Product Care

BIKO jewelry is made from brass, plated with 14k gold or rhodium. All earring posts are surgical stainless steel. Our metals are nickel-free and hypoallergenic and can be worn by most people, unless you have an extreme allergy and can only wear solid gold. (We call that an unfortunate 'expensive allergy'.) ;)

For increased longevity, keep jewelry clean and dry using a soft cloth. Avoid wearing your jewelry in the shower or during exercise, and wear after applying perfume or hair spray. Protect your piece from rain and humidity. When not wearing, be sure to store inside a jewelry box or in a soft jewelry pouch. Wear often, love always.

To minimize prolonged exposure to moisture and chemicals that can cause tarnishing and wear, we recommend removing your jewelry before showering, swimming, exercising, or cleaning. When not being worn, it’s best to store your jewelry in an airtight container (a ziplock bag will do) or a felt bag, which helps absorb excess moisture.

To clean your jewelry, gently wash it with warm water and a mild dish detergent. Use a very soft toothbrush to get into recessed areas. Make sure to completely dry your jewelry afterwards with a soft cloth to ensure no moisture remains to prevent your jewelry from tarnishing.

These simple tips will help extend the life of your jewelry, but if you feel your pieces need a little extra help to get back to looking their best, we have some suggestions:

Sterling Silver

It is normal for sterling silver to tarnish over time, especially with exposure to moisture or chemicals. Washing your hands while wearing silver rings is perfectly fine, just make sure to dry them afterwards to ensure no moisture remains that can cause tarnishing. To remove mild tarnish, the method outlined in our general cleaning section should suffice, but for more stubborn tarnish, there is an easy at-home cleaning solution you can make. More information here.

You may find that your silver will develop scratches over time and lose some of its original shine. This happens naturally as a result of silver being softer than many of the surfaces it can come in contact with throughout the day. We love the character this can bring to a piece over time, but if you’d like it to maintain its original high polish, any reputable jeweler should be able to re-polish the piece for you to restore its shine.

Plated Jewelry

Rhodium and 14k gold are very resistant to tarnishing—though in some cases, exposure to moisture and chemicals may still cause them to tarnish. Following the general cleaning method and properly storing pieces in airtight containers is typically sufficient to get them back to looking good as new. We strongly suggest protecting your plated jewelry from interacting with any harsh chemicals such as those found in perfumes, hand sanitizer, soaps, and cleaning products to prolong the lifespan of the plating.

The plated layer on our jewelry is very thick by industry standards. However, you may still find that the plating can wear off on the more exposed areas of your jewelry over time. We find that this happens most often with the ring surfaces that come in contact with other hard surfaces. If this occurs within 5 years of your purchase, we will gladly replate your piece for you. We are also happy to replate your item if it develops scratches or damage from everyday wear. Please refer to our Repairs [hyperlink] page to learn more about this process.

Our jewelry is gold, silver or rhodium-plated over brass or base metal. All plated jewelry will tarnish over time due to general wear, moisture, naturally occurring oils on skin and exposure to air. Take a few simple precautions to increase the longevity of each purchase.

Avoid Moisture
When wearing your jewelry avoid contact with water, sweat, soap, lotions, oils, and perfumes. If your jewelry does come in contact with moisture, use a soft cloth to wipe it down.

Minimize Wear + Tear
Your jewelry should be the last thing you put on in the morning (after make-up, hair products and perfume) and the first thing you take off at night. We don’t recommend wearing your jewelry to bed.

Store Safely
When you remove your jewelry wipe it with a soft cloth. Keep your jewelry in a sealed bag or a jewelry box to help prevent tarnishing. Exposure to oxygen accelerates the aging process. All online orders come with a pink pouch for you to store your jewels (or anything else you'd like!) in.

Tending to your pieces requires little effort and should fit seamlessly into your everyday routine. A little care goes a long way.

