How To Keep Fine Jewelry Clean and Remove Tarnish

You may have just gotten engaged and want to know the best way to maintain that sparkle and shine. Or maybe you’ve started to notice a little bit of grime on your fine jewelry. It’s a good idea to take your diamonds to the jeweler twice a year to give it that extra-polished gleam, but you should also be keeping up maintenance on your ring weekly so that it never loses its shine.  It’s important to learn how to keep fine jewelry clean and remove tarnish.

Maintaining Shine to Keep Fine Jewelry Clean

The best way to keep your jewelry’s luster is to stay ahead of filth with tarnish-prevention methods. This is particularly true with engagement rings, which comes into contact with all the same outside grime as your hands daily. Like you, if your ring goes too long without proper cleaning, it’ll start to get grungy as different external materials like oil, makeup, and sweat build up on and around the ring.

When it comes to diamond rings, one should get in a routine of cleaning it once a week. This is a rather straightforward process that doesn’t require too much hassle. According to Brides, all you have to do is soak your ring in a mixture of hot water and dish soap for about thirty minutes, brush it with an extra-soft toothbrush to avoid scratching, and then rinse with warm water. Let it air dry or use a soft cloth, avoid paper towels, which can harsh on the metal.

Cleaning Tarnished Jewelry

If your fine jewelry already has a little tarnish on it, don’t sweat. Silver, for instance, will dull over time as it reacts with chemicals and particles in the air, particularly those that contain sulfur. This interaction creates silver sulfide which makes your beautiful, bright silver jewelry look drab and worn out.

Silver cleaning cloths work like magic when it comes to keeping the tarnish off your silver. These little cotton cloths are infused with cleaning, polishing, and anti-tarnish agents. They are perfect for revitalizing tarnished metals like silver and gold,  preserving your metals for months at a time.

If your silver or gold needs a heavier facelift, there are a lot of products and home remedies that can transform it back to its former glory. One noteworthy treatment would be that of salt and aluminum, in which you dissolve a tablespoon of salt in two cups of hot water in a bowl then add a few strips of aluminum and your silver jewelry. This method is safe on most metals and gems, but you might want to double check if yours is saltwater safe. You can also consider purchasing jewelry cleaner which should be safe to use on all types of jewelry.

 The ‘Don’t’s of Jewelry Care

Though your ring seems like a sturdy jewel, fine jewelry is susceptible to wear and tear.  This is especially true of gold, which scratches easily. Household cleaners like bleach, acetone, and chlorine, toothpaste, baking soda, or any powdered soaps can damage metals.  If you are going to invest money in jewelry, knowing how to keep fine jewelry clean is paramount.

Those that are trying to clean jewelry with gemstones should be wary of using at-home ultrasonic jewelry cleaning machines. Yes, they get your diamond ring sparkly, but they also have a habit of loosening its stones. It’s best to maintain your ring’s shine with the aforementioned weekly bubble bath.  If needed, leave the deep cleaning to your professional jeweler.