What Kind of Jewelry Won’t Turn Your Skin Green?

When you're a jewelry lover, it's likely you're wearing your favorite pieces at all hours of the day and for every activity. Suddenly, you're noticing that they started turning your skin green. This is not a desirable look at all, but you don't want to stop wearing jewelry, so what kind of jewelry won't turn your skin green?

Jewelry could turn skin green by reacting to the acids in your skin or to a skin product you are wearing. "Fake" or tarnished jewelry can leave your skin green due to a breakdown in the metals. To avoid green skin, you'll want to buy the purest silver and gold jewelry you can find, or stick to stainless steel, platinum, and rhodium jewelry.

Top Jewelry Metals to Avoid Green Skin

When it comes to shopping for jewelry that won't turn your skin green, you should narrow your search to a few precious metals. Make sure you speak to the jeweler about the metals that were used to make the jewelry before you buy. Not all jewelry packaging and advertising is completely upfront about the quality and make of the jewelry.

If you are trying to avoid green skin, shop for metal that is:

• 24k gold
• Platinum
• Rhodium
• Stainless steel
• High-grade sterling silver, such as ".999 silver"

Sticking to these metals for jewelry will help you avoid turning your skin green. To better understand why green stains happen, and how to avoid them even with the highest quality jewelry, keep reading.

Why Does Jewelry Turn Skin Green?

Many factors go into why different types of jewelry react with your skin to leave a green stain. It could have to do with the type of metal, the purity of the metal, or the way your skin reacts to the jewelry.

Jewelry Reacts to Skin Acidity

Your skin and sweat have a certain pH that can affect the metals rubbing against them. Many people see this reaction first on their fingers. Our hands sweat a lot, especially between the fingers, often leaving green stains around where we wear rings.

Metal and acid do not mix very well, especially when it comes to cheaper metals. Copper is one of the most reactive metals and is well known for oxidizing quickly in moist conditions. The mix of sweat and copper will create a salt compound that is absorbed into your skin and leaves a green stain.

It isn't proven, but some jewelers even claim that having low levels of iron can cause your skin's acidity to be higher than normal. If your skin is turning green from jewelry, they say you should check your iron levels.

If you are beginning to see tarnish on your jewelry suddenly, some believe it could be due to hormonal changes or new medications. As your body begins to secrete new levels of acids or different chemical makeups, your jewelry can begin to react to your skin when it didn't before.

Jewelry Reacts to Skin Products

Many people use several layers of products on their skin in areas where they also wear jewelry. Our hands are the biggest culprits. We are constantly washing, drying, moisturizing, sanitizing, and using our hands.

It's also common to clean and moisturize our neck and chest area where we wear necklaces, and we wash our hair regularly with products around where we wear earrings. If you have facial jewelry, you are certainly frequently cleaning and applying products to those areas as well.

Depending on the quality and metal used to make your jewelry, you will notice wear over time. Certain metals are more resistant than others to abrasions, chemical reactions, and aging. The environment you live in, your lifestyle, and your hygiene habits play a huge role in the life of your jewelry.

Washing your hands often with soap can make your jewelry react badly to your skin. You might also apply lotions often, which could have chemicals that erode your jewelry metal. Hand sanitizer is also very abrasive and can wear away your metals.

If you use acne medication or other prescription medications on your skin, it might be best to avoid wearing most jewelry in those areas. Depending on the metal, the medication could damage your jewelry and cause green skin.

Even some chemicals in makeup can damage jewelry. If you are wearing foundations and powders around your facial jewelry and even earrings, you could cause reactions. This could happen on your neck as well if you blend your makeup down.

It's best to be aware of what your skin treatment and hygiene habits are and try to avoid wearing jewelry when you perform certain tasks.

Jewelry Tarnishes From Chemical Reactions

Often, we think of tarnished jewelry as a result of age, but chemical reactions are the root cause of tarnishing. Sulfur compounds are one of the main culprits of these chemical reactions.

Unfortunately, most people live in environments with very polluted air. Hydrogen sulfide is a common air pollutant that can react with jewelry. Sulfur compounds are also brought about by common food like fish, eggs, and onions.

This chemical reaction can tarnish common jewelry metals like sterling silver, exposing your skin to the copper mixed in. This will leave behind a green stain on your skin.

If you go swimming often, it's recommended that you do so without your jewelry. Chlorine in swimming pools and ocean salt can cause your jewelry to tarnish and break down quickly, especially if you are wearing cheaper metals.

Cheaper Metals Turn Your Skin Green

Not many people realize that there's no such thing as pure silver or real gold jewelry. Silver can only exist in liquid form, so jewelers have to mix in another metal to create a solid piece. Pure gold is also very soft and malleable, so it needs another metal to strengthen it and make it more permanent.

There are several cheaper metals that jewelry makers use to strengthen precious metals. Unfortunately, these cheaper metals tend to corrode easily and have reactions with your skin.

