More on Cleaning Jewelry

[hrc007]

For those that wear jewelry regularly, keeping their jewelry clean and looking good requires regular effort. Here are some general guidelines that may help.

• Remove Your Jewelry Before Bathing Remove all jewelry before showering or cleaning. Soap can cause a film to form, making it appear dull and dingy. By preventing the formation of this film you immediately reduce the occasions of servicing.

• Use Jewelry Polishing Cloths for Best Results Polish silver or gold with a jewelry polishing cloth for best results. You can use a svelte or an old diaper, but the professional cloths are the best. Use of tissue or paper towels can cause scratches because of fibers in these products.

• Clean Your Jewelry With Care.
Cleaning your own jewelry regularly can keep it looking good, but be careful. You can either purchase commercial cleaners from a jeweler or make a cleaning a solution yourself. Rubbing alcohol can work wonders, but bleach can literally destroy jewelry so avoid it at all costs.

• Use Warm Water to Clean Jewelry
Using warm water is the best bet when cleaning your own jewelry. How water can cause reaction with the cleaning fluids resulting in discoloration and Sterling Silver is especially susceptible to this problem. Should this occur, this problem can be remedied by buffing and the application of a tarnish remover.

• Avoid Cleaning Damaged Jewelry
Never clean any jewelry that is damaged, cracked or broken, since the additional handling is likely to exacerbate or worsen the problem. If you find that a piece of jewelry is damaged, it should be set aside for repair as soon as possible.

• Inspect Your Jewelry Regularly
Just like anything else, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. When having your jewelry professionally cleaned, it's a good idea to have each item checked and inspected for any possible problems. Addressing signs of damage, or loose gemstones will prevent any further damage or loss and keep all of your pieces in excellent shape for years.

[blingslinger]

Great tips! Thanks so much for sharing

[mary2909]

I remember that my grandma used to clean the silver jewles with toothpaste.Or she had this special "recipe": a spoon of vinegar mixed with minced chalk, yeah the regular chalk for writing on blackboards at school! after scrubing the jewelery with that mix, her bracelets became really shiny!

[liz.jewels]

If you have silver that is supposed to be shiny all over (not oxidized), you can clean it the following way:

Place aluminum foil in a glass pie plate (or use an aluminum pie plate). Put the jewelry in the plate and cover with baking soda. Boil water, and pour the boiling water over the silver.

The tarnish will leave the silver and adhere to the aluminum foil. It's pretty cool! I used it on a silver baby rattle someone gifted my daughter (she's now 8) and it was sparkling afterward! I couldn't get it to come clean with my polishing cloth, so I was very impressed.

I have used this strategy on my SD jewelry, but only the pieces that have no oxidation intended in the design.

[udesignit]

Originally Posted by liz.jewels

If you have silver that is supposed to be shiny all over (not oxidized), you can clean it the following way:

Place aluminum foil in a glass pie plate (or use an aluminum pie plate). Put the jewelry in the plate and cover with baking soda. Boil water, and pour the boiling water over the silver.

The tarnish will leave the silver and adhere to the aluminum foil. It's pretty cool! I used it on a silver baby rattle someone gifted my daughter (she's now 8) and it was sparkling afterward! I couldn't get it to come clean with my polishing cloth, so I was very impressed.

I have used this strategy on my SD jewelry, but only the pieces that have no oxidation intended in the design.

I like to try this technique.

[francescafinejewelry]

I have my own diy recipe that I use for cleaning Sterling Silver jewelry up at my website. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to show the link. Mods, please remove if it's not allowed. Francesca Fine Jewelry - How To Clean Sterling Silver Jewelry At Home

[tantanlele]

Another very informative article, thanks.