Maybe you, like myself, suffer from allergic reactions when you wear earrings that are not made of a precious metal. Of course, you can buy sterling silver findings and remodel your earrings, but that's not always possible. I got an excellent advice from a street vendor who sold me a beautiful pair of handmade earrings. He told me to simply paint the finding (the bit that goes into your earlobe) with clear nail polish and seal the metal in, so that it won't affect you in a negative way.
My husband has an allergic reaction to any jewelry like rings and even wristwatch with metal bracelet. In fact, he stopped wearing a wristwatch since 1979. Last January, his brother who was living in the US arrived for a brief vacation here and gifted him with a wristwatch. He would wear it when he would meet his brother. But now that the brother is back in the US, the watch is also back to the case. That's a good advice with the nail polish. Maybe that can help my husband with his allergy.
I have had reactions like this in the past to less expensive ear wires and rings, and have learned to do this. I always keep clear nail polish on hand, since my nails are constantly chipping, and I sometimes use it to finish off the ends of textile pieces I'm making, so there are many uses for clear nail polish. I haven't purchased any inexpensive jewelry in quite a while, since I make my own, and I have the tools to swap out the findings, if need be. Since sterling silver is expensive, another way to do this that would save a little money, would be to purchase gold filled ear wires (actually plated, but the plating is much more substantial than what's used for typical plated pieces), assuming you have some small tools you can use to swap out the ear wires. @Corzhens Does your husband have a reaction to leather bands, also, or only to metal ones? I've had an issue in the past with some metal bands, so when I wore a watch, I would sometimes swap the metal band for a leather one.
I don't think he is allergic to leather straps. However, the wristwatch itself is metal so his skin would still react to it even if the bracelet is not metal. I have told him about the nail polish and he didn't agree because he said the nail polish on the metal band of the wristwatch will wear off after a few hours. And the allergic reaction is more severe when the weather is warm.
I have an allergic reaction to earrings that are not made from good metals. I never thought about clear nail polish although that is the way we used to fix a run in our stockings. I have to have earrings that are no lesser grade than sterling silver. I usually have to wear sterling silver rings as well because the acids in my skin cause the plating on cheaper grade rings to corrode and it will eat away the plating. I do not wear rings now or earrings so I do not have this problem.
I also have the skin allergy to metal in earrings and necklaces or rings. Silver does not bother me as much as gold or the cheaper plated metals. I have tried covering the earring with nail polish but it did not work for me.
My ears were pretty resilient to just about any type of earrings when I was younger. As I grew older, however, it's easy for me to get allergies whenever I wear earrings made from fancy materials (plastic and faux silver). If I wear real gold and silver earrings, my ears would be fine. These types are rather expensive, though, so I only have a few real gold and silver pairs. I'll try apply your advise and see if it works. Hopefully my ears won't be allergic to nail polish.
