Solid Gold, Gold Filled, Gold Plated & Gold Vermeil

GOLD PLATED: 

Gold plating is a layer of gold applied to a base metal usually sterling silver or brass. So the base is metal and the gold is essentially dipped over the outside of that base using a process called electroplating. Standard gold plating is generally around 0.5-1 microns of gold plating. 

GOLD VERMEIL:

Gold vermeil is sterling silver that has been plated with a very thick layer of gold. The difference here is the base must be sterling silver and for a piece to be considered vermeil gold it must have a minimum micron plating of 2.5.