Jewellery Care Tips

Sourced from all over the world, and created using the finest gemstones and precious metals, your jewellery requires a little care and attention to keep it looking its best.
Dust, pollution and daily wear all conspire to cloud the brilliance of a gemstone and dull the surface of precious metals. As with all fine things in life, you should take care to protect your jewellery and always store it in a fabric lined jewellery box, taking care not to drop, bash or scratch.

Care Tips

Always remove your jewellery when applying scent, lotions and potions, or even better, always put your jewellery on last when getting dressed. Please note that chlorine is especially damaging to jewellery.

Ensure that you rinse off any chemicals that come into contact with your jewellery straight away to avoid build up which can make cleaning difficult.

Avoid storing your jewellery next to costume jewellery or watches with leather straps.

Store jewellery separately so that pieces do not tangle, rub or scratch against each other.

Sterling Silver

Sterling Silver is an alloy of silver and other metals, usually copper. Pure silver is too soft for everyday wear; therefore, copper is generally used to give it strength while at the same time preserving the ductility of the metal and its beauty. As with most precious metals, sterling silver tarnishes; having said this, it is less likely to happen as quickly if regularly worn.

Cleaning

Clean your silver jewellery in warm soapy water, ensuring that it is rinsed thoroughly and dried before storing. Alternatively polish your silver jewellery with a soft cloth.

Pearl

As an organic material, pearls are much softer than most other gemstones and can be easily scratched. A little help is at hand with our following list of do’s and don’ts:

Cleaning

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Do – …wear your pearls. As an organic material they react well to the natural oils in your skin and it is the best way to maintain their lustre. …wipe your pearls with a soft cloth after wearing, and occasionally wipe clean with mild soapy water. Allow the pearls to dry before putting them away. …have your pearl necklace re-strung every few years; to prevent abrasion, most jewellers knot pearls on silk thread which wears in time.
Do Not – ..store your pearls with other jewellery as they can easily be scratched when metal or gemstones rub against them. …store pearls in plastic bags, always store in the box or silk pouch that they should be supplied with. …clean your pearls in an ultrasonic cleaner; the vibrations can shatter them, especially if the nacre is thin or cracked. …use chemical cleaners; especially those containing ammonia and bleach, as this will destroy their lustre. …expose to excessive heat; because they contain organic material and water, pearls can also crack if exposed to excessive dryness.

Gemstone

A gemstone is a mineral highly prized for its beauty, durability, and rarity. A few noncrystalline organic materials are also classified as gemstones such as pearl, coral and amber. Gemstone hardness is based on a standard called the Mohs scale, where the higher the Mohs scale number, the harder the stone. It is important to consider this when cleaning, wearing and storing your gemstone jewellery.

Cleaning

The build-up of hand cream, finger prints and general dirt is common amongst your most loved jewellery, and can easily be cleaned. As a rule of thumb, gemstones at 7 and above on the Mohs scale can be cleaned with warm water, a touch of mild soap and a soft brush. For gemstones less than 7, swap the soft brush for a soft cloth. All gemstones also susceptible to damage by chemicals, water and even sunlight but prolonged exposure to the latter may cause certain gemstones to become paler. Examples include amethyst, ametrine, aquamarine, aventurine, beryl, citrine, kunzite, rose quartz and smoky quartz. Some gemstones such as opal, pearl and turquoise are fairly porous and should not be immersed in water for too long. Particular care should be taken when cleaning your emerald jewellery. A widespread practice is to treat emeralds with some form of fine oil in order to disguise the very frequent appearance of flaws. For this reason, emeralds should never be cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaning device; as such treatment will usually empty any flaws which reach the surface of the stone of any oil content, with a disastrous effect on appearance.