The short answer is YES. Stainless steel jewelry can get wet. However, there are some things you should avoid to protect your stainless steel jewelry, such as bleach and chlorine. Chlorine can dramatically shorten the lifespan of your favorite pieces because it can break through the protective oxide layer that forms when stainless steel comes into contact with water.

Therefore, try to remove your jewelry before swimming in pools containing chlorine.
If you only expose your stainless steel to pure water, you have nothing to worry about. Your jewelry is safe.

What is Stainless Steel Jewelry?

Stainless steel is a metal alloy that contains at least 10.5% chromium. The chromium in stainless steel forms a thin, protective layer of chromium oxide on the surface, making it waterproof. Stainless Steel is typically made from three common types; Grade 304, grade 316 and grade 316L.
At MeloMelo we only use grade 316L for jewelry which is hypoallergenic stainless steel, but also the most expensive one.

The reason behind this is simple – this stainless steel alloy does not contain any metal like nickel or copper unlike grade 304 and grade 316 that widely causes allergic reactions. All the metals used to make the 316L stainless steel, namely chromium and iron, are relatively stable and non-reactive. 

Will Stainless Steel Rings Turn Your Finger Green?

Cheap jewelry is mixed with cheap alloys like copper and nickel that cause skin discoloration. Copper tends to tarnish when exposed to moisture. Again, if you tend to sweat profusely, your ring may tarnish and your finger may turn green if exposed to moisture for a long period of time.

At MeloMelo we only use hypoallergenic 316L steel that contains neither copper nor nickel. This means you can wear our jewelry safely without worrying that it will leave unwanted marks on your skin.

Where to Buy Stainless Steel Jewelry?

MELOMELO is an online stainless steel jewelry wholesaler and manufacturer who is specialised in waterproof 18K gold PVD plated pieces.♥

Physical vapor deposition, or PVD, is a technique that involves “blasting” the gold onto our pieces. During the process, the material moves from a condensed vapor phase that to a thick solid gold film and gives the appearance of solid gold products. Through this process we achieve:

➣ Durability of around 10 years and more
➣ Corrosion Resistant and Non Fading
➣ Gold plated pieces can discolor within a short time period
➣ Gold PVD coatings are 10 times thicker than standard gold plating
➣ Sweat & Ocean Proof
➣ 1.5 Microns thick Coating