Cornerstone Jewellers, we offer professional jewellery plating services for customers throughout Auckland. We work with trusted specialist platers to ensure your jewellery receives a high-quality finish.
What is Jewellery Plating?
Jewellery plating is the process of applying a thin layer of precious metal to the surface of an existing piece using an electroplating process. This can restore the appearance of worn jewellery, enhance its colour, or provide a fresh new finish.
While plating greatly improves the look of jewellery, it is a surface treatment and will naturally wear over time depending on how often the piece is worn and how it is cared for.
Rhodium Plating
Rhodium is one of the world's rarest and most valuable precious metals. It is highly prized for its brilliant, mirror-like white finish, exceptional durability, and resistance to tarnishing and corrosion. Rhodium plating is most commonly applied to white gold jewellery to restore its bright white appearance. As white gold naturally has a slightly warm tone, the rhodium coating is what gives it the crisp, silvery finish many people associate with white gold. Over time, this coating gradually wears away, particularly on rings that are worn every day. We also offer rhodium plating for sterling silver jewellery. Applying a rhodium coating helps protect the silver from tarnishing, reduces the need for frequent polishing, and leaves the jewellery with a brilliant, long-lasting shine.
Although rhodium plating is one of the more premium plating services due to the rarity and cost of the metal, it offers excellent durability. Depending on how often the jewellery is worn and how well it is cared for, rhodium plating typically lasts:
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Rings worn daily: around 12–24 months
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Occasionally worn jewellery: 2–5 years or longer
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Earrings and pendants: often 3–5 years or more, as they experience less wear
With proper care, rhodium plating can keep your jewellery looking bright and beautiful for years before it needs to be refreshed.
Yellow Gold Plating
It restores the warm, rich colour of worn gold-plated jewellery or can completely transform the appearance of another metal. Yellow gold plating is commonly applied to sterling silver jewellery, allowing you to enjoy the luxurious look of gold without replacing a treasured piece. Depending on the jewellery, it may also be suitable for certain other base metals after assessment. As with all plated jewellery, the gold layer will gradually wear with regular use, particularly on rings that are worn every day. Proper care and occasional replating will help keep your jewellery looking its best.
Yellow gold plating is durable, but because gold is a relatively soft metal, it will gradually wear away with regular use.
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Typical lifespan:
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Daily-wear rings: 6–12 months
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Bracelets: 1–2 years
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Necklaces, pendants, and earrings: 2–5 years or more
Rings wear the quickest because they're constantly exposed to friction from hands, desks, washing, and everyday activities.
Silver Plating
Silver plating applies a layer of silver to suitable jewellery, restoring its bright, reflective finish or giving it a fresh silver appearance. This service is often used to refresh costume jewellery that has lost its original plating through everyday wear. It can also restore the appearance of suitable silver-plated pieces, helping them look clean, polished, and ready to wear again. If you want to give your existing gold jewellery the silver look we would recommend you to rhodium plate it instead. It will last much longer than silver.
Silver plating is generally less durable than rhodium plating. Because silver is a softer metal, the plated layer will naturally wear over time, particularly on jewellery that receives frequent contact.
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Typical lifespan:
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Daily-wear rings: 6–12 months
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Occasionally worn jewellery: 1–3 years
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Earrings and pendants: 2–5 years or more
Give Your Jewellery a New Lease on Life
Whether your jewellery needs a simple repair or a complete restoration, we're here to help. Bring your jewellery into our St Heliers shop and we'll assess its condition and discuss the most suitable repair options with you.
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You're also welcome to contact us through our Contact page or by email if you'd like advice before visiting.