What is gold vermeil?

Gold vermeil (pronounced vehr-may; it's French!) is a legally regulated term that refers to a high quality kind of gold-plated jewelry. To be legally called "vermeil" in the United States, the jewelry piece must meet ALL of these conditions:

  • Have sterling silver as its base material. Sterling silver is an alloy made of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other materials, and is a standard material used in high quality jewelry (versus, e.g., brass or copper).
  • Be plated in a gold layer that is at least 10k (10 karats). That means the gold is at least 41.7% gold content.
  • Have gold plating that is at least 2.5 microns thick. A micron is 1/1000th of a millimeter.

Source: Federal Trade Commission 

Put another way, vermeil pieces are made with precious metals such as sterling silver, with heavy plating to ensure long-lasting wear.