Clean Your Jewellery At Home

Some website and even some jewellers recommend using ammonia and even toothpaste to clean your fine jewellery. We don’t think we need to go into the details too deeply about why this is a bad idea. Abrasive toothpaste and corrosive ammonia? Nope, no thanks. Weve put together a few tricks here to help you to clean up your jewellery at home, and as always if in doubt, drop by the studio or send us a message and we will help!

Prevention and Care
One of the first things that you should do is to designate a place in your home to place your rings and other jewellery while doing tasks like washing dishes, gardening, or cleaning the house. Most people are guilty of keeping their wedding rings on all the time, but they should be removed when there’s a chance they could get wet or dirty,for the sake of hygiene. You should even take your jewellery off in the shower or when applying hand lotion, sunscreens etc as soap residue and moisture can get trapped in the crevices of your jewellery and cause issues. Prevent premature tarnishing on silver by storing it in felt away from other jewellery and metals. Keep gold jewellery in a jewellery box that is also lined with felt to prevent moisture build-up and tarnishing.

Maintaining Jewellery
Next, assess the type of jewellery you want to clean. All fine jewellery should be cleaned with care, but some gemstones require a more gentle approach, so that they don’t crack or chip. Fragile materials—like pearls and cameos made from shells, emeralds, opals, or turquoise—should be handled with extreme care. The frequency of cleaning jewellery matters, too. Most fine jewellery should only be cleaned everyone other month or so to prevent unnecessary exposure to liquids. If you find yourself needing or wanting to clean your jewellery more often, be sure to use a gentle method and avoid ultrasonic cleaners or steamers (Those are for the professionals and can cause damage if used by someone untrained in their specific use for jewellery). Excessive use of at home ultrasonic machines can eventually loosen stones, wear down the metal, and cause even more significant damage. Have your jewellery checked by a trusted professional jeweller twice a year to ensure they are secure and properly cleaned, we will do that at The Diamond Tree Studio, and even deep clean your jewellery for you for free. Even if you haven’t bought it from us.

Cleaning Fine Jewellery
The most tried-and-true, gentle way to clean fine jewellery at home is by using this DIY solution: a dish, lukewarm water, a soft bristle toothbrush, and some mild dish detergent. The milder the soap, the better. To make the DIY jewellery cleaner, Mix a drop of dish soap in a bowl with some lukewarm water. For extremely soiled fine jewellery that does not have fragile gemstones, soak the jewellery in the mixture for a few minutes. (Always remember that delicate gemstones should never be saturated for more than a few seconds.) Next, use the toothbrush to buff away any dirt and residue gently. For dirt in hard to reach spots, carefully use a toothpick to dislodge it. As you’re cleaning the jewellery, take note of any loose stones or damage that needs to be repaired. If gemstones are loose, stop wearing the jewellery until it can be fixed. Finally, pat the jewellery dry and allow it to air dry completely.

Jewellery Cleaning Tip
Using tinfoil, baking soda, and water. (Not for delicate gemstones, or heat treated stones)

Line the bottom of a large disposable pan with aluminium foil with the shiny side up. Next, place the jewellery in the pan so that it is touching the foil. Sprinkle on some baking soda into the pan. Cover your jewellery in the soda, a nice big pile. Next, pour boiling water into the pan until the jewellery is completely saturated. Let the jewellery sit in the solution until the tarnish starts to visibly disappear. Then, carefully remove the jewellery and pat completely dry with a lint-free cloth.

If in any doubt, send us a quick message or even come into the studio and we can show you how to clean your jewellery while we get your jewellery back to its shiny self!