JEWELRY CARE
HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR BELOVED JEWELRY:
With proper care, your pieces can last longer to come! There are three things to keep in mind when caring for your jewelry:
With proper care, your pieces can last longer to come! There are three things to keep in mind when caring for your jewelry:
- What is your jewelry in contact with (chemicals or other substances).
- What reside stays on your jewelry for longer periods of time (or gets removed from cleaning).
- How is your piece stored.
STERLING SILVER
Sterling silver is a 92.5% pure silver with most likely copper as the remaining metal. Sterling silver is considered a precious metal. Here are a few more facts about the metal:
Follow these suggested practices to ensure the long, beautiful life of your piece:
- Although sterling silver is stronger than solid silver, it is softer than gold metal, and can be prone to scratching if not treated with care.
- Sterling silver tarnishes naturally and occurs with even the most expensive sterling silver. Tarnishing with sterling silver is caused by a chemical reaction between the sterling silver and the air and any chemicals that come in contact with it. Your skin oils and body chemistry may actually help to preserve the sterling silver, which is why we recommended you wear it frequently!
- Although rare, some individual body chemistry can react with sterling silver and cause tarnishing. Pregnancy, thyroid disorders, hormone levels, medications and more can affect body alkalinity versus acidity, and may cause a reaction with your piece. It's definitely a wild-card and is based on the individual.
Follow these suggested practices to ensure the long, beautiful life of your piece:
- Remove jewelry during physical activities (running, cross-fit, gardening, hiking, swimming, household chores, etc.)
- Remove jewelry when using chemicals: shampoos, harsh soaps, lotions, makeup, hairspray, etc. Always put jewelry on last, after your hair and makeup routine, as the last finishing touch!
- Sulfur is very corrosive and should be avoided, and can be found in household products (fruit juice, eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, rubber, steel wool).
- Moisture and sunlight can cause tarnishing. Take off your piece when showering, bathing, swimming or sunbathing.
- Avoid abrasive materials like a terry cloth, bath towel, and shirt to polish your jewelry. Even tissues or paper towels are micro-abrasive and should be avoided as scratching can occur. We recommend using a soft cloth, lens cloth, or any microfiber cloth to gently clean your jewelry.
- When cleaning your piece, start by using mild soap and water and gently clean the piece with your fingers. Make sure your piece is completely dried when finished cleaning to avoid oxidation.
- Store your jewelry in a dark, low-humidity area and in an air-tight container such as a Ziploc bag. You should always clean your piece before storing. You can use anti-tarnishing papers and bags for storage.
JEWELRY CLEANING
Soap, creme and make-up residues can be removed using an ultrasound device. The ultrasound device should not contain aggressive cleaning agents. For best results, use water and a neutral detergent.
For standard commercial silver dipping baths, only silver jewelry dipping baths must be used. In other words: no silver cutlery dipping baths and no gold jewelry dipping baths!
Immerse the jewelry for approx. 10 seconds and then rinse thoroughly under hot water and rub dry using a cloth or a hairdryer.
Blackened items of jewelry should not be cleaned using a silver dipping bath or polished with a silver cloth as these may remove the blackening.
Items of jewelry with imitations pearls, lapis lazuli, coral, turquoise, mother-of-pearl or hematite are not suitable for cleaning in a silver dipping bath.
Only the silver parts of leather, rubber and silk cords should be cleaned using a silver cloth. Leather and silk cords must not be placed in a silver dipping bath or cleaned in an ultrasound device.
For standard commercial silver dipping baths, only silver jewelry dipping baths must be used. In other words: no silver cutlery dipping baths and no gold jewelry dipping baths!
Immerse the jewelry for approx. 10 seconds and then rinse thoroughly under hot water and rub dry using a cloth or a hairdryer.
Blackened items of jewelry should not be cleaned using a silver dipping bath or polished with a silver cloth as these may remove the blackening.
Items of jewelry with imitations pearls, lapis lazuli, coral, turquoise, mother-of-pearl or hematite are not suitable for cleaning in a silver dipping bath.
Only the silver parts of leather, rubber and silk cords should be cleaned using a silver cloth. Leather and silk cords must not be placed in a silver dipping bath or cleaned in an ultrasound device.