Want to keep your jewellery looking its best? Do you have a silver necklace, ring, or bracelet that you love but don't wear as often as you'd like because you're afraid of it tarnishing? Here are eight tips to help keep your silver jewelry looking its best!
- Jewelry should be the last thing you put on and the first thing you take off. This will greatly reduce wear and tear, or the chance of losing an earring when pulling off a shirt. Furthermore, it reduces the exposure to any creams, lotions, perfumes, and moisture which can all make your silver tarnish. Precious metals can tarnish or darken when exposed to air and light, moisture, and even by your skin's PH. This generally will happen over a period of time, and some environments will cause it to tarnish more quickly. Limit exposure to air, humidity, and sunlight especially when not wearing.
- Keep it dry. Moisture and liquids are probably one of the quickest ways to tarnish metals, thus you should NEVER store your jewelry in the bathroom. This goes for high-intensity sports and saunas, best to take it off before your sweat sessions to avoid tarnishing your precious metals.
- Store it correctly. Just taking your jewelry off when you wear it won’t do the trick if you are storing it in a moist environment such as the bathroom. We suggest storing your jewelry in individual bags to prevent them from scratching one another. This is the reason we provide a microfiber bag with every item we sell. Use the bag and store it in a cool, dark, and dry place such as a drawer.
- Don’t wear it in the swimming pool, hot tub or ocean. See point number two about keeping it dry. The chemicals in pools and hot tubs and the salt in the ocean can react with silver, gold or gold-plated jewelry. Chlorine over longer periods of time can actually make gold brittle and weak.
Your fingers may shrink in the cold, and you could lose a ring. And lastly, apparently, sharks are attracted to shiny jewelry as when the sunlight hits them, they reflect the light and basically act as reflective fishing lures. I don’t know about you, but this reason alone will have me taking off my jewelry in the water.
- Remove your silver jewelry before using harsh household cleaners or sprays. Many bathrooms and kitchen cleaning sprays contain bleach and will turn jewelry black on contact. Additionally, many common household cleaners will react with the metals in gold and silver and cause them to weaken.
- remove before applying lotions, creams, hairspray, and perfumes. Same as household cleaners and pools, and ever your sweat. Chemicals and moisture cause the metals to tarnish and eventually break down.
- Clean with Mild Soap. If your jewelry is starting to look dull, often it is because of the accumulations of oils from your skin and fingerprints. Use a mild soap, warm water and a soft-bristle toothbrush to remove fingerprints and oils. Dry immediately after with a soft cotton cloth. If it’s just a touch dull, you can gently buff it with the provided microfiber cloth bag.
- Polish your Silver. We love a silver polishing cloth to easily remove any accumulated tarnish. These do remove a microscopic layer, so it is best to use proper care techniques to reduce the amount of polishing required. We sell soft microfiber cloths impregnated with a dry silver polishing compound. Please note these are NOT recommended for gold-plated jewelry.
Silver is a beautiful metal that can add shine and sparkle to any outfit. But, like all precious metals, it needs to be taken care of so that it retains its luster. By following these simple tips, you can keep your silver jewelry looking great for years to come. Be sure to check back often as we will continue to post more helpful silver cleaning tips as well as some great DIY polishing solutions.
Have you tried any of these techniques? Let us know in the comments below!