The earlobe that starts itching after three hours. The red mark under a wedding band. If this is your experience, you have probably been told to "get surgical steel" or to "buy hypoallergenic". Those answers miss the point. What triggers the reaction is not the name of the metal, it is what sits inside the alloy. Here is how to think about it properly, and what to ask before you buy a piece you will wear every day.

Hypoallergenic jewellery: the word says nothing, the alloy says everything

Let us start with the uncomfortable truth. The word "hypoallergenic" has no binding legal definition in jewellery. The prefix hypo means "less than". Not "without". A brand can therefore write it on a product page without being held to a set limit, and without publishing a composition.

What you are looking for is not a promise. It is an alloy composition.

Because a precious metal jewel is never made of pure metal. Pure gold is too soft, and so is pure silver. They are alloyed to give a material you can work, set and wear.

The direct consequence: saying "I wear gold" tells you almost nothing about your tolerance. An 18 carat gold contains 750 parts per thousand of pure gold. The other 250 are other metals. They are the ones that decide whether your skin reacts. Two rings both stamped 750 can hold very different alloys.

Nickel is the leading contact allergen in Europe. Once sensitisation sets in, it lasts. The typical reaction is contact eczema: redness, itching, sometimes small blisters. It rarely appears straight away, more often twelve to forty eight hours after contact, which is why the wrong piece often gets the blame.

European REACH regulation on nickel in jewellery

The European Union has framed this subject since the 1990s. The text in force is the REACH regulation, at entry 27 of its annex XVII.

It does not work in percentage of nickel in the alloy. It works in nickel release, meaning the quantity that migrates towards the skin. What counts is not what the metal contains, but what it gives off.

Two limits structure the text. For posts and clasps inserted into pierced ears or any other pierced part of the body, release must stay below 0.2 microgram per square centimetre per week. It is the strictest limit, because the metal touches a wound. For articles in direct and prolonged contact with the skin, earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings, the limit is 0.5 microgram.

The text also provides that coatings are not a way out. When a piece is coated, the limit must still be met over two years of normal use.

Remember this: REACH compliance is a legal floor, and it applies to every piece of jewellery sold in the Union. It sharply reduces the risk. It does not remove it for highly sensitised people, who can react below those limits.

925 silver and nickel allergy: possible or not

925 silver is made of 925 parts per thousand of pure silver. The remaining 75 are, in the vast majority of jewellery alloys, copper. That is why 925 silver is generally well tolerated by skin sensitised to nickel: copper does not trigger the same allergic mechanism.

Two qualifications, because caricature helps nobody.

First, 925 silver is not guaranteed nickel free by nature. There are so called anti tarnish alloys that bring in other metals. It is not the norm, but it exists. The only way to know for sure is to ask for the composition.

Second, 925 silver oxidises. Copper reacts with air and with perspiration. The piece can darken and the skin can mark temporarily. That is not an allergy, it is chemistry, and it cleans off. Our routine is gathered in the care guide.

18 carat gold and nickel allergy: the white gold question

This is where it all plays out, and this is where the guides stay vague.

18 carat yellow gold is alloyed mainly with silver and with copper. As a rule it is very well tolerated.

White gold raises a real question. Gold is yellow by nature. To lighten it you need a whitening metal, and two families of alloys exist side by side.

White golds with palladium. Palladium belongs to the platinum family. It whitens gold, it is stable, and it very rarely causes allergy. It is the option chosen by houses attentive to skin tolerance. It costs more.

White golds with nickel. Nickel whitens very effectively and costs far less. It is a historically widespread alloy, still present in part of world production. It is also the one that causes trouble for sensitised skin.

A third element has to be added, and it is often forgotten: rhodium. Many white gold pieces are given a rhodium finish, a very thin layer of very hard white metal. As long as it is intact, it isolates the skin from the alloy underneath. Rhodium plating wears, and it is redone periodically. A reaction that appears after two or three years on a white gold ring very often comes from there.

That same rhodium is also applied to silver, and that is what we do on our 925 silver pieces. Rhodium belongs to the platinum family. It is chemically inert and it is not known as a common contact allergen. On a rhodium plated silver piece, it is therefore no longer the alloy that touches your skin, it is the rhodium.

Two honest points need making. 925 silver is alloyed with copper, not with nickel, so it rarely causes trouble even without rhodium plating. And above all, a rhodium layer is still a layer: it ends up wearing at the friction points, and the alloy becomes accessible again. A rhodium plated piece is not a permanent guarantee, it is a barrier that needs upkeep.

One point of honesty, because it matters. We are not publishing here the detailed composition of our recycled 18 carat white gold alloy, because we do not want to state anything we have not checked and confirmed in writing. If nickel tolerance is an issue for you, write to us and ask the question directly. That is exactly what you should do with any house, ours included. If nobody can answer you, that is already an answer. To understand what the 18 carat standard covers, see our article on 18 carat gold.

Vermeil and sensitive skin: when the gold layer wears

Nobody covers this case. It is very real all the same.

Vermeil is a 925 silver base covered with a layer of high grade gold, at least around five microns under the French designation. It is not plating: the layer is markedly thicker. As long as it is intact, it is gold that your skin touches.

