I have been using an alloy called “carnation silver” that looks like rose gold but is 725 silver (instead of 925 like sterling.) For a recent customer I plated her carnation silver ring with “triple pink” gold plate without any intermediate plating. The rose gold plating wore off and turned the customer’s skin green within a day. I am not sure whether this could be caused by a metal allergy, or if i should have used an intermediate plate. We were thinking to try rhodium plating it instead, assuming it is an allergy problem, but the customer had wanted it to be rose gold, so this is not (her) ideal solution. Any insights into why our plating may have worn off so quickly and how to avoid it happening again?
Thank you!
So tell us more about this Carnation Silver ! What is in the alloy &
who supplies it in the US.
M Chapman
@whitewolf Thanks for your reply. The carnation silver is something I have only found through GM Casting in Chicago, and my understanding is that they are getting it from United Precious Metals, but its equally possible that they are making the alloy in-house. I’ve consulted them about this issue but so far haven’t gotten any clues… Any insights you could provide would be greatly appreciated. This is the first time I’ve tried plating the carnation, but i’ve also noticed problems with the “Triple Pink” rose gold plating waring off of UPM’s nickel-based jewelers white bronze very quickly, so i stopped using it to plate white bronze. Maybe the triple rose is just a crappy solution. Your thoughts? 
The gold plating you can do with a basic set up is very very thin. It wears off very quickly on a ring. A few weeks or even days is not abnormal. I have been doing powder coating to protect silver from tarnish. It is quick, easy and very durable. All you need is a powder coat gun, about $125. And a small air compressor, less than $100. A toaster oven also less than $100. The clear powder coat is cheap. I think I spent more on the shipping. The gun came from harbor freight and the powder came from Eastwood powder coat. I had to lower the suggested temp for curing to just above 300 degrees. Any higher and it yellows.
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@WADEDESIGNS1 Thank you for this insight. This sounds like a fantastic way to protect the finish. The only issue I can think of is that the plated ring in question is set with colorless diamonds, and I wonder whether powder coating can be done on a ring set with stones. I am concerned it could damage or change the color of the stones, particularly the heating part. Have you ever tried this on a plated ring with gems…?
Thanks again!
You have to set the stones after the powder coat is put on. The coating would get on the stones. So that means it has to be a setting style that does not need any polishing.