What's Causing my White-Gold Jewelry to Turn Green?

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Reader question: What would cause my white gold earrings to start turning green? How do I get them to shine the way they did when they were new?

There are a few things that can cause this type of chemical reaction. Most often it is dirt, or possibly something in your shampoo or perfume.

Chemicals can actually get into gold. What we recommend is taking it to a local jeweler for a cleaning and then getting it plated with rhodium. That's something we do here, and it's not an expensive process—(about $35.)

You could clean it yourself using soapy water and a very soft brush, but it will tarnish again. Rhodium is hypoallergenic, and most white gold jewelry is rhodium plated.

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