Copper is one of the most common metals used to make other metals more durable. Jewelry makers often add copper to more precious metals, like silver, to strengthen the material to be molded.

Nickel is another common metal used in jewelry but is strongly advised against. Nickel not only stains your skin green but is also a very common metal allergy for many people.

Sterling silver is not as cheap as copper or nickel but still requires another metal to be added to create a solid form. Sterling silver is made of at least 7% copper. This addition of copper means that even sterling silver can turn your skin green as it ages.

Bronze and brass jewelry are made of high levels of copper, tin, and zinc, meaning that it has a high chance of turning your skin green. Even low karat real gold can turn your skin green, as it is mixed with other metals.

Fake Jewelry or Plated Jewelry Turns Your Skin Green

Often, people buy jewelry believing it is made of precious metal when in reality it is fake or plated. If you have gold or silver jewelry that is turning your skin green, this could be the culprit.

Over time, even the most robust metals will wear down. If your jewelry is silver or gold plated, the plating will wear down and expose the cheaper metal underneath. Your skin will react to the cheaper metal, most likely copper, and leave a green stain.

Jewelry Can Flare Skin Allergies

As previously mentioned, nickel is one of the most common metal allergies. If you have a nickel allergy, nickel can not only turn your skin green but make it inflamed. If you are experiencing redness, rashing, or itchiness, it's best to avoid that jewelry from now on.

Not just nickel, but many other cheap metals like copper and tin, can be the root cause of allergic reactions. As your skin reacts, it can secrete sweat and histamine that corrodes cheaper metals, leaving your skin green.

The purest gold jewelry on the market, 24 karat gold, is the best hypoallergenic gold jewelry you can get. Stainless steel is also a highly recommended metal for people with allergies, as it is the most common metal used for medical equipment. Other great hypoallergenic options include platinum and titanium.

How Can I Avoid Jewelry Turning Skin Green?

If you enjoy wearing cheaper metals as your jewelry, such as copper and bronze, you might be wondering if there's a way to avoid the green stain on your skin. If even your highest quality jewelry is turning your skin green, you might be desperate for answers.

Good news: there are techniques you can use in your daily routine that will allow you to wear your jewelry while avoiding green skin. These techniques aren't foolproof, but if done properly, they can help lengthen the lifespan of your jewelry.

Keep Your Skin Dry

Copper is notorious for turning green when it's in a moist environment. Other cheaper metals also do not react well to water and the various chemicals and minerals found in our tap water and environment.

The best way to avoid green skin when wearing these metals is to keep your skin dry. If you are going to wash your hands or take a shower, remove all your jewelry until your skin is completely dry. If you are going to swim at the beach or in the pool, leave your jewelry at home.

If you are visiting a very humid or hot environment, avoid wearing your cheaper jewelry, or do not wear it where you will sweat. If you still want to wear it, try drying your skin often and applying powders and deodorants that are free of zinc.

Stay Away From Chemicals

Avoid mixing your jewelry with chemicals at all costs. Do not clean with your jewelry on, as most household cleaning supplies contain intense chemicals. Try not to touch anything that contains chlorine, as copper reacts badly to chlorine.

Make sure your skin is completely dry and free of any chemicals that you have applied to it, whether it is for tanning, makeup, medical reasons, and more.

Apply a Protective Coating

You can apply some protective coatings that will act as a barrier between your skin and the jewelry. You can try to use a nail polish top coat as a clear barrier coat. A protective coat of clear nail polish can last for a few days, depending on how often you wear the jewelry.

You can also buy a polymer barrier that is meant for jewelry. These types of protective coats seal your jewelry and protect it from reactions to your skin and other environmental factors. These protective coats can last two months, and you can apply them as often as you'd like.

Clean Your Jewelry Often

Even if you're careful, your jewelry will be exposed to many different materials, chemicals, bodily secretions, and environmental factors over time. A good practice for lengthening the lifespan of your jewelry and preventing green skin stains is to clean your jewelry often.

Buy a cleaner meant for jewelry and follow the instructions. You can usually soak your jewelry in a cleaning solution and polish the solution with a soft material. Removing chemical and dirt buildup from your jewelry will not only make it shiny but help deter the breakdown of the metal over time.

Wear Your Jewelry Sparingly

If you live in a humid environment, sweat a lot, or wear cheaper metals as jewelry, it is best to wear your jewelry sparingly. Cheaper metals like copper and nickel need time away from your skin to lengthen their lifespan.

Being constantly exposed to sweat, moisture, and other chemicals on your skin will make your jewelry corrode very quickly. You are also more likely to get a green stain on your skin if you wear your jewelry for longer periods of time. Try not to sleep or shower with your jewelry on, and only wear it sparingly.

Never Get Green Skin Again

You should never have to see your jewelry turn your skin green. If you follow this guide, you will be more informed when you buy metals for jewelry and avoid tarnishing.

If you're looking for more information about jewelry or would like to buy the best quality jewelry, visit our blog and shop at our online store!