First, let's do a quick overview of the finishes:
Shiny Finish:
Vibe: Classic, timeless, elegant
Good For: tarnish resist, matching shiny chains
Challenge: More difficult to read tiny lettering
Care: polishing cloth will restore gloss, scratches can usually be removed professionally.
Matte Finish:
Vibe: Modern, contemporary, unique
Good For: This finish is best for viewing tiny details like small lettering when combined with oxidization / blackened.
Challenge: The brushed matte finish will likely become more polished looking over time, due to the surface coming into contact with hard things which burnish the surface.
Care: matte finish cloth, pads, superfine sanding sticks or superfine steel wool can restore a matte finish
Blackened or Oxidized Finish:
Vibe: Edgy, Masculine, Antique, Vintage
Good For: Bringing out lettering and details in hand stamped pieces, or small pieces with tiny details in sterling silver especially. Combines better with matte finish.
Challenge: On larger areas, or with daily wear or use, the blackening can be worn off due to coming into contact with soaps, objects, etc., especially with gold.
Care: Blackening or oxidizing silver or gold is a way to force-tarnish the surface of the metal. This can be restored professionally or DIY it with silver or gold blackening solutions or black permanent marker plus the appropriate shiny or matte finish tools.
Now, let's look at these finishes in action!
Since the inception of Luxe Design we have used matte finish for the majority of our jewellery designs. This finish works in two ways. First, on simpler pieces of jewellery with organic or basic shapes, the matte finish elevates the piece to a more modern and unique look.
Secondly, so many of our deeply personal jewellery pieces have a lot of detail. Fingerprint jewellery, handwriting jewellery and hand stamped jewellery all have tiny details that make them meaningful. Often we oxidize and matte finish these pieces to make the details more visible and to give our jewellery its signature Luxe Design look.
CHARMS
When we blacken and matte finish a piece, we use a process that adds black to the whole piece (or sometimes we paint it on specific areas only), and then we remove most of the black, leaving it only in the finest details. This is almost like adding shading to a drawing like in the case of our Dove charm or our tiny animal faces. It brings out the tiny details. Blackened or Oxidized are terms we use interchangeably to describe the dark antique finish we use.
HAND STAMPING
Both the Mini Heart and the Bone are small charms with small lettering so the blackened and matte finish is ideal as it makes the writing much easier to read.
On a shiny surface, the lettering is harder to read because of the reflections, and the process of creating a shiny finish pulls the oxidization out of the finer details. We do offer a shiny finish by request because it is a more traditional finish and many people are used to seeing gold or silver with a shiny high polish, so they request it.
The majority of pieces on the site are shown in a matte finish. Over time, when charms are worn together on a chain, or come into contact with solid objects, the matte finish gives way to a burnished and shinier patina but the personalization remains legible.
HANDWRITING
We suggest a blackened matte finish for handwriting jewellery, but we can do shiny or matte without black if the writing is large enough, which means it is a single word on a larger pendant.
PAW PRINTS
FINGERPRINTS
The vast majority of fingerprint pendants we do are not blackened. The blackened finish makes the jewellery look more masculine, and as such they are ideal for men. It is a more antique, well-worn look as well. Is your style more clean, classic, polished? Then you might want to choose the matte or soft hand polish finish. It will still show the impression, will still be a tactile piece for you to hold onto, and will have a more timeless look.
You can restore any finish we offer with our cleaning kit and a black Sharpie. We use a chemical to create a deep permanent blackened and oxidized finish, but over time or with certain chemicals, and particularly on gold, the blackening can fade or get removed. A quick at home fix is to use a permanent black Sharpie, then use the appropriate matte or shiny tool from our cleaning kit.
You can see our cleaning kit here.