Creating Your Own Patina for Sterling Silver Jewellery

by Elizabeth Meister

If you want to darken the surface of your sterling silver jewellery components or jewellery designs quickly you can use a few different methods. These methods include the boiled egg method, the kitty litter method and the shower method.

The Boiled Egg Method
The most important part of this method in darkening the surface of your sterling silver jewellery includes the use of the yolk. You can choose to separate the white if you want to use it for something else - as the egg will not be edible after you perform this method!


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For this method, you need to take a resealable container or bag; then, after separating the egg white from the yolk break the yolk or mix it, and put your sterling silver jewellery inside the bag together with the yolk.

Your sterling silver jewellery can touch the egg; don't worry about contaminating it. After waiting 10 minutes, you will start to notice that your sterling silver jewllery will start to change and you can wait as long as 10 hours, developing a darker colour gradually.

TIPS - Be sure to clean your sterling silver jewellery well before putting it together with the yolk. This will help in creating a more even coat.

The Kitty Litter Method
The key component to this method is the ammonia found in the urine of your pet. Therefore, you need to create an air tight environment, above which your sterling silver jewellery can hang. You will also need a bowl, that you can throw away after, and a large zip-lock bag. Fill the bowl with kitty litter, hang your sterling silver jewellery above it, and cover with a zip-lock bag. If you want a much faster reaction, bury your sterling silver piece in the kitty litter, let it stand a few minutes and clean well after the procedure is complete.

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TIPS - If you would prefer not using this method, you can use different liquids to saturate your sterling silver jewellery such as old wine, ammonia, or sour milk. Saw dust is also a good alternative to kitty litter as well.

The Shower Method
If you have a few weeks of time to dedicate to your method, consider the shower method. Simply, hang your sterling silver jewellery in your bathroom and over a few weeks time it will naturally patina itself.

And if you don't like your home made patina finish for your sterling silver jewellery, you can always use the pre-packaged patina. Liver of Sulfur can be found at most jewellery supply stores. Just take a small amount of Liver of Sulfur and mix it with a cup of water and dip and re-dip your sterling silver piece into the solution until you've reached the desired colour. You can also create a wide variety of colours by simply warming up the liquid before dipping inn your sterling silver jewellery.

After you have created the patina on your sterling silver piece, feel free to experiment with baking soda on your finished surface.

Cleaning Gemstones -- Method and Technique

Cleaning gemstones is somewhat like cleaning gold vermeil: you want to do the bare minimum to get the job done. Cleaning is a part of care, and if you go overboard with chemicals, scrubbing, or ultrasonic cleaners, you run the risk of damaging the very thing you're trying to protect!

At first, simply take a soft dry cloth and remove any surface dirt or grime. A healthy and vigorous dry polish can go a long way in removing nasty unwanted particles and smudges, and offers little threat to the integrity of your jewellery. It can also single-handedly restore the natural shine that may have been dulled by wear, skin oils, moisturizers, hairspray, perfume, and all the other pesky threats that want to keep your gemstone less than lustrous. By all means, try to stick to the policy of applying all lotions and sprays before putting on jewellery- this is really the first rule of accessory hygiene. (Giving your accessories a quick dry buff with a cotton cloth after daily wear will also make cleaning easier and less crucial.)

In the event that the dry rub isn't enough, a mild soapy solution should be your next resort. Mix some lukewarm (never hot) water with a little bit of gentle, non anti-bacterial dish soap, and soak your accessory in the solution for a few minutes. This should loosen up grime and dirt, and you can then use a cloth to continue the lather and scrub away bad spots. If you think more friction is in order, soak longer and use a soft-bristled toothbrush to lather the surface of the stone in gentle circular motions. Finally, give your jewellery a cool, thorough rinse, and pat dry with a cotton cloth. Voila! Gleaming.

About 99% of the time, the above method should be more than adequate in restoring shine and lustre. If not, you can make a slightly more abrasive solution with six parts water to one part ammonia, and use that instead of the soapy water.

You may also consider buying an ultrasonic cleaner. Despite increasingly affordable prices and assurances of safe, gentle cleaning, I would advise against using such machines. Some gemstones respond poorly to ultrasonic treatment (opal, turquoise, and emerald to name a few), and you should definitely never use it for anything organic like pearls, wooden beads, shell, or coral. Furthermore, even a gemstone which is thought to be resistant to this kind of cleaning may have had minor cracks filled with oil (a very common practice known as polymer impregnation) which may deteriorate in an ultrasonic machine. This means that your stones' invisible, patched-over cracks will become increasingly visible cleaning after cleaning.

The good news is that you really shouldn't need one of those machines anyway, as soapy water and ammonia solution are a virtually unstoppable tag team. Another good thing about the soapy method is that since it is also safe for most metals that bear your gemstones, like sterling silver and gold vermeil, you shouldn't need to worry about having to use two cleaning methods for one piece of jewellery.