The short answer to this question is simple… un-plated white gold is beautiful, and not plating it saves you money.
But also… here’s the long answer just in case you’re interested…
White gold isn’t actually white. It’s a lovely, light, buttery yellow color. And to make “white” gold truly white, it is plated with another metal called Rhodium.
White gold is a relatively modern metal. It only became commercially available in the early 1900s. And it didn’t become popular until the 1920s when it was advertised as a cheaper substitute for platinum.
The practice of plated white gold came about for two reasons… First, the early attempts at white gold alloys were not very successful, splotchy and still quite yellow. The metal was plated to give it a more even finish. Second, it was plated to live up to the advertising that it was like platinum. And since platinum is a truly white metal, the gold HAD to be plated to fit that need.
But fast forward about 100 years… white gold these days is beautiful in its own right. Gold alloying has come a long way, and the pale yellow sheen of today’s white gold is just lovely.
So, we don’t Rhodium plate our white gold because white gold is beautiful just the way it is. And we choose to honor it as such.
BUT, there are also a number of economic and customer-forward reasons as well:
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Rhodium plating needs to be redone every 6-18 months. We like saving you the time of running that errand every 6-18 months.
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Each re-plated costs between $60-80 dollars. We like saving you that money.
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Lastly, Rhodium plating solution (if not disposed of properly) is toxic to the environment. And who needs that, really?