1/4 teaspoon of salt in a mug of hot water, bathe it morning and evening until it's feeling better.
i wouldn't go near the claires stuff, it would probably make it worse. and surgical spirits aren't good either, nor TCP they are both way to harsh. the dettol you can get for wounds etc. you can use, just water it down ALOT.
chamomile tea bags are also good, mug of water put the tea bag in, take it out after a few minutes then let it cool; wait until its warm and use it to bathe the outside of your nose. it'll help calm it
you might also get a bit of a 'bump' on it as well where it's been irritated, the chamomile tea bags are really good for treating these.
sterling silver is a no-no in piercings to be honest, like you said, it can flake and the 'silver' rub off. it's bound to upset your nose each and every time.
i'd stick with the gold like you said you have or titanium.
claires jewellery isn't really that good either.
nose piercings can take forever to heal, and even when you think they're healed it can turn out they aren't! they're notorious for playing up for no reason aswell.
i've had quite a few piercings(plan to get quite a few more); i'm not trying to sound big headed or bossy just trying to help