Frequently Asked Questions
Delivery & Returns
We hold most items in stock and aim to ship within 1 working day. Occasionally we will have to order your product in, in which case we aim to ship within 2-3 working days. The delivery timescale will be made clear at the checkout.
A few of our higher priced items are 'made to order'. The shipping time on these varies and is made clear on the product page.
International orders are shipped within the same timescales, but using an airmail service. Delivery timescales will be specified at the checkout.
Always via Royal Mail for UK orders. We ship our jewellery via a tracked and GPS logged service, and items valued over £150 will require a signature on delivery.
All items are fully insured for their journey, however, please note we do not consider an item lost until 2 full weeks have passed, and we will not replace earlier than this.
We send international orders via a standard tracked airmail service (usually takes up to 2 weeks) or for higher value orders, via DHL Express.
This is a requirement by our bank to reduce the risk of fraud and not something we can change.
You can return your unworn jewellery to us within 30 days for a refund or exchange, provided it has not been engraved or altered for you.
Our return address is: KIC Group, PO Box 1352, Cheltenham, GL50 9GT.
Only Royal Mail can deliver to our PO Box, please do not be tempted to use another courier.
Returning Items Under £150
Please always use Royal Mail Tracked 48. This will ensure your item is both tracked and adequately covered for the journey back.
It is cheaper to buy Royal Mail Tracked 48 online than at the Post Office, though you will need a printer for the former.
Returning Items Over £150
Please always use Royal Mail Special Delivery to return items valued over £150.
General Instructions
You will be liable for loss if the correct postage service has not been used.
Note that standard post and signed for services do not include cover for jewellery, and we do not recommend you use them.
Please keep your proof of posting receipt until we confirm we have received your item back.
In most cases, we issue your refund or exchange within 1 working day of the parcel arriving - we try not to keep you waiting.
If you are returning from outside the UK, please email for specific instructions to make sure your parcel reaches us without any fuss: hello@sterlingwilde.co.uek
Yes we do. Items purchased from 1st November onwards can be returned up to 15th January for a full refund or exchange, provided the items are unworn and in new condition. This excludes engraved and altered items.
We ship our jewellery to the USA via airmail tracked (USPS) and DPD Express.
We do not pay taxes or duties for our USA customers, however, your duty-free allowance is quite high so may not be triggered by an order from us. Please check in advance.
We also ship our jewellery to some EU member states via standard airmail tracked and DPD Express.
The tax situation between UK and EU is complex, and at the moment we only ship to particular EU countries where the tax agreements are less complicated for us - this includes France, Germany and Ireland.
Warranty & Repairs
Treat each piece as delicate and handle with care.
Manufacturing faults and flaws make themselves obvious very quickly. After that, how long your jewellery lasts depends entirely on how well you look after it and how carefully you handle it.
Our top tips:
- Never wear your jewellery to bed
- Remove before exercise, house work, gardening or any activity where your jewellery could get caught or snagged
- Do not get your jewellery wet and do not allow it to come into contact with chemicals, perfumes and cosmetics (see tarnish advice below)
- Do not put pressure through your hands when wearing rings (cycling, gym, heavy lifting etc)
- Open and close clasps gently, and do not pull on chains while trying to do them up/undo them.
- Keep out of reach of little hands!
Our jewellery is sold with a 12 month manufacturers' warranty. This will cover things like faulty clasp mechanisms or missing gemstones (where no damage has occurred to the claws).
If less than 6 months have passed since you bought your item:
- we will replace or repair your item
After 6 months have passed:
- we will repair your jewellery only
What is not covered by the warranty
Our warranty does not cover snapped/broken chains or damaged end loops. It also does not cover misshapen or damaged ring bands or claws.
In the event you break your chain, we will be happy to try and repair it for you (for a charge). We can not repair all chains - especially those that are semi-hollow or where damage is extensive.
In the event you damage a ring band, we can attempt to repair for you for a charge. Whether it's possible will depend on the extent of the damage and the ring style.
Get in touch
To ask for help with damage or a warranty issue, please drop us a friendly email including clear photos of the jewellery and we will get back to you promptly.
Yes it probably will. Sterling silver and 9ct yellow gold both develop tarnish (the product of a chemical reaction), and this can happen quite quickly or slowly over time. Tarnish can look dark, discoloured or patchy and sometimes like a top layer of the metal is coming away - be assured it is not.
Tarnish tends to happen most quickly when the jewellery comes into contact with:
- Moisture
- Chlorine / Pool / Hot Tub Chemicals
- Shampoos/Body Wash
- Sun Cream
- Perfumes, Moisturisers & Cosmetics
- Household Cleaning Products
- Insect Repellent
- Perspiration & Humidity (this one can be difficult to avoid)
Light tarnish can be removed effectively from sterling silver and 9ct yellow gold with a dedicated dry polishing cloth and we recommend the Town Talk brand. They have cloths for silver and gold.
If the tarnish is heavy or stubborn, a clean with a Cape Cod fine metal polishing cloth first (these are wet), followed by the dry Town Talk cloth afterwards, can work wonders.
Always clean your jewellery gently and sparingly. Never polish plated jewellery - clean with a microfibre cloth only. Treat white gold as plated jewellery and be cautious with rose gold. Sterling silver plated in rhodium will also not polish well.
If you are struggling to remove stubborn tarnish, we are always happy to clean jewellery purchased from us provided you cover the postage in both directions. Please send us a friendly email to let us know.
Unfortunately not, we can only repair items that we have sold, and have not been altered since we sold them.
About The Jewellery
We sell:
- solid gold jewellery (9ct, 14ct & 18ct)
- solid sterling silver jewellery
- solid sterling silver jewellery that has been plated in gold
We do not sell jewellery made of brass or any other non-precious metal.
We are clear on each product page what the jewellery is made of, and our jewellery is hallmarked in accordance with UK law:
Gold items over 1 gram in weight carry a British hallmark from the Assay Office. Below this weight, they will usually (but not always) be stamped with a fineness mark by the manufacturer, e.g. 375.
Silver items over 7.78 grams in weight carry a British hallmark from the Assay Office. Below this weight they will usually (but not always) be stamped with a fineness mark by the manufacturer, e.g. 925.
Gold plated items over 7.78 grams in weight will carry a British sterling silver hallmark from the Assay Office. Below this weight, they will usually be stamped with a fineness mark by the manufacturer, e.g. 925.
As qualified gemmologists, we go to great lengths to ethically source and accurately describe the gemstones we sell. You can be certain of the gemstone you are buying from us, with likely treatments pointed out on the product page. Similarly, if a stone is synthetic (man-made) or a simulant (a look-a-like), that will be clear. There should be no ambiguity in our shop, but if you do find some, please reach out to us and we will clarify!
We have written a short post here explaining the different terms used to describe gemstones.
We know how annoying it can be to purchase something, only to see it in the sale a few days later.
Our price guarantee: if you purchase a product from this website and we reduce it in price within 120 days of your purchase, send us an email and we will refund you the difference.
This price guarantee only applies to items purchased from this website sterlingwilde.co.uk - it does not apply to items purchased in other satellite stores (e.g Etsy).
Jewellery poses risks to children, the most troubling being choking. Our jewellery is not suitable for children under 4 years of age for that reason, and we ask you to keep it entirely out of reach of that age group.
Our jewellery is also not suitable for children older than 4 years, who still put non-food items in their mouth.
Please take the time to read our children's jewellery safety guidelines before making your purchase.