Vermeil (pronounced ver-mail or ver-may) means “gilded silver”.
Gold vermeil is a very good gold-plating finish on top of sterling silver. When we say very good, we mean that gold vermeil has a thick coating of gold atop of 925 sterling silver.
Normally at least 14-carat gold makes up the plating, but more often 18-carat gold is used.
To be classed as ‘Gold Vermeil’ it must meet three conditions:
i) The item must be a base of 925 sterling silver
ii) The Gold must be at least 10-carat gold
iii) The plating must be at least 2.5 microns thick (one micron being 1/1000th of a millimetre).
If the piece does not meet all three criteria, the jewellery is instead said to be just ‘gold plated’.