Handmade wire jewelry

 How to Clean and Care for Your Jewelry

The utmost effective way to wash your jewelry is to bring it to your neighborhood jeweler. That may not always be possible Handmade wire jewelry. It always seems that on a Saturday night, before likely to dinner or while getting dressed for a marriage, you realize that your jewelry is lacking a little its glisten and luster.

Jewelry Maintenance Schedule
Since most people keep their jewelry in a central location, such as a jewelry box or safe, it is easy to keep a simple checklist along with it. It is commonplace so that you can let time pass before noticing 1 day when examining their jewelry a diamond is missing from their ring or bracelet. Keeping a straightforward checklist in your jewelry box can become a reminder. All fine jewelry that is worn regularly and is mounted with gemstones should be taken to a jeweler to be inspected for wear on prongs and closures on a routine basis. As time passes, frequently worn jewelry often comes in touch with coarse surfaces during everyday wear, which makes it susceptible to erosion and metal fatigue.

Jewelry Erosion
"Erosion" occurs when gold or even a precious metal rubs against itself and other surfaces. As precious metals rub against countertops, stone, or mineral surfaces the soft precious metal slowly erodes. Your jeweler can advise you of needed repair before something becomes broken and is lost. This recommended preventive measure can prolong living of your precious jewelry.

Jewelry Metal Fatigue
"Metal fatigue" occurs when metal is stressed by constant knocking or bending. The best way to appreciate this would be to envision a coat hanger being bent back and forth many times until it breaks. The impact of hitting a band or bracelet on a doorknob or the constant depression of a spring clasp on your jewelry latches slowly contributes to its "metal fatigue" ;.

Professional Jewelry Maintenance
We recommend that everyday items such as engagement rings and tennis bracelets be considered by a professional jeweler every 6 months, and annually for jewelry that is worn less frequently. A trained jewelry professional will inspect prongs and clasps for wear and tear. The jeweler will detect loose stones and arrange to tighten your prongs and repair or replace worn areas.

Professional Jewelry Cleaning
Most jewelers will clean and polish your jewelry when you wait and the more advanced jewelers will have a way to machine polish your jewelry with several stages of compounds to restore its original luster. They may also be able to restore a rhodium finish on your white gold. The more highly qualified jewelers may also be in a position to steam clean and ultrasonically clean your jewelry. Your jewelry professional should understand the character of delicate materials, gemstones, and patinas to be able to avoid damaging your precious items while taking care of them.

Home Jewelry Cleaning
To be able to properly clean your jewelry in the home you ought to first have an understanding of what your jewelry is made of.

Jewelry Cleaning No No's
Many materials should not be cleaned at home. Here are several samples of jewelry that needs to be handled cautiously.

1. Organic stones or materials such as pearl, ivory, bone, coral, wood, leather, cord, or string should not be exposed to harsh detergents or soaked in liquids or ultrasonically cleaned. These commonly used jewelry materials may absorb the fluids and be damaged or stained permanently.


2. Antique or rare artist jewelry should not be tampered with at home. Polishing and cleaning can destroy the patina and integrity of some rare jewelry.


3. Coins shouldn't be polished and cleaned by a non-professional.


4. Some gemstones are treated with or have sebum which can be disturbed by detergents. Some stones are porous and can absorb detergents or moisture. Here are a few gems that caution should be combined with: Emerald, Opal, Turquoise, Lapis Lazuli, and most of the organic stones and materials listed above.


5. Chemical exposure can cause disaster. Soaking jewelry in chlorine-based cleaners can completely dissolve a piece of jewelry, leaving behind only the stones. Likewise, constant contact with pool chlorine can decay the solders used to create jewelry. A tiny bead of mercury from a damaged thermometer can attract to gold and contaminate other jewelry so it comes in touch with, turning the gold white. It has been recognized to render entire jewelry boxes of valuable jewelry useless. Generally, any corrosive product in household use containing acids, lye, or chemicals that you yourself should not be exposed to may not be beneficial to your jewelry.


6. Polishing plated metals with abrasive compounds can wear through the plating. The micron plating solution utilized on many items of costume jewelry is thin and abrasive compounds can wear right through to the underlying metals. Once the beds base metals are exposed, they can vary greatly in color or tarnish with time.


7. Caution should be studied when utilizing ultrasonic cleaners. Ultrasonic cleaners use high frequency waves to produce makeup grime and dirt from your jewelry. The procedure involves vibration Handmade wire jewelry.