Shop Policies

Gold Filled Materials/Care Guide:

What does filled mean?

Gold Fill contains 5% of solid gold and is made through a pressure and heat bonding process. This means that a thick layer of solid gold is bonded onto the base layer, usually sterling silver or brass, to form a thick and durable layer of solid gold. Gold Fill is hypoallergenic and sensitive-skin friendly. 

CARE GUIDE:

- Gold Fill is safe to wear in the water- I personally do not wear mine in water, but that is a personal preference.

- To maintain shine, regularly use a blue polishing cloth to wipe away dirt, sweat, chemicals etc. 

- Avoid exposing your jewelry to skin care products, soaps, detergents and perfumes. These acidic and harsh ingredients may affect the wear of your jewelry. 

- We recommend removing your jewelry before doing high impact physical exercise and entering salt or chlorinated water.

- Store your jewelry in your in a pouch or box to avoid moisture and metal on metal rubbing. 

WHAT IS JEWELRY TARNISH?

First of all, let's understand the basics. Tarnish is a thin layer of corrosion that forms over metals, that is caused from a chemical reaction of the metal and another non-metal compound such as moisture, air or chemical compounds. The result is a dark tinge / discoloration of your jewelry.

 

WHY DOES MY JEWELRY TARNISH? 

The chemical reaction occurs when the metal of your piece reacts to non-metal components such as oxygen, sulphur, and other chemicals. This causes the metal to darken. Certain metals such as copper can be very reactive to salt water, citrus or even sulfur from packaging. Sterling silver for example is also reactive to the air - aka 'oxidization'. 

The wear and tear of your jewelry depends on a number of factors and varies from person to person. These are:

1. YOUR LIFESTYLE

When you are wearing jewelry, particularly gold filled, contact with chemicals can happen very often on a daily basis depending on your lifestyle and should be avoided to avoid wear. If you are washing your hands with soap, washing dishes with liquid soap, doing laundry, putting on body lotion, or spraying perfume, these are all examples of lifestyle-related factors that can be harmful to your jewelry and cause it to tarnish.

2. HOW YOU CARE FOR YOUR GOLD FILLED JEWELRY

Generally, the more committed you are about the care of your jewelry, the longer it lasts. This also applies to gold filled jewelry, which in comparison to gold plated is highly resistant to tarnish. To find out how to care for your gold filled jewelry, read our care guide here.

3. YOUR BODY CHEMISTRY

Your body chemistry also plays in how fast your jewelry becomes tarnished. Factors that can affect these are your skin pH, how much you sweat, what you eat, what medicine you take, how much you drink, etc. Generally, if you are having a reaction to metals or experiencing more jewelry wear out of nowhere, this may be due to a change to your body chemistry, or environmental reasons below.

4. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS

Lastly, the environment you are in also affects the wear of your jewelry. Acidity in the air, pollution and humidity are major factors in jewelry tarnish. To reduce the effects of environmental wear on your gold filled piece, we recommend cleaning the jewelry often with a polishing cloth, and keep the jewelry away from moisture and sunlight in our organic cotton pouches or boxes.

WILL MY GOLD FILLED JEWELRY TARNISH?

Gold filled is an alloy, so are sterling silver and 9k, 14k, 18k solid gold. As such it can tarnish only when the combination of the above factors are present. However, compared to lower quality alloys, these fine materials (gold filled, solid gold) can resist tarnish at a higher rate. Given more care, it will also last for a much longer time, compared to lower quality alloys such as gold plated.

UPDATES:

I have enabled customer notes. Please understand that adding on length has an extra cost, so please do not ask for extra length here. Please email me or DM me on Instagram so that I can adjust the cost. The reason for this is that lengthening adds more materials which is more of a cost to me. 

SHIPPING/RETURNS 

Processing Time

Please allow 3-4 weeks for your order to ship. The reason for this is that every single item (unless it says ready to ship) is made to order. Often times supplies will have to be ordered and then your item(s) must be created. All of this takes time. If I have the materials in stock, it will take less time, but please prepare to wait 3-4 weeks for items to ship.

Shipping Speed

I ship in a USPS 2-Day Flat Rate Box, so once I ship, it should get to you within 2-3 business days.

Delayed or Lost Mail

If your item is delayed or lost in transit, it is a great idea to file a claim with the USPS. Almost always they find your package and will get it to you. If I file the claim on my end, the package will likely come back to me, or not be located at all. 

Here is where you find the form to fill out:

https://usps.force.com/emailus/s/

Your package was being mailed from 

The Audrey Limoges Collection

404 Johnson St

East Dundee, IL 60118

Return Policy

If something arrives damaged or there is an issue, please reach out and I’ll be happy to repair. 

I do not accept returns at this time. 

Repairs:

If something arrives damaged:

If you break something by accident:

Please contact me at: 

When sending something back to me for repairs:

1. Please use bubble wrap and the jewelry box the item came in order to ship it back safely.

2. Please be sure that ALL parts of the piece are in the package (all beads, clasps, jump ring, etc.)

3. Please notate your order number and what needs to be repaired on a note and put it in the package.

4. Ship your package to:

Attn: Repairs

Audrey Limoges 

404 Johnson St

East Dundee, IL 60118