Gothic Cross Earrings

I never intended to test these but I forgot to take them out before a snorkeling day and after that I stopped bothering. Saltwater every morning for a full week in June, rinsed under whatever shower was around, then straight into the resort pool in the afternoons. Chlorine, salt, sunscreen and sand all had a go at them. Not one crystal fogged over and no water got trapped in the detailed sections of the cross where I was sure it would sit and cause problems. They came home looking exactly the same and have been through every shower since. For earrings with this much ornamentation, the fact that water is a complete non-issue still surprises me.

Detailed gold pieces are usually the first thing in my jewelry box to go dark, because tarnish always starts in the carved parts where you cannot polish it out. That is exactly why I have been watching these since mid February. Daily wear, hairspray every morning, dry shampoo, sunscreen through the summer, and hot showers every night. The raised edges of the cross are still bright and the recessed detail around the crystals has not gone one shade darker. The backs of the studs are also still perfectly gold, which is where sweat usually does its damage on me. Five months of that with no polishing at all and they still look like the day I opened them.

I have not been able to wear anything but plain surgical steel for years because my ears get red, swollen and sore within a couple of hours of anything else. I ordered these knowing they would probably become a gift for my sister. They have instead been in my ears almost continuously since the start of March. No itching, no swelling, no soreness at bedtime, and no crusting around the piercing even when I sleep in them for a week straight. I have worn them through sweaty workouts and swimming, which is when my ears usually complain loudest, and nothing has happened. The posts go in smoothly and the back of the cross sits flat without pressing. Genuinely the first decorative pair I have owned that my skin ignores completely.

The earrings themselves are beautiful and I get compliments constantly. Shipping took closer to two weeks than the estimate, so give yourself buffer before an event.

Nursing days are long and anything heavy becomes unbearable by hour six. These I genuinely forgot I had on until I got home.

They took about twelve days to reach me, which was tight for the birthday I planned around. Once here, the crystals were brighter than the photos suggested. Just leave yourself a buffer.