How to Clean Chrome Hearts Silver: Care Guide for .925 Silver, Patina and 22k Gold

To clean Chrome Hearts silver, wash it in lukewarm water with a few drops of mild dish soap, work a soft brush gently through the detail, rinse, and dry it completely. Leave the dark areas in the recesses alone. Chrome Hearts finishes its silver with an antiquing process on purpose, and the brand's own care notes say you are not obliged to remove all of it. Skip silver dips, baking soda baths and abrasive polish, which strip the contrast that gives the designs their depth. If you want to brighten the raised edges, use a silver polishing cloth lightly and only there.

Once Legos is an independent reseller of authenticated pre-owned Chrome Hearts and is not affiliated with Chrome Hearts. This guide draws on Chrome Hearts' published care notes (written for its eyewear, which carries .925 sterling silver motifs), conservation guidance for silver, and general jewelers' advice. It is not a substitute for a jeweler's opinion on a damaged or high-value piece.

Tarnish and patina: know what you are looking at

Chrome Hearts silver is .925 sterling silver, which means 92.5 percent silver and 7.5 percent other metal, usually copper. The added metal gives the silver strength, and it is also why sterling reacts with sulfur compounds in the air and darkens. That darkening is tarnish. Chrome Hearts' care notes make the same point: the base metal gives sterling its tendency to tarnish when it reacts with sulfides in the air.

On Chrome Hearts pieces there are really two kinds of dark. The first is the intentional antiquing in the recesses of crosses, scrolls, lettering and floral work. It gives the carving depth, and the brand says that leaving some of it in hard-to-reach areas adds definition and an antique look. The second is ordinary surface tarnish, a dull, darker film that settles over the raised parts and flattens the shine. That second kind is what you can clean.

Silver does not rust. Rust is iron oxide. What silver does is tarnish, as silver sulfide forms on the surface. Tarnish builds faster in humid air and around sulfur sources such as rubber bands, rubber gloves, wool felt and some foods, eggs among them.

Everyday habits that matter most

Most tarnish is slowed by habits, not by cleaning. These are the ones worth keeping:

• Wipe the piece with a soft, dry cloth after wearing it, so sweat, skin oils and lotion do not sit on the metal.
• Put on perfume, lotion and hair products first and your jewelry last.
• Take rings, chains and pendants off for pools, hot tubs, the beach, workouts and cleaning. Chlorine, salt water and heavy sweat all speed up tarnish, and chlorine can blacken or pit silver.
• Dry a piece straight away if it gets wet.
• Keep leather, cord and rubber parts out of the water.

That also answers a question people search often: can Chrome Hearts get wet? A quick hand wash is fine if you dry the piece afterward. Regular showers are best avoided, mostly because soap and shampoo residue builds up, and pools and the ocean will cost you finish and bring tarnish on faster.

How to clean Chrome Hearts silver, step by step

Clean a piece when it looks dull or dirty, not on a schedule. Conservators who look after museum silver point out that every polishing or chemical tarnish removal takes away a little silver along with the tarnish, so cleaning less often is better.

1. Fill a bowl with lukewarm water and a few drops of mild dish soap. Avoid hot water, bleach and anything with added abrasives.
2. Dip a very soft brush, such as a baby toothbrush, and work it gently through the detail: around crosses, between links, inside the band. Chrome Hearts' own notes suggest a soft brush like a child's toothbrush for hard-to-reach areas.
3. Do not soak pieces with leather, cord or glued parts. Wipe them with a damp cloth instead.
4. Rinse under lukewarm running water until no soap is left. Close the sink drain first.
5. Pat the piece dry with a soft, lint-free cloth, then let it air dry completely before it goes into a pouch. Moisture trapped in clasps and joints causes trouble later.

That alone removes body oils and grime and leaves the antiquing intact. The same method works for a ring, a pendant or a chain. For pieces with stones, stay with mild soap and water. Chrome Hearts' notes describe warm water and mild, softener-free dish soap for rubies and sapphires.

