Care
How to Clean and Store Oxidised Jewellery Without Ruining the Finish
The dark finish is the design. Most cleaning advice written for silver will remove it — here is what to do instead.
Updated 7 min readRenu Ornaments
First, know what you are cleaning
Oxidised jewellery carries two kinds of dark, and only one of them is a problem.
- The designed patina. Even, deliberate darkness sitting in the recesses — the grooves of a carving, the ground behind a motif, the gaps around stones. This is the finish. Leave it alone.
- Wear and residue. A hazy or greasy film across the raised surfaces, a brassy or coppery patch where plating has worn through, small green spots in crevices. These are what care is for.
Almost every cleaning mistake with oxidised jewellery comes from treating the first kind as if it were the second. Silver-cleaning advice — and there is a great deal of it online — is designed to make metal bright. On an oxidised piece, bright is the opposite of what you want.
How to clean it: dry cloth, light hand
- Use a soft, dry cloth — microfibre or old washed cotton. Not tissue, which leaves lint in the detail.
- Wipe the raised areas only, gently, following the line of the design rather than scrubbing in circles. Don't dig into the recesses.
- For dust in carved detail, use a soft, dry brush — a clean make-up brush works — and flick rather than scrub.
- If a piece gets splashed, pat it dry at once and leave it on a towel for half an hour before it goes back in a pouch.
- That's it. There is no step involving a liquid.
| What people use | Why it seems sensible | What it does to oxidised fashion jewellery |
|---|---|---|
| Silver dip | Removes tarnish from silver in seconds | Dissolves the dark finish; the acid attacks plating |
| Silver polishing cloth | Made for jewellery | Carries a mild polish that lifts the patina and thins the plating wherever it rubs |
| Toothpaste or baking soda | A gentle abrasive | Sands away the finish and scratches the surface |
| Soaking in soapy water | Feels gentle | Water gets into settings, bells and joins, and the base metal starts to react |
| Lemon, vinegar or tamarind | Traditional brass cleaners | Acid strips the oxidised layer and dulls plating |
| Metal polish | Brightens brass and silver | Removes the finish entirely — not something you can redo at home |
Turning green, turning black: what's fixable
Green on your skin or in crevices. Brass and German silver are both copper-based. Copper reacts with sweat, salt and the acids in lotions to form green copper salts. On skin it is harmless and washes off with soap. On the piece, wipe it dry and don't scrape. The full explanation is in why fashion jewellery turns black.
A hazy or greasy film on the raised areas. Usually perfume, lotion or sweat residue. A dry cloth with slightly firmer pressure on the high points alone generally lifts it, and the contrast comes back.
Brassy or coppery patches. That is the plating worn through to the base metal at a contact point — typically the inside of a kada, the back of an earring or the edge of a choker. It can't be cleaned back. It can only be slowed by keeping the piece dry and stored well.
The whole piece going darker. Oxidised pieces deepen gently with time and handling, and many people prefer the result. If a piece has gone flat and grey rather than contrasty, that is usually residue rather than the finish, and a dry wipe of the raised areas fixes it.
Bells, fabric, pearls and dori: pieces that need extra care
Ghungroo bells
Each ghungroo is a tiny hollow bell with a loose bead inside. Moisture gets in and has nowhere to go, which is how bells go quiet and discolour from the inside. After wearing the Mor ghungroo combo or the Noor danglers, lay the piece on a dry towel with the bells hanging free for twenty to thirty minutes before it goes into a closed pouch. Never rinse a bell or pry one open.
Fabric-thread necklaces
The Rangeela necklace is woven fabric with oxidised medallions attached. Never wet the fabric — not to wash it and not to spot-clean it. Water can lift colour from the textile and lets the metal mark the cloth where they touch. If it has absorbed sweat, lay it flat in the shade to dry, never in the sun, on a heater or under a hair dryer. Brush dust off with a soft dry brush and keep perfume well away; the fabric soaks it up and holds it against the metal.
Store it flat rather than folded tight or hung on a hook. At around 92 g, hanging puts a steady pull on the fabric.
Faux pearls
The white bead fringes on the Chandni chandbali and the Panna choker set are faux pearls: a bead with a pearly coating. Perfume and water damage that coating first, and once it peels it can't be restored. Wipe gently and keep fragrance off them entirely.
Dori ties
Thread ties like the one on the Neelam choker absorb sweat and oil. Untie the dori fully after wearing, let the thread dry straight, and don't wind it tightly around the choker for storage.
Storage: dry, separate, airtight
- One piece, one pouch. Chains tangle, stones scratch neighbouring metal, and ghungroo strands knot into each other. A small zip pouch per piece solves all three.
- Airtight beats pretty. A zip-lock bag with the air pressed out protects better than an open velvet tray. Less air means less moisture and slower dulling.
- Silica gel in every box. Replace the sachets every few months, and more often in the monsoon.
- Lay heavy pieces flat. The Morni kada, at around 78 g, will dent anything delicate it sits on. Give it its own pouch and keep it off the top of the pile.
- Keep oxidised and gold-toned pieces apart. Rubbing against each other in a shared box wears both finishes.
The complete routine for every material we sell is on our jewellery care page.
After garba: the same-night routine
Nine nights of dancing is the hardest test any jewellery gets: heat, sweat, crowds and very little time between wears. This five-minute routine is what keeps a piece looking right by the ninth night.
- Take the jewellery off first, before you change or wash your face. Water and make-up remover are harder on the finish than the dancing was.
- Wipe each piece with a dry cloth, the backs as well as the fronts. The back is where the sweat sits.
- Air it for twenty to thirty minutes on a dry towel, under a fan if you have one. Bells hanging free, fabric laid flat, no heat.
- Pack each piece separately with silica gel.
- Rotate. Don't wear the same earrings two nights running. A night off lets each piece dry out completely.
For which pieces survive garba best in the first place, see the Navratri jewellery guide.
Frequently asked questions
How do you clean oxidised jewellery at home?
With a soft, dry cloth on the raised areas and a soft dry brush for dust in the detail. No water, silver dip, toothpaste, baking soda or polishing cloth — they remove the dark finish that makes the piece oxidised.
Can oxidised jewellery get wet?
Avoid it. A splash won't ruin a piece if you dry it at once, but soaking, showering or swimming in it lets water into settings, bells and joins and speeds up wear of the finish. Fabric-thread pieces should never get wet at all.
Why is my oxidised jewellery turning green?
Brass and German silver both contain copper, which reacts with sweat, moisture and cosmetics to form green copper salts. It is harmless and washes off skin with soap. Dry storage and a wipe after every wear slow it down.
How should I store oxidised jewellery?
Separately, in airtight zip pouches with a silica gel sachet, away from bathrooms and humidity. No storage method stops a plated finish ageing entirely, but dry, airtight storage slows it considerably.
Can I use a silver polishing cloth on oxidised jewellery?
No. Polishing cloths carry a mild polish that lifts the dark finish and thins plating wherever they rub. A plain, dry, soft cloth is the right tool.
Shop this guide
Pieces mentioned above
Kada
Morni Peacock Oxidised Kada
Statement Necklaces
Rangeela Fabric Thread Oxidised Necklace
Oxidised Necklace Combos
Mor Ghungroo Oxidised Necklace Combo
Dangler Earrings
Noor Kashmiri Ghungroo Dangler Earrings
Chandbali Earrings
Chandni Pearl Oxidised Chandbali
Oxidised Choker Sets
Panna Green Stone Oxidised Choker Set
Oxidised Choker Sets
