Care & Cleaning Jewelry from XaGeJa

The sparkle and enjoyment of your jewelry can be prolonged for years and even decades with the proper care and cleaning. Here we provide you with a few tips and recommendations for caring and cleaning your jewelry.

 Jewelry Storage 

All jewelry should be stored in ways that the jewelry is not damaged.  

• Each item should be stored separately so that they do not scratch one another. Wrap each item separately or use a jewelry box that has partitions or compartments for each item.

• Jewelry should be stored in a cool and dark place, such as a jewelry box or drawer. Avoid storing jewelry direct sunlight, next to a heating vent or other hot place. (e.g. above a kitchen stove)

• Sterling Silver jewelry can be stored in plastic zip lock bags. This will help diminish the tarnishing of the silver. This will help keep the moisture levels low.

• NEVER store real pearls in plastic bags, or other excessively dry places. Pearls will crack or flake off if they dry out as they become very brittle. (TIP: Consider a humidor, such as used for cigars, for your real pearls if you live in an excessively dry area.)
  • NOTE: Swarovski^TM Pearls are crystal glass with special coatings. These are not real pearls, though they may look and feel like real pearls.

Wear Care 

• Jewelry should be worn in a manner to suit circumstances.
  
• Always put make up on before putting on your jewelry. This will avoid getting your jewelry dirty as well as preventing any damage. (For example: Nail polish remover can damage some crystal coatings, or the glue on some gemstone settings.)
  
• Wait 15 minutes after showering before putting on your jewelry. This will ensure that your skin will not have excess moisture which can damage your jewelry.
  
• Wait 15 to 20 minutes after putting on body lotions or moisturizers before putting on jewelry. This will allow time for the lotions to get absorbed into your skin.
  
• Care should be taken not to wear jewelry in circumstances that will damage your jewelry. 
  • Examples of when not to wear jewelry
    • Don’t wear crystal jewelry to the beach, it will be damaged by the sand.
    • Don’t wear gold or some types of gemstones in a swimming pool. The chlorine can damage the gemstones, and make the gold dull.
    • Don’t wear any jewelry when gardening
    • Don’t wear jewelry when doing housework or cleaning especially if you are using cleaning chemicals. These chemicals can damage jewelry. Some may even remove coatings from your crystals.
    • Avoid wearing jewelry when exercising.

Cleaning 

• Crystal becomes dull without proper cleaning. To return your crystal to it’s original sparkle and luster, careful cleaning is essential.

• Crystal jewelry should be cleaned carefully after each use with a dry soft cloth. This is to remove any of the sweat, body oils, lotions or any other residue that may have collected from the crystals.

• Note: Special care should be taken with any crystals that have coatings. These can be easily scratched or damaged.

• Occasionally the crystals may require additional cleaning, to return them to there beautiful sparkle.

• Avoid using any strong chemical cleaners are these may damage the crystal coatings, or the others parts of your jewelry.

• One of the best methods of cleaning the crystals is in a solution of ordinary dishwashing liquid soap. Use 6 drops to half a teaspoon of Sunlight Dishwashing liquid in a cup of warm water. (Some people add a half teaspoon of rubbing alcohol, which helps speed up the cleaning). It is not recommended that you put the dishwashing concentrate directly on the jewelry. Swirl the jewelry gently in the mixture for a few minutes. Do not leave the jewelry in the mixture for a prolonged period. Rinse the jewelry thoroughly in warm to cool water, and dry with a soft jewelry cloth, rubbing gently to bring out the brilliance of the crystal.

• A standby method of cleaning is to use baby wipes. This is very effective and quick. It is recommended that the unscented and lotion free wipes are used to prevent leaving a residue on the crystals. This is a great way to clean your crystal jewelry when you are traveling, as the baby wipes are often available is slim easy to travel containers. Bonus is that the baby wipes clean sunglasses and hands just as well!  After cleaning your crystal jewelry, always wipe them off with a soft dry jewelry cloth.