I would appreciate feedback from anyone who has experience with
protecting already-oxidized (blackened) silver jewelry… I want to
preserve the blackened finish, realizing that whatever I do won’t be
permanent. I’m seeking a method that protects the rich black so that
it does not turn brown/change colors right away. I do not want to
rhodium plate the piece. I do not want to lacquer the piece. Are
there other protective options? (For example, I’ve read that beeswax
provides a temporary protective coating.) Thanks for your insights!
If you can, tumble the finished pieces with stainless shot and
tumbler soap. it beats the oxides into the metal making it more
durable. Not perfect, but better than without.
Have fun and make lots of jewelry.
Jo Haemer
timothywgreen.com
I blacken almost all my jewelry to a very black patina with liver of
sulfur.
Then before I set stones, pearls, etc. I rub at least 2 coats of
Renaissance Wax into all the blacken parts of the piece. Maybe 4-5
coats for cuff bracelets. Renaissance Wax has been the best method I
have found for keeping the patina black. It is an extra step that
takes longer, but well worth the effort.
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I don’t know about beeswax but I have used a can of regular paste
car wax as a finish several times. It’s carnauba, according to the
label. If you were closer, you could have some to try - a can of this
stuff is likely to have to be buried with me, proving you can take it
with you.
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Contact Legor they have a nano ceramic coating you can apply that
will protect the metal. I use it all the time. Great product. And
they do not give me discounts for posting. Their products are good
withgood service and advice when you need it.
To protect true black, use a clear powder coating. It requires that
the piece be heated to about 250F(i don’t remember exactly) It
doesn’t work on irridescent patinas. Some of of our Colorado jewelers
use this to preserve a black coating. I learned of it from Jim
Cotter.
While it takes a bit of equipment and only works on metal jewelry,
it isn’t terribly expensive and it lasts a long time. It is the stuff
they use to color your metal lawn furniture and comes in clear as
well as colors. The powder is applied with a “gun”, then cured in a
small toaster oven. Setup to do this is in the low hundreds of
dollars, less than $200 as I remember.
Judy Hoch
Typical powder coating is preheat material to 400 F. Then coat and
then reheat to cure. Preheating to full heat thru the material is
key, otherwise it will degrade after maybe a year and get chalky. In
the industry for professional coatings there is a laser temperature
reading for the core of the object to be coated.
Hope this helps!
Eileen
Where a California grey whale pod (6) is frolicking on a beautiful clear
morning.
Thanks…good information!
I have Renaissance Wax so I’m going to try this! Thanks for good tip…
Wow, amazing the options that are out there…this is one I hadn’t heard of. Thanks!
Thanks! Learning new options everyday…and wishing I could see the frolicking whales!
Thanks–and it protects the blackened silver finish – does not remove it?
Amazing the protection and finishing options out there – thanks to all the experts, I’ve got lots of solutions for protecting blackened silver!
I don’t oxidize silver very often, but when I do, I run it in stainless steel shot after is is oxidized. The color is very nice…Rob
I’ve been using Renaissance wax for 30+ years.