Tips on How to Clean Your Jewelry Properly

Necklaces, bangles, wedding bands for men and women, earrings and other forms of jewelry need different cleaning techniques. It depends on what metal they’re out of, and what stones are present. If you’re looking for tips on how to clean your precious items properly, read on.

You can easily purchase silver cleaning solutions. However, there’s another way of cleaning your silver items. Line the inside of a small bowl with aluminum foil. Place your jewelry in it, and put baking soda until the item is covered with it. Afterwards, pour hot water in the small bowl. Bubbles will form. Simply wait for it to stop, remove the silver item, dry and polish with a soft cloth. The procedure should be repeated a few times if the item is heavily tarnished.

Gold jewelry is best cleaned by soaking it in a mixture of warm water and detergent. Allow it to soak in there for a few minutes, then gently scrub using a soft toothbrush to remove dirt and grime. Rinse with warm water, and thoroughly dry using a soft, dry cloth. Any remaining moisture will make the surface look dull.

Women and men wedding bands oftentimes come encrusted with diamonds. After a while, diamonds appear cloudy and lose their natural charm. Although ammonia can work well on diamonds, the metal parts of the jewelry can get ruined. To clean your item safely, create a mixture of warm water and detergent. Place your jewelry in it, letting it stay there for some time. Follow with a gentle scrubbing of a toothbrush, then thoroughly dry with a cloth that’s soft.

In cleaning pearls, avoid using anything that’s abrasive. The surface can be scratched very easily. Instead, soak pearls in a mixture of water and baby soap. Baby soap is preferable as it has a milder formulation compared to regular soap. Dry with a soft jewelry cloth right after soaking.

Most gemstones should be cleaned gently, just like the way you clean pearls. For harder ones, a scrubbing of a soft toothbrush may be necessary for removing dirt and grime. Avoid soaking porous ones in any solution. A wiping of a damp cloth is enough to clean them. For hard gemstones, ultrasonic cleaning may be excellent. However, soft ones may only be damaged.

Sometimes, you need to seek for the help of a professional cleaner. For example, mens wedding bands out of silver may easily tarnish because of an active lifestyle. But some darkening may be the result of age. No matter how much cleaning you do at home, the darkening will not go away. Also, delicate and antique jewelry are best cleaned by someone who’s a professional at it.