How to Clean & Protect Your Jewelry
First and foremost, you can reduce the amount of cleaning that needs to be done to your new jewelry if you follow these simple steps:
You can do a search on the internet for "How to clean Sterling Silver?" and find a multitude of ways. Many of the answers depend on if stones/pearls are part of the jewelry and if so, what kind of stones/pearls are they, in addition to any patinas or surface treatments on your piece. While there are pros and cons to each method listed, Personally, I find the easiest and fastest way to clean/remove tarnish from most of the jewelry I make is to put a small amount of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda toothpaste mixed with water on your thumb and index finger to make slurry and then gently rub the silver parts of your jewelry. You may also use a SOFT toothbrush - child sized one's are suggested - to help clean crevices or any hard faceted gemstones. The toothbrush will also help to remove any residual toothpaste from tiny crevices or details in the piece. While it is best to avoid the pearls and turquoise, if you rub or brush them very gently it should not damage them. Be sure to rinse the toothpaste completely and then gently dry with a soft cloth. You can certainly try other toothpastes but I personally use Arm & Hammer on all the jewelry I wear and find it works great which is why I recommend it.
Again, please contact me if you're not sure and would like recommendations.
- Wear your jewelry! The naturally occurring oils in your skin will help to slow the oxidation process that creates tarnish.
- Keep contact with chemicals such as hairspray, perfume, body lotion, bleach and other cleaning solutions, etc. to a minimum.
- Don't leave your jewelry in areas of high humidity such as a bathroom and do not wear it in the shower, swimming pool or hot tub if at all possible. Humidity can speed up the oxidation process that produces tarnish.
- If your piece of jewelry is NOT something you wear on a daily basis, wipe it down with a dry soft cloth (a small square from an old cut up t-shirt works great for this) - before putting it back into an airtight container.
- When storing your jewelry try to keep it in the special plastic bag it came in (with an anti-tarnish tab) as it will significantly reduce the tarnishing process.
- If you find your jewelry is starting to tarnish, the polishing cloth included with your jewelry should remove most of it and bring your jewelry back to it's original polish. In some cases, it may be necessary to use another method of cleaning other than the polishing cloth.
- If you need to do a deeper cleaning other than the polishing cloth, i.e, using an ultrasonic cleaner or cleaning solution, etc., PLEASE read all warnings associated with that product as certain stones and/or pearls can and will be damaged being cleaned with certain products. You can always contact me if you have any questions. In addition, patinas may be altered as well so use with caution. See below for an easy, gentle alternative that works well on most jewelry.
You can do a search on the internet for "How to clean Sterling Silver?" and find a multitude of ways. Many of the answers depend on if stones/pearls are part of the jewelry and if so, what kind of stones/pearls are they, in addition to any patinas or surface treatments on your piece. While there are pros and cons to each method listed, Personally, I find the easiest and fastest way to clean/remove tarnish from most of the jewelry I make is to put a small amount of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda toothpaste mixed with water on your thumb and index finger to make slurry and then gently rub the silver parts of your jewelry. You may also use a SOFT toothbrush - child sized one's are suggested - to help clean crevices or any hard faceted gemstones. The toothbrush will also help to remove any residual toothpaste from tiny crevices or details in the piece. While it is best to avoid the pearls and turquoise, if you rub or brush them very gently it should not damage them. Be sure to rinse the toothpaste completely and then gently dry with a soft cloth. You can certainly try other toothpastes but I personally use Arm & Hammer on all the jewelry I wear and find it works great which is why I recommend it.
Again, please contact me if you're not sure and would like recommendations.