Materials

GOLD-PLATED
All of our jewelry is electroplated (“plated” for short). Electroplating is a process that uses chemistry and electricity to cover metal in a thin layer of gold. By dipping the jewelry in a solution that contains gold and applying electricity, a thin layer of gold attaches itself to the jewelry pieces.

The overall colour/tone of the gold jewelry is determined by how long the process is applied.
Different trends and designs dictate the tone of our gold-plating from 10K-18K gold. The trend today is a lighter gold, so we currently strive for a 10K-14K gold look.

Since electroplating is done by hand, there may be slight variations each time this process is done.

SILVER-PLATED
We use the same electroplating process on our silver-plated jewelry except that silver is used in the chemical solution, instead of gold. Please see “GOLD-PLATED” for details on the electroplating process.

RHODIUM-PLATED
Rhodium is a precious metal and a member of the platinum family. Rhodium is a high-shine metal that gives pieces a cooler tone as opposed to silver-plated pieces which have a slightly warmer look. The same process for electroplating is used for our rhodium-plated pieces. Please see “GOLD-PLATED” for details on the electroplating process.

STERLING SILVER POSTS
Sterling silver is an alloy containing 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper.

BRASS
Brass is an alloy made of copper and zinc. Brass is durable and quite workable. We use brass in a large selection of our jewelry.

BASE METAL
Base metals are any metals that are commonly found and considered the opposite of precious metals (gold, silver, palladium and platinum). Some examples of base metals include copper, zinc, nickel and aluminum. Base metals allow us to get creative and design truly unique pieces while making our jewelry accessible

CHAINS
We use brass chains in a number of different finishes. Our most commonly used finishes are:
Gold-plated
Rhodium-plated
Bronze-plated
Enamel coated

*Sarah Mulder Jewelry is "Costume Jewelry" that is made with plated finishes or base metals such as brass and copper
*Please avoid spraying hairspray and perfume onto your jewelry, as this may effect the surface look of the finish, some lotions and body cleaners may also affect the look of your pieces over time
*The best way to keep any metal from tarnishing is to put it in a closed container (a small plastic bag or a CLOSED jewelry box) to prevent air circulation.
*Do not use solvents to clean plated metal as this may cause damage to the surface
*Please remove jewelry before swimming or bathing, as water and salt water may damage the finish

Extra Tips
*Remove jewelry before sleeping, sports & working out.
*Be careful when removing your clothing and heavy knits (including scarves), latches/jump rings & connectors can catch, pull and break if you do not take care, try to remove jewelry before clothing.
*Most earrings come with small rubber backings, these are provided to ensure you do not loose an earring while wearing them.
*Light and air can and most likely WILL tarnish your jewelry or worse cause permanent damage, please take care to prevent damage by tucking your treasures away.

Kara Yoo jewelry is nickel-free and hypoallergenic! Almost all metal used in our jewelry is made in North America, and where possible, reclaimed metal is used. 

We use the following metals:
Argentium™ Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Gold-Fill
Brass
14K Yellow Gold
14K Rose Gold
14K Palladium White GoldAll of our pieces are hypoallergenic. We define “hypoallergenic” as nickel-free or generally not causing sensitivities to skin. Although we try our best to advise, skin sensitivity varies from person-to-person. Please read more about our specific metals to gain insight.

GENERAL CARE INSTRUCTIONS
Always store your jewelry in a dry place and separate from other jewelry which could scratch your piece. Cloth pouches or resealable baggies work great. To minimize tarnish, store your jewelry in an airtight container such as a resealable baggie. Use a lint-free jewelry polish cloth and gently rub to remove any tarnish or restore shine. Avoid polishing plated items.Remove all jewelry before taking a shower or using any harsh chemicals such as perfumes, chlorine, hairspray etc. which can cause a dullness in appearance or damage the metal. Avoid using chemical jewelry cleaners as they are often bad for the environment, your skin and could damage your jewelry if used improperly. Try using mild soap or toothpaste and a soft toothbrush to clean your pieces. Avoid doing this on plated items

STERLING SILVER
Sterling is an alloy containing at least 92.5% pure silver and the other 7.5% is most commonly alloyed with copper.Argentium™ Sterling Silver is an alloy of 93.5% pure silver, and a mix of 6.5% copper and germanium. Argentium™ is extremely slow to tarnish under most conditions and is a brighter-white silver than regular sterling silver.

