Jewelry Care
How to best care for and store your fine jewelry.
On this page, we will give you tips on how to best care for your jewelry and inform you about certain pieces that might need extra attention, like those with porous gemstones. These are our recommendations for wearing, cleaning, and storing your fine jewelry to ensure it looks beautiful for years to come.
Cleaning
Your fine jewelry will need cleaning and polishing from time to time to remove fingerprints, oils, and naturally occurring tarnish on sterling silver. Depending on the metal or metals that your jewelry is made of, you will want to follow these tips:
The most effective way to clean gold, platinum or sterling silver is with warm water and mild bar soap. (Liquid soap is likely to leave a film on your jewelry, resulting in a dull finish.)
This cleaning method is safe for hard, non-porous gemstones, like diamond, sapphire, ruby, topaz, tanzanite, tourmaline, amethyst, garnet, citrine, and peridot. Apply the warm, soapy water with a soft cloth, very soft toothbrush or unused make-up brush. Rinse clean and gently pat dry with a soft cloth.
Examples of porous gemstones include pearl, opal, emerald, turquoise, lapis, amber, coral, and onyx. Porous gemstones should never be soaked in water. If porous gemstones do become wet, gently pat dry and allow them to dry completely before storing. Take care not to expose porous gemstones to makeup, lotion, perfume, or hairspray.
Pearl jewelry requires special care! Please see the section below on how best to care for your pearls.
If you own an ultra-sonic or an ionic jewelry cleaner, please refer to the manufacturer’s instructions to determine the proper cleaning of your jewelry items.
Polishing
The safest and most effective way to polish jewelry is by using a soft polishing cloth. Polishing cloths are specially treated to remove tarnish and leave a high polished, lustrous shine.
Begin by gently rubbing the cloth on the surface of the metal, avoiding any gemstones. The dirt and tarnish on the jewelry will quickly transfer to the cloth. The more you use your polishing cloth, the darker it will become. Not to worry! Your polishing cloth will still be effective, even after many uses.
Avoid laundering your polishing cloth, as washing it will remove the cleaning agent from the fabric. A polishing cloth should last several years with normal use.
Pearl Care
As with any jewelry of value, pearls require proper care to keep them looking beautiful. Pearls feel hard, but they are soft, porous, and sensitive to abrupt temperature changes and chemicals. Apply cosmetics and hairspray before putting your pearls on.
Clean your pearls using water, a mild liquid soap, and a soft cloth. To dry, spread them on a moist towel. When the towel is dry, the pearls should be ready to wear. Wearing a necklace that is still moist will stretch the string.
Never use abrasives or solvents to clean pearls. Cleaning products with ammonia should be avoided. Steam cleaning or using ultrasonic cleaner can also damage pearls. Do not use anything that could scratch the surface, including a toothbrush.
Store your pearls separately from other jewelry in a soft pouch or box.
If your pearls require re-stringing, DBS Fine Jewelers offers this service. Please visit our REPAIR page for more information.
Storing
Organizing and storing jewelry items separately prevents chains from tangling and gemstones from scratching each other and metal. Some jewelry boxes have many individual sections for keeping single items, or you may choose to store each item in the box from where it was purchased.
Tarnish naturally occurs on the surface of sterling silver as a result of exposure to air and moisture. To slow the progression of tarnish, we recommend storing sterling silver jewelry in individual resealable plastic bags.
Wearing Fine Jewelry
You should wear and enjoy your jewelry often, however, we recommend removing your jewelry before participating in certain activities.
GARDENING. Digging into a gardening project exposes jewelry to dirt, rocks, sand, and other rough materials that can scratch soft metal and gemstones. Using gardening tools is also hazardous to jewelry, especially rings and bracelets. Because gardening gloves can potentially loosen stones and prongs, it’s best to simply remove jewelry altogether before gardening.
HOUSEWORK. Exposure to harsh chemicals and cleaning products can cause metals to break down. Because rubber gloves can potentially loosen stones and prongs, it’s best to simply remove jewelry altogether before doing housework.
EXERCISING. Strenuous physical activity can put pressure on jewelry. In addition, jewelry is at a greater risk of falling off and getting lost.
SWIMMING. Remove jewelry before hopping into a pool or hot tub, as chlorine can be very damaging to metals and gemstones.
SHOWERING. Rings, earrings, and necklaces are especially susceptible to sliding off in the shower thanks to slippery suds, and often without us noticing. In addition, shampoo, conditioner, and body wash can leave a dull film on the surface of jewelry.
SLEEPING. Removing jewelry before bed is a good habit to get into. Keep a dish or small lidded box on the bedside table dedicated solely to storing your jewelry til morning.
When in doubt, remove your jewelry if it’s precious to you. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Questions
Still have questions about caring for your fine jewelry? CONTACT US.