Gold-Plated Mint Green Floral Studs

Frosted stones are unusual at this price. The mint green in these gold-plated floral studs is not polished glassy clear the way most coloured cubic zirconia is. It has a soft, slightly milky surface closer to sea glass, and that is what keeps the mint from looking like mouthwash.

Clear trillion cuts alternate with the mint around a square-cut centre, so the earring has two textures happening at once. Bright and sharp next to soft and matte. The contrast is what gives a small stud some depth.

Mint and gold is a pairing that took a while to become normal and now looks obvious. The warmth of gold plating pulls the green towards yellow-green rather than blue-green, which is the more flattering direction for most skin tones here.

Push-back posts, flat against the lobe. These are day earrings more than evening ones, because the frosted finish does not throw light the way an all-clear cluster would. Put them with cotton or linen and the pale end of a summer wardrobe.

Gold plating over brass needs the care rather than the stones. Off before a bath, and a dry cloth after a humid day.