Chanel earrings tarnish?

sosaksy

Member
Aug 22, 2008
250
1
I bought a pair of Chanel earrings a few years ago, they are the gold CC studs with pearls in them and the tops are noticeably starting to tarnish. Does anyone else have this problem, has anyone taken them to Chanel to have them fixed? If so, how much does it cost? I can post pictures later.
 
I've had this problem. i had the studs with the rhinestones. they start turning green. i started cleaning it with this jewelry cleaner we have but it's still green. i brought it to the store, they said there's nothing they can do. =[
 
I bought a pair of Chanel earrings a few years ago, they are the gold CC studs with pearls in them and the tops are noticeably starting to tarnish. Does anyone else have this problem, has anyone taken them to Chanel to have them fixed? If so, how much does it cost? I can post pictures later.


Hi, I haven't posted in forever! I was just looking at my pair of gold CC studs with pearls, which I also purchased a few years ago, and I also noticed tiny spots that look like the beginning of tarnish! And then I saw your post... This is a common problem with the goldtone costume jewelry... I bought a ring a few years back and it really began to tarnish badly... I ended up selling it as is... I haven't been happy with the quality of Chanel... at least with their costume jewelry. I just took in the exact pair of earrings we're talking of to the boutique today to have a pearl replaced... and I can't believe I walked out of the boutique and purchased another pair of earrings! I'm really regretting my purchase because I know in a few years, I won't be able to wear them.... ugh... I've learned my lesson!
 
yes, they do tarnish overtime since they are just a costume jewelry and not made of real gold. i wipe and dry mine after each use to make sure the moisture from lotion, water or perspiration doesn't stay thus will prevent the tarnish and prolong it's life.
 
I turned one pair in for store credit last week, since they can't fix them, and I only had them for five month. I am very disappointed. I do take good care of them, not wear any perfume...but still...
 
yes, they do tarnish overtime since they are just a costume jewelry and not made of real gold. i wipe and dry mine after each use to make sure the moisture from lotion, water or perspiration doesn't stay thus will prevent the tarnish and prolong it's life.

kristinlorraine is absolutely right. All jewelry will tarnish - Chanel is not magically protected from this. Follow her system and your jewelery will stay in really nice condition.

In particular, do not swim, sauna or bathe wearing crystal earrings. This is because the backs of the crystals are lined with metal film - which is sensitive to moisture. The green stuff is verdigris, which is a normal chemical reaction of particular metals and moisture - gold plating and silver plating involves using other metals as a base, to which the top level color is plated.

If the crystals look green, some of the boutiques can replace crystals - but not all of them do it. Anywhere you look on the net, you will see things saying do not immerse crystals in water.

I use a gold polishing cloth on my gold and gold plated costume jewelery. But wiping with a clean soft cloth regularly is a good idea.
 
I've had this problem. i had the studs with the rhinestones. they start turning green. i started cleaning it with this jewelry cleaner we have but it's still green. i brought it to the store, they said there's nothing they can do. =[

Really? Mine was starting to turn color a rusty color and I brought it to my sales associate and she said she can send it back to Paris and get them replaced.
 
Really? Mine was starting to turn color a rusty color and I brought it to my sales associate and she said she can send it back to Paris and get them replaced.


yeah =[ i brought it to the store and they said there's nothing they can do bc i bought it so long ago. i bought mine back in 06 and it's the discontinued studs with rhinestones. oh wells. i got another pair earlier this year.
 
Unfortunately most costume jewelry tarnish. Even 14K white gold gets dirty/old looking at some point after a certain amount of wear, so it's no surprise Chanel costume jewelry tarnish. Could it be the humidity though? I have a pair of crystal CC studs from '07, wear them at least once a week and they are still in great shape.
 
First of all, costume jewelry should only tarnish the way regular gold tarnishes. Costume jewelry of a good quality does not and should not tarnish. If you make jewelry with a cheap base metal and do not put enough coats of gold on top, that means the plating is done poorly and begins to tarnish. With enough coats of gold, this doesn't happen. I have costume jewelry that's over 20 years old that looks brand new. For instance, my old swarowski and my old Christian Dior jewelry must be over 25 years old and you wouldn't know that they weren't bought yesterday. Chanel sold it's factory that made jewelry, and now it's being made very cheaply.

But to said that costume jewelry tarnishes is totally incorrect! Not good costume jewelry.

Even regular 18Kt gold will tarnish if not kept properly but that only happens after 10 to 20 years. That can easily be cleaned with a polishing cloth.

Hermes has a similar problem, their base metal is crap and gold does not adhere to cheap metals. If it was silver, then the gold would adhere properly and the scratches could be fixed by a simple dipping in gold or rhodium.

So to answer your question, Chanel has very poor quality jewelry and this should not be happening.
 
First of all, costume jewelry should only tarnish the way regular gold tarnishes. Costume jewelry of a good quality does not and should not tarnish. If you make jewelry with a cheap base metal and do not put enough coats of gold on top, that means the plating is done poorly and begins to tarnish. With enough coats of gold, this doesn't happen. I have costume jewelry that's over 20 years old that looks brand new. For instance, my old swarowski and my old Christian Dior jewelry must be over 25 years old and you wouldn't know that they weren't bought yesterday. Chanel sold it's factory that made jewelry, and now it's being made very cheaply.

But to said that costume jewelry tarnishes is totally incorrect! Not good costume jewelry.

Even regular 18Kt gold will tarnish if not kept properly but that only happens after 10 to 20 years. That can easily be cleaned with a polishing cloth.

Hermes has a similar problem, their base metal is crap and gold does not adhere to cheap metals. If it was silver, then the gold would adhere properly and the scratches could be fixed by a simple dipping in gold or rhodium.

So to answer your question, Chanel has very poor quality jewelry and this should not be happening.

Chanel costume jewelry are not gold plated. It is totally normal for costume jewelry to tarnish, it is normal wear and tear. When the metal is exposed to oxygen, it is exposed to moisture, so after a while it is completely normal for it to tarnish.

I question the validity of your sources when you said that Chanel sold its jewelry factory. Which factory? When? How? To whom? These are all things to think about when someone makes a claim like that.

Chanel costume jewelry are made by Maison Desrues. It was a metalsmith company established in 1929, and the founder of the house has worked directly with Mademoiselle Chanel herself. Chanel acquired this company along with a few other Parisian ateliers to preserve the artisanal know-how. In other words, Chanel OWNS Maison Desrues, as well as Maison Michel, Lemarie, Lesage, Massaro, etc. Chanel never sold Maison Desrues and they never will. These ateliers are the reason why there is a Maison d'Art show every December (Paris-Tokyo, Paris-New York, Paris-MonteCarlo, Paris-Londres, Paris-Moscou, Paris-Shanghai, and the next one is Paris-Istanbul).

People seem to forget that costume jewelry is ultimately about design. Chanel has one of the best jewelry/accessories designers in the industry. Laetitia Crahay (Chanel), Camille Miceli (Dior, since 2010) and Elie Top (Lanvin) are the three biggest talents in the industry right now. Season after season, Chanel produces beautiful and interesting costume jewelry designs (not the entry level logo earrings) that still stay true to the codes of the house, while still staying fresh and new. They are well made, well designed, and it's definitely not poor in quality.