The time has finally come: you are the proud owner of a collection of antique jewellery. You’re probably very proud of the pieces you’ve collected and want to wear them every day. However, it’s a good idea to pay some attention to when to wear your jewellery and how to take good care of them. This way, your pieces will last longer and will always look their best. In this blog, we give you the most important reasons for taking care of your jewellery and will also give you some tips on how to get started yourself.
Why should I take proper care of my antique jewellery?
It can be quite a search to find that one piece of antique jewellery that is perfect for you. Once you’ve found it, you surely want to treasure it forever! In order to treasure your jewellery for a lifetime, it’s necessary to take proper care of it. Keeping your antique jewellery in the best condition possible will help to retain its value and preserve a piece of history that can be passed on to generations to come. And let’s be honest: isn’t it very cool to be able to pass your beloved jewellery on to the next generation and keep them in the family for many years to come? In addition, jewellery that is properly taken care of simply looks prettier. Without regular cleansing, pieces may become dull and lose their sparkle, which is of course the opposite of what you’d like!
When not to wear your jewellery
We can imagine that you’d like to wear your unique pieces of jewellery all day long, but taking them off during certain activities will help keeping them in a perfect condition. An example of such an activity is exercising. It is better to take your jewellery off when exercising, because the sweat, dirt, and possible banging against equipment can cause damage to the material. You should also be careful with your jewellery during cleaning chores: some cleaning products contain chemicals that can affect the materials your jewellery is made of. Especially harsh chemicals like bleaches, detergents, and deep cleaners can be very damaging to your jewellery, so you should definitely take your jewellery off when working with these products. The same goes for wearing your jewellery while swimming: both chlorines in pool water and salt in sea water can damage the jewellery, so they are better taken off beforehand. Not only chemicals that can be found in cleaning products can damage your jewellery, but some skincare products contain damaging chemicals as well. Your moisturizer might be perfect to take care of your skin, but it’s better to not expose your jewellery to it. Because of this, we advise you to take your jewellery of before showering and put them back on after you have used all of your skincare products.
How to store your jewellery
When you’re not wearing your jewellery, for example because you’re carrying out one of the activities mentioned above, it is important to store it in a proper way. Make sure that the place where you store your jewellery is cool, dry, and not exposed to direct sunlight. A jewellery box with a soft inside is ideal for storing antique jewellery in a safe way. However, even when using a special jewellery box to store your pieces, make sure that each piece has its own pouch or compartment. If you don’t do this, your jewellery might get tangled, which can cause damage to precious metals and gemstones.
How to clean your jewellery
In order to keep your antique jewellery pieces looking shiny and beautiful, it is necessary to clean them at least every few weeks. However, always be very careful when cleaning your antique jewellery, because you’re dealing with delicate materials. First of all, you should be aware that every piece of jewellery is different, and thus should be treated differently. When considering how a piece of jewellery needs to be cleaned, you first have to determine what type of jewellery you’re dealing with. When doing this, at least try to figure out what the materials of your piece are, for example if the piece is made from gold or silver, and what type of gemstone (if any) is used. If you want to clean a piece with gemstones, make sure that they are well-set, so that they won’t come off while cleaning the piece.
Considering the many different jewellery types and materials, using a gentle cleaning solution is probably the way to go. However, there are some exceptions to this rule. Porous gemstones cannot be cleaned in warm water, but should instead be cleaned with a damp cloth and instantly dried. Rosecut diamonds should also not be cleaned using a cleaning solution. Rosecut diamonds should be kept as dry as possible, because they have a foiled back that will get damaged by water. For most other pieces, you can make a cleaning solution yourself by mixing lukewarm water with some mild soap. You can use a soft bristled toothbrush soaked in the cleaning solution to gently brush away dirt on your jewellery. Don’t apply too much pressure with the toothbrush, but use gentle, circular motions. After this, remove any soap residue and thoroughly dry the piece. To make sure the piece is completely dry, you can leave it sitting upside down on a towel for 15 minutes. Finally, after all the hard work, of course you want your jewellery to look clean and shiny. You can make your piece of jewellery shine by polishing it with a soft cloth. Make sure the cloth you use is really soft and has no rough edges, because this can scratch your jewellery. Finally, if you’ve gotten your hands on your perfect piece of jewellery, but aren’t sure how to clean it in a proper way: don’t hesitate to message us! You can just fill in the contact form on our website our reach out to us via our social media. We are happy to advise you in how to properly take care of your beloved pieces of jewellery so that they will last a lifetime!
"Enjoy taking care of your perfect pieces of jewellery and feel free to contact us for some advice!" -xxx- Sophie
