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, and the shower method.
The Boiled Egg Method
The most important part of this method for darkening the surface of your sterling silver jewellery, is the use of egg yolk. You can choose to separate the egg white, if you want to use it for something else, as the egg will not be edible after you do this!
For this method, you need to take a resealable container or bag; then, after separating the egg white from the yolk, break or mix the yolk, and put your sterling silver jewellery inside the bag with the yolk.
It’s fine for your sterling silver jewellery to touch the egg; don’t worry about contaminating it. After approximately 10 minutes, you’ll notice that your sterling silver jewellery has started to change, and you can leave it in there for as long as 10 hours, the longer you leave the darker the color will become.
TIP: Be sure to give your sterling silver jewellery a good cleaning before putting it in with the yolk, this will help create a more even coat.
The Shower Method
If you’re not in a hurry for your component or piece, and 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 it will naturally patina itself.
If you don’t like to make home made patina finishes for sterling silver jewellery, you can always use 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, then 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.
