Why Are My Gold Earring Stems Turning Brown? - Is It Fake?

Question
Does that mean the gold is fake and can it be cleaned or fixed

Answer
Alexander, generally if the post is a base metal such as brass with an overlay of gold, tarnish will also show a greenish color. The brown may be the beginning of tarnish of a plated post but I cannot tell.  Why? I have seen gold posts discolored.  The discoloration will happen with some people depending on the environment they spend time in, such as a pool or hot tub.  Also, different folks affect gold in different ways. Some people have perspiration and body chemicals which can discolor gold earring posts.

My suggestion is to take the earrings, wipe off the posts very well, take a magnifier of some sort and see if you can read a karat stamp on the post of an earring. There should be a quality mark there. The 10k or 14k can also be marked with numbers:417 or 585.

If the marks are not there, a jeweler can test the earrings for you. The test will not be expensive but will not be free in most cases. Call ahead to be sure a jeweler does the metal testing. Depending on the price of the testing and the value of the earrings, you may decide not to do the test or go ahead and have the earrings checked for gold.

Best wishes with the earrings.  God Bless.    Thomas.