Caring for Your Jewellery

By Anita Hale


If you're proud of your jewellery then you'll definitely wish to know the best practice to care for it and guarantee it keeps as radiant as the moment you first saw it. Does this sound like you? Then read on for some convenient ideas about the right way to take care of your necklaces, rings and bracelets.

The fact of the matter is, just about all jewellery will shows signs of wear and tear during the period of its life-time. This is an unavoidable fact. However, it's still possible to really minimize this damage by restricting where and when you decide to put on your jewellery. Case in point, always detach pieces such as bracelets and rings before bedtime to minimise potential damage. Moisture could also cause tarnishing of many metals and because of this it's best to take off accessories while doing sport or at the gym. Chemicals that are harmful to jewellery can exist in nail polish remover, hairspray and perfume, so don't let your jewellery come into contact with any of these.

Oxidised metals are getting much more sought after and such jewellery involves special attention and care to preserve the darkened impression of the metal. Accordingly, just like gold and silver, keep away from chlorine and likewise be sure that you don't use silver polish when cleaning given that this will decrease the impression of the oxidation. These guidelines can also be utilised for pearls.

However, with respect to jewellery that hasn't been oxidised certain steps will need to be applied to stop this from developing. Egg yolks, air pollution and even certain varieties of rubber can potentially possess sulphur compounds that will lead to oxidation in the event that they make contact with your silver jewellery. Oxidation brings about tarnishing - that is discoloration of metal.

It is possible to remove tarnish with special silver polish. But pleae use with extreme caution as there are some that are abrasive and could wear down such jewellery even more. Preferably, for routine cleaning use a polishing cloth for silver. Soap and lukewarm water is just the job for getting rid of dirt, and a toothbrush is perfect for getting into the fiddly spaces of some of the more complex pieces.

To finish, it is useful to remember that pure metals, such as high-quality gold, are a great deal less scratch-resistant due to their softness. Lower purity metals are formed of a higher balance of alloys, thus making them tougher and more robust. To stop severe marks and nicks to your best gold pieces, it's advisable to make sure they're kept out of contact with harder metals.




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