How to Care for Your Silver Jewelry
To return your piece back to its shiny finish, use a jewelry polishing cloth. If your piece is quite soiled or has dirt in hard-to-reach places, try using mild soap or toothpaste and a soft toothbrush to clean your pieces. Gold Vermeil is sterling silver electroplated with a thin coating of 18K gold. Since the core is sterling silver, gold vermeil is nickel-free and hypoallergenic. If you are not sensitive to sterling silver, it is likely that you can wear gold vermeil. Please be aware that the plating will wear off over time to reveal a sterling silver underlayer. Embrace the new color of your jewelry, or send it to your local jeweler for re-plating.

How to Care for Your Plated Jewelry: Avoid polishing plated jewelry as you could polish away the layer of gold. Never machine polish or use any chemical jewelry cleaners. To maximize the longevity of plated pieces, store away when at home.

GOLD
Gold-fill (not to be confused with Gold Plated, Gold Vermeil or Electroplated) wears just like solid gold and should maintain its color for years if cared for properly. A thick layer of karat gold is heat and pressure bonded to a brass core. Because gold-fill contains an actual layer of karat gold, the color lasts significantly longer than gold-plated jewelry. The gold on gold-fill metal represents 5% of the total weight of the material and must meet federal quality standards. All of our soldered gold-fill jewelry is made with 14K gold solder, and not base metal solder, ensuring quality is maintained throughout. Gold-fill is hypoallergenic -- if you can wear 14K gold, you most likely can wear gold-fill jewelry.

How to Care for Your Gold-Fill Jewelry: To return your piece back to its shiny finish, use a polish cloth. If your piece is quite soiled or has dirt in hard-to-reach places, try using mild soap or toothpaste and a soft toothbrush to clean your pieces. Never machine polish or use any chemical jewelry cleaners on gold-fill.

Karat Gold (other names include “solid gold”):
There are different karats of gold as follows:24K Gold -- Pure Gold, 24 out of 24 parts are gold. Too soft to be functional, so it is alloyed with other metals for durability.18K Gold - 18 out of 24 parts are gold.14K Gold -- 14 out of 24 parts are gold. Kara Yoo fine jewelry is made with 14K gold.10K Gold - 10 out of 24 parts are gold.Gold comes in various colors like yellow, rose or white.  To create different colors in gold, it is alloyed with other metals like copper, silver, zinc, palladium, nickel, etc. All of our gold is nickel-free and hypoallergenic.

14K Palladium White Gold: We use Palladium White Gold instead of traditional white gold which contains nickel. Our white gold is slightly darker in color. Traditionally, white gold is plated with rhodium for a whiter look. We do not plate our white gold with rhodium as we love the unique shade of Palladium White Gold.

How to Care for Your Gold Jewelry: To return your piece back to its shiny finish, use a polish cloth. Alternatively, you can bring it to your local jeweler to be cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaner or steamed. Any dents or scratches can be mechanically polished away by bringing it to a jeweler -- beware that mechanical polishing is abrasive and will take off some gold. Use this technique sparingly. If your piece is quite soiled or has dirt in hard-to-reach places, try using mild soap or toothpaste and a soft toothbrush to clean your pieces.

BRASS
Brass is an alloy of 85% copper and 15% zinc with a color similar to 14K yellow gold. Brass is nickel-free; however, can cause skin sensitivities with some people.

How to Care for Your Brass Jewelry
To return your piece back to its shiny finish, use a polish cloth. Alternatively, you can bring it to your local jeweler to be cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaner or steamed. If your piece is quite soiled or has dirt in hard-to-reach places, try using mild soap or toothpaste and a soft toothbrush to clean your pieces.