If you've ever bought a £15 gold necklace from Amazon and watched it turn your skin green in two weeks, you've been the victim of nickel. Most cheap "gold" jewelry is brass plated with a microscopic gold layer over a base metal full of nickel — which oxidises in contact with sweat and reacts with the iron in your skin. That's the green stain.
OLYMP'D pieces never do that. The reason is 316L surgical stainless steel — the same alloy used in surgical implants, pacemaker housings, and the orthopedic pins inside marathon runners. Here's why it's the right material for jewelry, in plain English.
What 316L actually is
"316L" is a grade of stainless steel — specifically, an austenitic stainless alloy of iron, chromium (16-18%), nickel (10-14%), molybdenum (2-3%), and carbon (the "L" stands for low carbon, under 0.03%). The molybdenum is the key ingredient: it makes 316L dramatically more resistant to chloride corrosion than regular 304 stainless steel. That's why surgeons specify it for implants — chloride is the main thing in saline body fluids, and 316L doesn't react.
The same property makes it perfect for jewelry. Sweat is mostly chloride. Salt water is chloride. Pool chlorine is chloride. Tap water has trace chloride. None of it touches 316L.
But doesn't 316L contain nickel?
Yes — and this is where most "hypoallergenic" jewelry claims fall apart. The presence of nickel in an alloy isn't the problem. The leaching of nickel out of the alloy onto your skin is the problem.
In 316L, the nickel is bound into the crystal structure with iron and chromium so tightly that it doesn't leach out under normal conditions. The European Nickel Directive sets a release limit of 0.5 µg/cm²/week for jewelry touching the skin. 316L releases well under 0.1 µg/cm²/week — about 5x below the limit. That's why surgeons can put 316L pins inside the body for life without rejection. And why your OLYMP'D earrings don't make your lobes itch.
So what's the PVD gold coating for?
316L is silver-grey in its natural state. For OLYMP'D's gold pieces, we apply an 18K PVD gold finish on top of the steel core. PVD stands for Physical Vapour Deposition — a vacuum chamber process that bonds the gold layer to the steel at the molecular level by vaporising gold and condensing it onto the surface under specific temperature and pressure.
The result is a finish that's:
- Far thicker than electroplating — typically 0.3 to 1 micron versus 0.05 micron for cheap plated jewelry
- Molecularly bonded — not just glued on, but integrated into the steel surface
- Resistant to abrasion, sweat, and water — the same coating process is used on luxury watch cases
It's the reason a £40 OLYMP'D piece holds its colour for years while a £15 plated piece fades in weeks. Backed for life by our Lifetime Colour Guarantee.
What 316L can't do
It's not magnetic, so if a magnet sticks to your "stainless steel" jewelry, it's lower grade (probably 410 or 430, not 316L). It can be scratched by harder materials like diamond or quartz — though it's vastly more scratch-resistant than solid gold or silver. And it's heavier than plated brass, which is actually one of the easiest ways to tell quality on the wrist: a 316L bracelet has a substantial, "expensive" weight that brass simply can't fake.
Why this matters for you
Two practical things this means in daily life:
- You can wear OLYMP'D pieces through everything. Showers, swimming pools, salt water, sweat, sleep — none of it touches the core or the finish. The whole "take off your jewelry before you shower" rule is for cheap plated pieces. It doesn't apply here.
- You can wear them if your skin is reactive. If you've reacted to gold-plated brass before, you'll be fine with 316L. We get DMs every week from customers who can finally wear earrings again after years of nickel sensitivity.
Browse the full edit — every piece is 316L surgical steel under either 18K PVD gold or brushed silver. Or start with the Most Wanted bestsellers if you want a curated set.