Q: "jewelry turning your skin green?'
A: "Discoloration can happen from a number of factors: the presence of nickel in the piece, naturally acidic skin (which can create a reaction with metal), or even plain old tarnish. The best fix is to polish the skin-facing side with a jewelry cleaning cloth every day for a week - it'll keep your fingers and wrists pristine."
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Here is
great link for more information on metals that can stain your skin and how to fix it. I pasted it below:
Copper Jewelry
Copper reacts to turns skin green. The piece you're wearing might not be pure copper, but it might have enough copper in it to cause a reaction, and some people seem to have body chemistry that's prone to staining.
Sterling Silver
Sterling silver is 7.5 percent copper, but the most common stains from sterling silver jewelry are black, and occur when the metal tarnishes (darkens due to a reaction with gases in the air). Some sterling pieces are coated with products that help keep them from tarnishing, but the coatings will wear off in time.
Gold shouldn't cause staining, should it?
Gold itself hardly ever stains your skin, it's the other metals that gold is mixed with that do. Copper, nickel and silver can be used to alter the color of gold, and make it stronger and more affordable. Any of those metals can cause discoloration on your skin.
The lower the "K" number on your gold (Karat), the less pure gold it contains--and the more other metals. Some people never have a reaction to the metals in even 10K gold, but others must buy 18K pieces to stop the discoloration.
More About Gold
Nickel Allergies
If you are allergic to nickel, you won't just have stained skin. Jewelry that contains the metal will make your skin itchy and red where it comes in contact with your body.
Gold Plated & Gold Filled Jewelry
The thin layer of gold in
gold plated jewelry can wear off, exposing an inexpensive base metal that can stain your skin
Gold filled jewelry is made with a thicker outer layer of gold, so it doesn't wear off as quickly.
Ways to Eliminate Staining
- Switch to 18 Karat gold, a more pure metal.
- Platinum is expensive, but rarely reacts with our skin.
- Ask your jeweler if the piece can be coated with a new layer of metal or a clear protective film along edges that touch your skin.
- Coat the jewelry with clear nail polish where it touches your skin.
- Choose stainless steel jewelry when possible, especially when buying body jewelry components.
- Titanium is another metal choice, for its non-staining qualities and for people with metal allergies.
- Watch for jewelry labeled hypo-allergenic. It's formulated for people with hightened sensititivies to metals.
- Keep your skin dry when wearing jewelry.
- Wear offending pieces for only a short time.
- Keep your jewelry clean and tarnish-free.
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