As with everything is life, jewellery also needs a bit of tender love and care. With normal usage of any piece of jewellery, it is bound to pick up dirt. Rings are especially prone to being dirtied with hand cream and also sweat. These substances build up over time and eventually form a sediment. Here are a few tips for keeping your jewellery clean and sparkling:
Gold is a non-reactive metal, which means it will not react with chemicals to discolour. However, substances can still get stuck to the metal or gemstones which might need a bit of attention to get rid of. The best way of cleaning a ring is to soak it in warm soapy water (you can use dish washing liquid) and then to lightly brush off any impurities with an old toothbrush. Be careful not to scrub your ring with any abrasives, the toothbrush should be used lightly. If there are still areas that are hard to reach or any stubborn dirt, we would recommend having it cleaned by a professional jeweller.
White gold jewellery can be cleaned in the same way as yellow- or rose gold. The only difference is that white gold is plated with a rhodium plating to give it a lustrous shine. With too much scrubbing or abrasion, this plating can come off quite easily. We suggest having white gold jewellery cleaned by a jeweller to avoid any disappointment.
Silver is quite different to gold in a few regards. It is slightly softer than gold jewellery and quite a bit more reactive than gold. This means that silver will react with many other molecules, which can cause discolouration. If you are an owner of any silver jewellery, you might have noticed that the silver jewellery does fade slightly after a while. This is because the outer layer reacts with oxygen to for and oxide which has a black colour to it. This will happen to all silver jewellery over time and can be buffed away quite easily with a polishing cloth. If you are in need of a jewellery polishing cloth, contact your jeweller to see if they have any in stock.
Because of the reactive nature of silver, please avoid any chemicals. Silver will react with various chemicals, and it generally results in a change of colour. Bleach is one of the most common chemicals used in households and is also a chemical that will react with silver very quickly. The reaction will result in a dull grey look before it then turns black. If you do have any silver jewellery that has a black tinge to it, bring it in for a quick polish. You will be surprised at the result and how inexpensive it is to refurbish silver.
As with most items that are used on a daily basis, jewellery will also experience the usual wear-and-tear. A piece of jewellery is not guaranteed to stay in a perfect condition until the end of time.
Plated jewellery will have to be replated about once every 2 years, this is because the plating does wear off with friction and normal wear. The process of re-plating your jewellery is rather inexpensive.
Claws that hold the various stones in place can also come loose over time and are prone to get stuck on clothing or any other fabrics. A quite test at home is to lightly run the item across a wool garment. If any of the claws end up tugging at the garment, then the claw has lifted and should be fixed soon.
Here at Your Diamonds, we offer a free claw check under 10x magnification. Feel free to give us a call and book an appointment.
Some claws get worn so thin after many years of use the claw will have to be re-tipped. This means that more gold (or other precious metal) is added to the claw to build it up and give it strength.
Other instances of minor repairs are when a ring cracks or becomes misshapen. These minor problems can be fixed with ease and they are inexpensive. If a ring has become worn to the point that repairing it might weaken the structure of the ring, your jeweller will advise you on how to continue.
Diamonds that fall out are one of the most common repairs. A diamond can fall out of it’s setting when the claws have come loose after normal wear and tear and the ring has not been serviced. Another way for a claw to come loose is when a ring is knocked against a hard surface. Even if a knock does not feel very severe, the point of contact is so small which exerts a very large force on the ring. If you knock your ring and are unsure of the safety of the claws, bring it by our offices and we will do a free claw check under x10 magnification.
In conclusion, jewellery cleaning, and repairs are absolutely necessary to keep your jewellery in tip top shape. These repairs do not cost you an arm and a leg. Keeping your jewellery in good shape saves you from having to re make the ring later if it deteriorates beyond the point of repair.
The time needed to repair a piece of jewellery will vary depending on the nature of the repair. However, minor repairs will take about 2 working days to complete.
Yes, we can repair any piece of jewellery, no matter where it was bought.
A simple solution to a ring that rolls around on a finger is to add sizing balls. These are small dots that allow the ring to pass over the knuckle while adding more support to the ring when on the finger.
