Your jewels are precious. Whether it has monetary or sentimental value, or both, your jewelry is special. So how do you keep your jewelry looking its best? Most people believe that a certain amount of wear and tear is to be expected. Not so. There are a few simple steps you can take to ensure that your precious jewelry is in as perfect condition as the day you purchased it.
When not to wear your jewelry:
One of the best ways to make your jewelry look good is to know when do not to use it. Many people never remove jewelry for sentimental reasons. But the fact is, there are many routine activities that can damage, or even destroy, your precious jewelry. Examples of these activities include:
Gardening: Besides dirtying your jewelry, gardening is one of the easiest ways to chip or lose gemstones, as well as scratch gold or platinum jewelry. Remember that gold is an extremely soft metal and that platinum, although twice as strong as gold, scratches easily.
Domestic cleaning: It should Never Wear your jewelry while cleaning the home! Many common cleaning solutions contain chemicals that can damage or discolor gemstones or precious metals. Also, while doing housework, you will likely rub your jewelry against abrasive materials. When it comes to gold, even the dust can be abrasive enough to damage it.
Swimming: Chlorine in swimming pools can seriously damage your jewelry. Chlorine can sting and discolor gold, as well as dull precious gemstones. The chlorine will also damage the settings, causing the gemstones to loosen and greatly increasing the risk of losing them.
Slept: Yes sleeping! As you sleep, you will unconsciously brush your jewelry against the sheets. The dust on your sheets, or the sheets themselves, acts as a fine abrasive that will eventually wear down your ring settings. If you must wear your ring to bed, you should rotate the ring so that the gem faces the palm of your hand. This way you are less likely to come into contact with abrasive materials.
You should also avoid extreme changes in temperature. For example: if you are wearing a diamond ring in a hot tub (which you shouldn’t do in the first place) and then decide to jump into a cold pool, your diamond could break or even break!
When deciding whether or not to wear your jewelry, you must use common sense. If you think you might be doing something difficult, or if you think you might come in contact with chemicals or abrasives, it’s best to just not wear your jewelry. Better safe than sorry.
Cleaning your jewelry:
Cleaning your jewelry is actually quite simple. The best way to clean your jewelry is by soaking it in warm water with a mild liquid detergent or soap. After allowing the jewelry to soak for three to four minutes, rinse it under running water (make sure the drain is closed) and then dry it with a soft, lint-free cloth or paper towel. You should clean your jewelry frequently to avoid having to take it to a jeweler for costly and harmful cleaning methods.
There are many home remedies and old wives’ tales about how to clean jewelry. Most of these not only don’t work, they can also be extremely damaging to your jewelry. Some examples of these include:
Toothpaste: One of the most common home remedies for cleaning jewelry is using toothpaste. You should absolutely Never Use toothpaste to clean your jewelry! Toothpaste is abrasive. While this is good for cleaning plaque from your teeth, it will scratch gold and softer gems.
Boiling water: Many people believe that boiling jewelry in water is a good way to clean it. In fact, boiling is one of the easiest ways to destroy Fine jewelry. Boiling jewelry can crack or discolor gemstones, even diamonds.
Ammonia: Ammonia is fine to use on diamonds, rubies, and sapphires, but it will damage other gemstones. Ammonia should only be used on unfilled diamonds. Fracture-filled diamonds should never be cleaned with acid solutions or ammonia.
Professional polishing solutions: Professional polishing solutions have a mild abrasive. This abrasive will make your gold jewelry shine, but it will also scratch the gold.
Cleaning your jewelry frequently will make it sparkle and shine. Diamonds especially need to be cleaned regularly, as they naturally attract grease. A clean and flawless diamond can look ten times better than a dirty, flawless one.
Storage of your jewelry:
Proper storage is the most important factor in keeping your jewelry in good condition. Remember that gold and platinum are soft materials and that diamonds are one of the hardest substances known to man. If you store your jewelry together, your diamonds, rubies, and sapphires will scratch your precious metals, as well as flake off other softer gems, such as emeralds. You should always store your jewelry pieces separately. Many people like to store their jewelry in safes, or at home, in the freezer. Both are poor options for jewelry storage. The dry atmosphere of a safe can damage your jewelry, while the extreme cold of a freezer can shatter or break gemstones. The best place to store your precious jewelry is in a jewelry box with many separate compartments. Most jewelry boxes are lined with soft, non-abrasive materials, which will not scratch your jewelry. A good jewelry box will come with many compartments, which not only display your jewelry beautifully, but also protect your jewelry from scratches and chips. Jewelry boxes are also beautiful in their own right. A quality jewelry box is usually handcrafted from beautiful hardwood and cleverly designed to display your jewelry in a stunning way. When storing your jewelry, there is no substitute for a quality jewelry box. Here’s a page to see the different styles available from a jeweler.
Where is the best place to buy a jeweler?
To get an idea of the different styles and prices that are available at a jeweler, it is best to view them online before purchasing from local retail stores.
Retail stores and jewelry stores sometimes have a small selection of jewelers, but you are more likely to find a larger selection online. Just type “jeweler” into an internet search engine like Google or Yahoo and you will find several reputable websites that specialize in jewelers.
The cost of a jeweler depends on many variables. In solid wood, a jewelry box should cost around $ 100 to $ 300 depending on the size, but fancy jewelry boxes can cost a lot more.
Let your jewelry shine:
Would you like your jewelry to look more impressive than ever? Would you like your jewelry to receive compliments every time you wear it? Taking care of your jewelry is well worth it. Proper care and storage will not only extend the life of your jewelry, it will also make your jewelry sparkle and shine like never before.