Rhodium Plating Services

Restore the Colour and Shine of Your Jewellery

Over time, everyday wear can cause jewellery to lose its finish. Rhodium plating is an excellent way to refresh worn pieces, restore their silvery colour, and bring back a bright, polished appearance. At Cornerstone Jewellers, we offer professional jewellery plating services for customers throughout Auckland. We do the rhodium plating ourselves 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:

Rings worn daily: around 12–24 months
Occasionally worn jewellery: 2–5 years or longer
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.

Refresh Your Jewellery's Finish

If your jewellery has lost its colour or shine, professional plating can give it a fresh new appearance. Bring your piece into our St Heliers store and we will assess it.