Jewellery Care: A Quick Guide

Once you buy those beautiful pieces of jewellery or receive them as thoughtful gifts, you will want to take the best of care of these items. With so much advice about how to care for your jewellery, it can be confusing to know what is best for your treasures and what might hurt them.

Here is a quick guide to jewellery care:

While you may enjoy your jewellery box, try not to keep jewellery lumped into one place. If they are jostled, they may damage each other. This is true even of diamonds; while they are the hardest substance on earth, they can still nick each other or your other pieces, and the shape of the diamond may render parts of it vulnerable if it is hit just right.

Avoid chemicals with your jewellery, especially with silver pieces. Gardening chemicals, household chemicals, pool chlorine and other irritants can damage the setting or band of many types of jewellery.

Clean most of your jewellery with simple warm, soapy water and a soft, used brush. Be careful to check for any loose settings before cleaning. The way jewellery is worn can affect its longevity as well.

Never sleep in jewellery, as you may damage earring posts or hoops, necklace chains or cause other problems. Wear bracelets on the opposite wrist as your dominant hand, as it will receive less use throughout the day.

Taking simple steps to reduce damage we may unintentionally inflict will go a long way toward preserving your quality pieces.