Croissant Earrings

These were my only earrings for a fortnight in Portugal and I never took them out once, in the sea or the shower. The thing I was braced for was salt drying into the twisted channels and leaving a gritty white haze in every groove, because that is precisely what killed my last pair of textured hoops. There is not a trace of it here. Every ridge is still clean and mirror bright, the hinge moves as freely as it did new, and the gold has not faded a shade despite the constant sun and sunscreen. Rinsing them under the tap each evening was the entire effort I put in.

Anything larger than a small stud has historically meant a swollen weeping lobe by the end of the day, and big hoops are the worst because the weight keeps working the metal in the piercing. I bought these knowing full well I would probably be returning them. I wore them for six hours the first day and there was no soreness at all, then a full twelve hour day the week after with the same result. Since March they have been in for entire weekends including sleeping and showering, and my lobes have never once flared up. No itching, no crusting, no redness. These are the first big hoops I have owned since I was nineteen.

Every twisted hoop I have owned has eventually gone dark down in the valleys of the pattern, which makes the whole earring look grubby even from across a room. Given how deep the ribbing is on these I assumed I had maybe two months before it started. It has now been five and there is nothing. I checked each hoop under a bright bulb last week, turning them all the way around and looking into every single channel. Bright even gold from the peaks right down to the base of each groove, front and back. I have never cleaned them with anything but a dry cloth.

They are a bit bigger on the ear than the photos suggested. No comfort issue, just a bolder look than I planned for work.

The grooves pick up a little makeup along the jaw side. A quick clean sorts it and they go back to full shine. Otherwise these have been faultless and I wear them weekly.

I style my hair with these already in and the spray coats them completely. On other earrings that leaves a permanent tacky film in the texture. These wipe right back to clean.