Jewelry care made easy: How to keep your jewelry beautiful for a long time

Worn on the body or clothing, jewelry is exposed to various stresses daily. The most beautiful design, the most valuable stones, and the highest quality craftsmanship will do you little good if the jewelry loses its shine. For gemstones, silver, and gold to fulfill their purpose, regular care and cleaning are necessary. Cleaning jewelry is not a complicated craft and can be easily done with the right household remedies and jewelry cleaners.

Clean jewelry – the material matters

Each piece of jewelry has its own requirements and is exposed to different stresses. Depending on the material, processing, and condition, you must store it differently and pay attention to certain stresses. Jewelry such as watches, rings, and necklaces are worn directly on the body. Here, not only the body's own sweat can dull the shine, but also skin creams, deodorants, or perfumes settle and attack the material.

But the material itself is also crucial. Different requirements are placed on cleaning gold jewelry than on cleaning silver jewelry. Alloys, gemstones, pearls, and glass have different properties and therefore require different treatment methods.

To minimize cleaning jewelry, you should always take it off when you don't need it. And of course store it properly. This way you avoid the worst dirt and damage.

Store jewelry properly

It is not necessary to constantly clean your jewelry if it does not get dirty in the first place. Remove it whenever you shower, bathe, go to the sauna, or do heavy work. You should also avoid direct contact of the jewelry with cosmetic products.

The bag is also not a suitable place for storage of the jewelry. It's better to put it in a place where the jewelry does not come into contact with anything. Ideally, you have a jewelry box ready or a fabric pad. Even if you follow these tips, you should regularly clean your jewelry. Various jewelry cleaners and household remedies are available for this purpose.

Clean silver jewelry

Even if you do not wear it often, you should regularly clean your silver jewelry. Over time, a dark patina forms by itself. This can be well cleaned with a soft toothbrush by placing the jewelry in a soapy solution with some water. For occasional silver jewelry cleaning, you can also use dish soap. But hold the jewelry under the water for only 1 to 2 minutes.

As a jewelry cleaner, for example, a silver polishing cloth is suitable. There are both high-quality cloths and cheaper versions from the drugstore. A proven home remedy is cleaning with toothpaste. Here too, you should use a soft toothbrush to clean silver jewelry. But do not use this method too often, as the abrasive in the toothpaste can permanently damage the material. Always rinse the silver jewelry afterward, dry it, and use a cloth to polish.

Cleaning gold jewelry

If you want to clean your gold jewelry, pay attention to the alloy of other metals. Since gold is a very soft material, other metals are often mixed in. Gold itself is very durable, but the alloys make regular cleaning all the more necessary. Special gold care cloths are suitable as jewelry cleaners.

Alternatively, you can also use some dish soap or soap to clean gold jewelry. A dissolved denture cleaner tablet can also serve as a home remedy. Hold the jewelry under lukewarm running water and then dry it with a cotton cloth. You can also polish it with a cloth made of wool or deer leather to finish cleaning gold jewelry with a special shine.

Cleaning gemstones

Whether it is diamonds, emeralds, topazes, or rubies, gemstones are considered very delicate due to their composition. In this case, home remedies such as soaps, dish soap, and other chemical products are not suitable as jewelry cleaners. Instead, you should use simple lukewarm water and then polish the gemstones dry with a polishing cloth. Hold the jewelry only briefly under the water. You can also remove any dirt with a soft toothbrush.

This is how you best clean and care for jewelry

• You can clean gold and silver jewelry with dish soap, soap, and some lukewarm water
• A soft toothbrush can also be used to clean jewelry
• Always hold the jewelry under the water only briefly
• For gemstones, you should avoid chemical agents and only clean them with water and a soft toothbrush
• At the end, polish dry with a soft cloth