Polishing: brightening the highlights without losing the patina

If the raised surfaces look dull after washing, a silver polishing cloth will bring them back. Chrome Hearts' care notes say to use a silver polish and a silver cleaning brush or cloth and to rub in a lengthwise motion, never in circles, because circular strokes can scratch. They add that silver polish should be used only on the silver, since other metal cleaners contain small abrasive particles that leave fine scratches.

• Rub only the high points you want brighter, then stop. A cloth reaches raised surfaces far more than recesses, which is why it is the safer tool for a piece with dark detailing.
• Follow straight lines along the band or link, not circles.
• Use light pressure and polish rarely. Every polish is slightly abrasive and removes a little silver while leaving fine scratches.
• Treat removing dark finish as a one-way step. It is easy to polish more later and hard to put dark detail back.
• If a piece has black plating, do not polish it. Chrome Hearts' notes say polishing black rhodium or black silver plating can remove the plating.

What to avoid

• Silver dips and liquid tarnish removers. They are made to dissolve darkening and cannot tell tarnish from intentional antiquing, so they flatten the detailing.
• The baking soda, salt and aluminum foil bath. It chemically reverses tarnish across the whole surface, antiqued areas included, and leaves silver uniformly bright.
• Toothpaste and general household metal polish. Both are abrasive, and Chrome Hearts' notes warn that metal cleaners other than silver polish leave fine scratches.
• Bleach, chlorine and strong household cleaners. Chrome Hearts' notes say not to expose its silver to harsh chemicals or use chlorine or bleach on its gold.
• Ultrasonic and steam cleaners, unless a jeweler who works with oxidized silver tells you otherwise. They can loosen stones and glued parts, and they can lighten oxidized finishes.

Caring for 22k gold

Some Chrome Hearts pieces are solid 22k gold. The 22 means 22 parts of gold in 24, about 91.7 percent gold, with the rest usually copper or silver. Gold does not tarnish the way silver does, but at that purity it is a soft metal, so the risk is scratches and dents more than darkening.

Clean it with warm water, mild soap and a soft brush, rinse well and dry it fully. Chrome Hearts' notes for the gold on its eyewear give the same advice: soapy water and a soft-bristle brush, no chlorine or bleach, and make sure the piece is completely dry before it goes back in its case, because moisture can weaken clasps and springs. Store gold pieces separately from other jewelry, especially if they carry diamonds, which can scratch gold.

Storing silver so it tarnishes more slowly

• Give each piece its own soft pouch or box so it does not scratch against other metal. Chrome Hearts' notes make the same point about keeping gold pieces separate.
• Store in a cool, dry place. Silver tarnishes faster as humidity rises, and conservators recommend keeping it in dry conditions, below about 50 percent relative humidity.
• Add an anti-tarnish cloth or strip to the pouch or box. For long-term storage, conservation guidance recommends sealed containers with tarnish-inhibiting material such as activated charcoal or silica gel.
• Keep silver away from rubber bands, rubber gloves and wool felt, which release sulfur compounds that tarnish it.
• Handle pieces with clean, dry hands. Skin salts and oils can mark silver.

Dark or green marks on your skin

A gray, black or greenish mark on a finger or neck usually comes from the copper in sterling reacting with sweat, lotion or soap. It washes off and is a reaction between the alloy and your skin chemistry, not damage to the piece. Wiping the inside of a ring and the back of a pendant after wearing, putting lotion on first and keeping the piece dry all help.

When to see a jeweler

Take a piece to a jeweler if a stone is loose, a link is bent or broken, a clasp no longer closes firmly, or the piece is heavily tarnished and you want it professionally polished. Tell them it is oxidized and ask them to preserve the dark detailing. Do the same before any resizing, which is covered in our Chrome Hearts ring size guide.

Pre-owned silver and what to expect

Pre-owned silver will show some tarnish and wear, and a piece with softened edges and dark recesses is not necessarily in poor condition. Every piece we list is authenticated and graded for condition, with the grade shown on the listing and photos of the exact item, as described on our FAQ. You can browse authenticated Chrome Hearts jewelry, including rings and necklaces, or see pieces in person at a private appointment at our NYC showroom.

If you are thinking of selling a piece, clean it gently and do not polish off the dark detailing, because heavy polishing cannot be undone. Our Sell To Us page explains the process.