You spent a lot of money on your fine jewelry, so you should make it a point to take care of your many pieces and keep them looking like new. After all, if you can keep your jewelry in top condition, it will retain its value much more effectively through the coming years. So continue reading for a few helpful tips that you can implement right away to ensure that your jewelry will always look its best.
Don’t Wear Your Jewelry Every Day
To keep your jewelry in top condition, avoid wearing it daily. Of course, you will want to wear your engagement ring and/or wedding ring daily, but you may consider taking these rings off when you are at home and when you are sleeping. This is because repeated wear could cause metal to fade and increase the risk of damaging your jewelry, even if it is a high quality piece from a place like ascotdiamonds.com. Also remove your jewelry when you wash dishes, take a shower, paint, exercise, or work with your hands.
Clean Your Jewelry Regularly
While you can certainly take your expensive jewelry to a professional jewelry cleaner, you can also clean it at home yourself. To maintain the brilliant appearance of your diamonds and gemstones, use a detergent bath, which consists of warm water and a bit of mild liquid detergent. Do not use detergents that contain chlorine. Simply dip your jewelry into your solution and massage the pieces with a soft brush so that you can remove dirt. You can also use a clean toothbrush with soft bristles to clean off debris prior to rinsing the jewelry and allowing it to air dry. Finish by polishing the jewelry with a soft cloth.
To clean your silver, gold, and platinum jewelry, you can use the same detergent solution. Simply rinse the pieces and clean them further with a soft cloth or brush before thoroughly drying using a patting, light motion rather than wiping aggressively. This is especially important when dealing with white gold, whose rhodium coating can be damaged easily. Also, avoid using paper towels or tissues to clean your jewelry because these are too abrasive. Stick with flannel, microfiber, or soft felt instead. And use a commercial paste, wipe, or polish to remove tarnish from silver.
Avoid Swimming with Your Jewelry On
Prior to diving into the ocean or into a swimming pool, take your jewelry off. Not only will this prevent the risk of losing your jewelry, but it will also prevent damage to the pieces. Both salt water and chlorine are abrasive and can wreak havoc on jewelry, including gems and precious metals. Swimming with your jewelry on could result in surface damage and weakened materials, so avoid doing so if you want to keep your pieces looking like new.
From keeping your jewelry clean, to taking your jewelry off and storing it away when it is not appropriate to wear it, you can take steps every day to keep every item you own in top condition.
written by Esther Hoogenstijn, photos by Beige Renegade
