Should Newly Made Copper Bracelets Be Aged?

As promised in my previous post, I made variations of the copper bangle bracelet (directions for first bracelet from Contemporary Copper Jewelry)and photographed the newly made bracelets. Copper naturally tarnishes
easily giving an aged look, but not a dark color for quite some time. To keep the first bracelet relatively shiny, to remove the tarnish I rubbed it
with #0000 steel wool and an occasional rub with a polishing cloth.

Liver of sulfur is used to age copper.
After reading several articles about aging copper bracelets in liver of sulfur, I decided to use photographs to compare how each bracelet looked before and after aging. The bracelets were dipped in warm liver of sulfur solution only a minute or so until they turned black. After removing from the solution, and rinsing in water, I dried them thoroughly. Steel wool and a polishing cloth were used to polish and bring out the highlights.

Original Copper Pipe Bangle Bracelet several weeks old polished with steel wool and polishing cloth
Copper Swirl Top Bracelet Not Aged	Copper Swirl Top Bracelet Aged
Handcrafted Copper Medallion Bangle Bracelet Not Aged	Handcrafted Copper Medallion Bangle Bracelet Aged
Copper Wire Wrapped Bangle Bracelet Not Aged	Copper Wire Wrapped Bangle Bracelet Aged

Which bracelet do you think is most attractive? Aged or not aged? My preference has changed to preferring the aged bracelets. These bracelets can be found on our website http://www.gemstonebeadjewelry.com/.

Recycling Copper Pipe For Jewelry

We replaced copper pipe under our sink. I saved the two eighteen inch lengths we removed in hopes of making copper jewelry. You can imagine my delight upon reading Sharilyn Miller's new book Contemporary Copper Jewelry to see directions for a copper bangle bracelet using copper pipe. The old dark dingy copper pipe was polished to a gleaming shine with very fine steel wool according to the directions. Using the pipe cutter was a new experience, but not very difficult. Bending the pipe around the bracelet mandrel took patience. An advantage to using the old pipe was the bracelet did not have to be textured or distressed. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the bracelet was completed. New pipe which I purchased for another bracelet was not as difficult to bend around the mandrel. I am now busy trying to develope variations to the design. This book is an excellent reference and resource with detailed easy to follow directions. This is one time being a pack rat paid off!!

Copper Jewelry

We have been working with copper to make necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. Copper jewelry tarnishes very quickly on some individuals. Information on the internet suggested that soaking copper jewelry in tomato juice would brighten it again. Instead, I tried soaking in white vinegar also an acid. The tarnish was removed, but the necklace looked dull. After rubbing it with salt and rinsing thoroughly, it looked brighter but was not restored to previous luster. Experimenting again, I put the necklace in a tumbler and it was brightened. Not many people have a tumbler so this is not a feasible solution. The best solution seems to be to use a metal polish or a polishing cloth being careful to avoid the gemstones.



You should realize that if you find that silver jewelry tarnishes (turns black) very quickly when you wear it, then copper jewelry will tarnish much more quickly. The copper content of the silver combines with the oxygen in the air to form tarnish (black). I found that copper tarnishes within an hour or so when worn against sweaty skin in the summer time.
We debated using a coating over copper jewelry, but decided that the coating would wear through eventually making the jewelry appearance unacceptable. Many folks like the tarnished look of aged copper. I have seen some very attractive pieces that were deliberately aged and polished for highlights giving an antique look.


Consider the damage of the chemicals to the stones in copper jewelry. The treatments suggested above (except the polishing cloth and possibly metal polish) are feasible to use with jewelry having no gemstones.


This information should be considered when evaluating the amount of your time or money to invest when making or purchasing copper jewelry.

Private Stock Jewelry Studio sent us this comment.
"I clean all my copper jewelry in my tumbler, it is amazing!! I also offer my customers free cleaning. The copper is so bright it looks like rose gold!!"