But a gold layer is still a layer, and it wears through friction. Not everywhere at the same pace. On a ring, wear starts under the finger. On a bracelet, it appears on the edges and near the clasp. On earrings it is very slow, for want of friction.

When the gold layer thins, the 925 silver comes back into contact. For someone allergic to nickel, that changes nothing: neither gold nor 925 silver is involved. For someone who reacts to copper, the protection lessens over time.

The good news is that vermeil can be repaired. The gold layer is redone in the workshop, the base is intact. That is the great advantage over ordinary plating, which cannot be recovered.

Our advice in one sentence. Vermeil is an excellent choice for earrings, a necklace or a bracelet. On a ring worn seven days a week, plan for a refresh.

The piece worn around the clock for years

This is the most demanding use case, and the one the guides ignore completely.

A wedding band compares to no other piece. It stays on at night. It goes under the shower. It takes soap, sunscreen and the sweat of exercise. Three mechanisms then add up.

Occlusion. Under the band, the skin does not breathe and moisture sits there. That closed environment increases the migration of metals towards the skin. A ring that caused no trouble for two years can become uncomfortable after a very hot summer.

Residue build up. Soap and creams lodge under the setting. They irritate, and people think it is a metal allergy. In a good share of cases, all it takes is removing the ring and cleaning it.

Wear of the protective layers. Rhodium plating on white gold, gold layer on vermeil. They thin out, and the skin ends up touching the alloy itself.

What can you do? Take the ring off one night a week. Clean it in warm soapy water and dry it completely. Take it off before the swimming pool. And choose the right size, because a ring that is too tight keeps moisture underneath: our guide to finding your ring size sets out the method.

If you are genuinely sensitised and the piece will be worn for a lifetime, recycled 18 carat gold is the most rational choice. It is stable, it does not oxidise the way silver does, and it does not depend on a surface layer that wears.

Nickel allergy and earrings: what to do

Earrings are the first thing to reveal a nickel allergy. That is no accident: the post goes through the skin, and that is why the regulatory limit is two and a half times stricter there.

Look at the post before anything else. It is the part that counts. A fine 925 silver earring with a base metal post is a problem, even if the visible part is beyond reproach. Be wary of the backs and the butterfly clutches too: they are the parts replaced most often, and the ones most frequently taken from generic stock.

Do not sleep in new earrings straight away. Build up gradually: a few hours, then a day, then a night. A reaction takes twelve to forty eight hours to declare itself, so tolerating two hours proves nothing.

The five questions to ask before you buy

You do not need to be a chemist. You need to ask five questions and listen to the quality of the answers.

What is the exact composition of the alloy, in parts per thousand, for each metal offered? Is your 18 carat white gold alloyed with palladium or with nickel? Is the piece rhodium plated, and how often does the plating need redoing? For vermeil, how thick is the gold layer in microns, and do you offer a regilding? And finally, if the skin reacts, is an exchange for another metal possible?

A vague answer is not necessarily bad intent. It is often a sign that the house does not control its production chain. For a piece worn for twenty years, that is enough to make the difference. We talk about it in our article on buying jewellery online safely and in the one devoted to French quality.

The takeaways

Stop thinking in metal names. Think in alloys and in wearing time.

925 silver is generally well tolerated by people allergic to nickel, because its alloy is built on copper. 18 carat yellow gold is a safe choice in the vast majority of cases. White gold deserves a precise question about its alloy, palladium or nickel, and a second one about the rhodium plating. Vermeil protects as long as the gold layer is there.

And for a piece worn without ever taking it off, recycled 18 carat gold remains the easiest material over twenty years.

One last thing. If the reaction is severe or recurrent, a dermatologist can carry out patch tests. Knowing precisely what you are sensitised to beats trying one piece after another. We are not doctors, and we prefer to say so.

To go further. If your silver piece darkens against the skin, the cause is explained in why silver turns black. To weigh up the metals before buying, our comparison of silver, vermeil or recycled 18 carat gold sets out the criteria. And for pieces to wear continuously, see our modular jewellery.

FAQ

Does 925 silver contain nickel?

Generally no. The classic alloy pairs 925 parts per thousand of pure silver with copper. Some anti tarnish alloys can contain other metals, so the only reliable answer remains the composition supplied by the house.

Which metal should you choose when you are allergic to nickel?

18 carat yellow gold and 925 silver are the two safest options in jewellery. White gold works too, provided its alloy uses palladium and not nickel. Ask the question before you buy.

How long after putting on a piece does the reaction appear?

A contact allergy generally takes twelve to forty eight hours to show. Immediate discomfort points more to mechanical irritation or to soap residue. A two hour trial therefore proves nothing.

Is vermeil suitable for sensitive skin?

Yes, as long as the gold layer is intact, since it is gold that the skin touches. The layer wears over time, above all on a ring, and the 925 silver then comes back into contact. A regilding in the workshop restores the barrier.

Why does my skin turn green with a piece of jewellery?

It is the copper in the alloy reacting with perspiration and with air. It is not an allergy and it is not dangerous. The mark comes off with soap, and it appears faster in summer or during exercise.

What does European regulation say about nickel in jewellery?

The REACH regulation sets nickel release limits. Below 0.2 microgram per square centimetre per week for posts inserted into a pierced part of the body. Below 0.5 for articles in prolonged contact with the skin, coating included, over two years of normal use.

Fiona