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The golden rules for keeping your jewellery in tip-top condition

The golden rules for keeping your jewellery in tip-top condition - Dainty London

Whether it’s a classically chic, simpler piece or a statement design that puts lesser-known gemstones centre stage, every piece of jewellery in your collection deserves a spot of TLC. Jewellery should after all be enjoyed, which makes keeping it in tip-top condition particularly important.

The average piece of jewellery faces a heap of challenges. Exposure to chemicals, dirt and even the atmosphere – pollution and humidity present real problems for some gemstones and metals -  can see jewellery lose its magic and shine. But with the right jewellery care, you can protect precious pieces and even revive the condition of the designs that have seen better days!

Let us talk you through the golden rules for taking care of your jewellery, so you get to enjoy your favourite pieces a whole lot longer.

Alter your jewellery wearing habits

If you’re anything like us, you can’t go anywhere without your favourite jewellery pieces in tow. Changing your jewellery wearing habits is the key to stopping issues like discolouration and tarnishing in their tracks.

Remove your jewellery when you come into contact with any type of water, whether you’re washing the dishes, taking a bath, or showering. Salt and chlorinated water are particularly damaging so the same theory applies when you hit the beach or pool.

Despite its strength and popularity, gold jewellery is particularly vulnerable to the effects of chlorine as HubPages details:

“Chlorine, whether it is found in chlorine bleach used for cleaning, in the swimming pool or in the hot tub can degrade gold jewelry to the point of disintegration. The actual damage to the jewelry piece is due to something commonly called stress corrosion cracking. Whether there is already stress in the joints of the jewelry or it has been repaired, these existing stress points cause a failure in the integrity of the jewelry when exposed to chlorine.”

Even everyday rituals like applying skincare products and makeup can diminish your jewellery’s beautiful lustre. Acids and oils on the skin can cause silver jewellery to tarnish – read more about the effects of tarnishing.

Store your jewellery properly

When your jewellery isn’t taking pride of place on your neck, wrist or finger, be sure to store it away properly. 

An airtight container is the best place to store jewellery. This should be put in a cool, dry, dark place, far away from direct sunlight, extreme temperatures and excess humidity, to preserve the condition of the pieces within.

For finer jewellery pieces, the hard plastic and wooden jewellery boxes widely available just won’t do. Choose a design with a soft fabric liner to protect precious metals and gemstones from harm, and make sure there’s plenty of space to store pieces separately.

Ideally jewellery should be cleaned before it’s stored away so give it a quick once over with the jewellery cleaning cloth provided with all our pieces.

Make cleaning a regular thing

As well as using a good quality jewellery cleaning cloth, a deeper clean with hot water and liquid soap is also recommended. 

After soaking your jewellery in the solution, use a soft-bristled toothbrush (a baby’s toothbrush will do the trick) and rub gently in circular motions to polish jewellery to a sleek, beautiful shine.

Take care when cleaning more delicate stones like pearls, they require gentler treatment when cleaning and handling.

Sort repairs out as soon as possible

Over time, jewellery pieces are likely to become damaged and broken but don’t sit on loose stones and dents for too long.

It’s best to get any repairs carried out as soon as possible to avoid further damage. If you purchased your jewellery piece from Dainty, getting a repair is easy and free of charge! 

No matter how long ago you purchased from us, we’ll fix any issues, including loose stones. Simply contact us to get the ball rolling!

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