5 Tips To Help You Take Care Of Your Jewellery At Home
5 Tips To Help You Take Care Of Your Jewellery At Home
Jewellery is meant to be worn. Often we're so determined to protect and preserve our jewellery that we simply won't wear it. The good news is, there are ways to take care of your stunning and sentimental pieces at home to ensure that they don't tarnish and are always ready to shine.
To better care for your jewellery, it can help to understand how it can tarnish.
Tarnish is a chemical reaction that develops as a thin layer of corrosion on metals like copper and sterling silver. The leading causes are moisture, dust, airborne pollutants, sweat, body oils, and oxygen. Repeated contact over time with any of these can cause your jewellery to start to look dull and develop a noticeable film or coating. This will reduce the sparkle and shine of your pieces.
Here are some helpful ways to take care of your jewellery to prevent corrosion:
1. Use a Jewellery Box
These aren't just cute little boxes that look pretty on a dresser. A jewellery box is a helpful way to organize your pieces while keeping them away from oxygen, moisture, and sunlight.
2. Save Your Silica Gel Packets
Silica absorbs moisture which is why it's used in the packaging of many products. Adding a packet to your jewellery box can help prevent any moisture from getting inside and damaging your jewellery.
3. Don't Wear It All The Time
Most jewellery isn't meant to be worn 24hrs a day. While gold pieces are less likely to tarnish, they can still become dull and even show signs of tarnishing if the gold has been mixed with other metals when the jewellery was made. You should take your jewellery off and store it safely at the end of every day. It's also best to remove it before any of the following:
- A workout
- Trip to the salon or spa treatment
- Swimming in a pool, lake, or ocean
- Taking a bath or shower
- Applying skincare and makeup
It's not recommended to wear your jewellery if you're going to be spending a lot of time in the sun. The harsh sunlight can cause your pieces to tarnish and your gemstones to fade. If you're sweating or wearing sunscreen, this can wear on your jewellery as well.
4. Separate Your Gold and Silver
Gold is soft and can scratch very easily, so it's important to store your gold and silver separately, either in different compartments of your jewellery box or in individual cloth bags.
5. Perform Routine Cleaning
While too much exposure to water and moisture can tarnish your jewellery, it is safe to use for a quick and gentle cleaning. Use a little warm water and a soft cloth to rub away any build-up of soap, makeup, sunscreen, lotion, and other harmful contaminants. Use a separate cloth to make sure your jewellery is completely dry before you put it away. It's not necessary to do this after every wear. Still, once a month is recommended for the pieces you're wearing often.
It's essential to care for your jewellery so those sentimental pieces can last. Always keep any jewellery cleaning instructions that come with your pieces, so you know the proper way to care for them. Browse LLOYD today if you're looking to add some new favourites to your collection.
LLOYD THE GIFT AUSTRALIA