The Refining Process
How the buried treasures in your jewelry box can help pay for your next custom design
That ring gathering dust in your jewelry box? It might be worth more than you think—and serve as a key to unlocking a wallet-friendly custom design experience!
When we embark upon a custom project here at InBloom, our team will usually ask clients the question “Do you have any unworn jewelry at home?” This is because the fine jewelry—gold or platinum—that you have hiding in your jewelry box can be taken in for refining credit, and put towards the final cost of your new InBloom Jewelry treasure.
Not sure what refining your jewelry means, and how it can help make your custom design more budget-friendly? Let’s get into the details!
What is refining?
Fine jewelry is rarely made using 100% gold, silver, or platinum, because these metals are too soft to withstand daily wear. Blending them with stronger base metals like copper or nickel turns the metal into an alloy, creating a metal that can be made into lasting jewelry.
Refining is the process of separating pure precious metal from base metals. This allows precious metal in a piece of jewelry to be recovered and exchanged for real market value.
At InBloom, refining values for the jewelry you have at home can be transformed into refining credit and put towards the custom jewelry process.
What kinds of metal can be refined?
Here at InBloom, we take in gold (all karats) and platinum for refining. We do not take silver, although some places do.
Costume jewelry and base metals (copper, brass, stainless steel) cannot be refined.
How do I tell what precious metal content is in my jewelry?
The karat mark on jewelry lets us know how much gold content is in a piece. The higher the gold content, the higher the market value—but the lower the durability.
Karat | Pure Gold Content |
24K | 99.9% |
22K | 91.6% |
18K | 75% |
14K | 58.3% |
10K | 41.7% |
Similar logic applies to silver and platinum jewelry. Platinum jewelry is traditionally 85 to 95% precious metal.
Precious metal content is important to consider when looking through your unworn jewelry. A 14k gold ring isn’t just a ring, for example—it’s 58.3% pure gold, meaning it contains recoverable precious metal and monetary value.
How does the refining process work at InBloom Jewelry?
Assessment and Credit
When a client brings in their unworn jewelry for a first design consultation or follow-up, our designers weigh and inspect each piece. They test to confirm whether they’re made of gold or platinum, and then arrange them according to karat stamps.
Clients are encouraged to bring in however many pieces of jewelry they would like for refining—some bring in single pieces, while others have brought in entire jewelry boxes.
It’s important to note that the karat stamp on jewelry is a great indicator of value—but purity still needs to be confirmed using either acid testing or electronic gold testers.
The market prices of precious metals change daily. Our team tracks them each day to ensure you are getting the accurate value back for your jewelry at the time of assessment. Note that the specific refining credit you receive does not go up or down after the assessment, and sticks to the amount we agreed upon at the date and time of your appointment.
Stone removal
Before refining the metal in a piece of jewelry, its gemstones must be removed. This ensures they survive the melting process, and can be returned to the client.
Here at InBloom, gemstones are often saved and reused in new custom jewelry designs. With the refining credit you gain, the custom design experience not only repurposes your precious, sentimental gemstones, but also becomes more affordable and accessible.
The Refinery: Melting, Separation, and Purification
Once credit has been documented and gemstones have been removed, metal is sent out for refining through a third party. We do not do the refining process in-house because separating and purifying metals for reuse is a highly scientific, complicated process that we don’t have the capability (or chemicals) to process in our Downtown Frederick storefront.
Here’s how the process continues in a refining facility:
To separate the precious and base metals, the piece of jewelry must be placed in a crucible and melted down at a high-temperature. This removes contaminants and creates a uniform, molten metal.
Impure metals are separated out through chemical processes—usually using “aqua regia,” a mix of nitric and hydrochloric acids, that splits precious metal away from impure metals.
Recovered gold, silver, or platinum is then cast into ingots or granules for industry reuse.
Is refining my jewelry sustainable?
Yes. Refining your old gold and platinum isn't just a practical choice—it's a conscious one! Precious metals are infinitely recyclable without losing their quality or beauty. When you bring in a piece to be refined, that metal stays in circulation, helping to bypass harmful mining processes by putting recycled metals into the circular economy.
What if the piece I want to refine also has sentimental value?
If you’re absolutely sure you want to refine the metal from a sentimental piece of jewelry—instead of reusing its metal in a memorial or heirloom transformation project—reusing gemstones is a common route to take. This way you can still wear a meaningful piece of your heirloom jewelry and keep its memories alive, while also designing something new. The metal from the piece can then be used for refining credit, or brought home to keep.
If you might wish to save the sentimental metal and reuse that, too, explore other Learning Center articles about Heirloom Redesign, Memorial Jewelry, and Memorial Pendants to discover ways you can use unworn or precious jewelry in a custom design without refining.
Ready to refine and start a custom design journey?
Schedule a complimentary Discovery Call or book a New Design Consultation to go through your jewelry box with one of our designers, explore possibilities for new pieces, and apply refining credit to the cost of your new piece. We can't wait to see your treasures—old and new!
