Main Secrets to Cleaning Jewelry at Home

 How to Clean Jewelry at Home Easily and Simply

Wearing diamond jewelry is a great pleasure and sweet memories. Especially if it is an engagement ring or wedding band. Your wedding and the day of engagement are probably the biggest days of your life. 

Such jewelry costs a lot of money and is designed to please its owners for years. However, the stones and gold may lose their shine and appearance on contact with the skin. To keep your jewelry in perfect condition just follow these 5 easy steps now. 

We know how to tidy up jewelry without spending a cent. Quick and easy.

Experts recommend to clean diamonds at least once a month. Such cleaning should be regular and be accompanied by checking the stone fixings, as well as the condition of the precious metal: it may need a little polishing to remove scratches and damage. Read this text till the end and you will know not only how to clean your jewelry at home, but also why you shouldn't always trust your jeweler when he suggests to put it in ultrasonic. 

Most jewelers will not tell you these subtleties.

Conventionally, three methods of cleaning gold can be defined:

1. Mechanical with abrasive mixtures. To remove old dirt and plaque.
2. Soaking in various solutions. For simple plaque and for models with many parts.
3. Wiping and polishing. Can be used every time after you remove the jewelry.

Once you know how, it remains to figure out how to clean gold at home. It is best to buy a special product for jewelry in a store or order it online. If you do not have one, opt for improvised materials.

• Soap solution

The simplest and most gentle way to care for gold. Dissolve a teaspoon of liquid soap or dishwashing detergent in a glass of water. Place the jewelry in it for 20-120 minutes. You can also wet a soft toothbrush in it and gently wipe the product.

• Ammonia solution (ammonia)

There are several options for cleaning gold using ammonia:
1 teaspoon of ammonia and the same amount of liquid soap in half a glass of warm water. Place the jewelry until the dirt comes off, then rinse with running water.
30 ml of hydrogen peroxide (3%), 0.5 teaspoon of ammonia and 0.5 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid in half a glass of warm water. Then - as in the previous method.
Ammonia is mixed with grated chalk to a thick paste. After soaking, before washing the gold, you can rub it.

• Hydrogen peroxide

You can also use the method with peroxide. It can remove simple stains. Place the jewelry in a solution of a glass of water and two tablespoons of peroxide for 20 minutes. This method is not very effective for removing old stains.

• Baking soda

Add a tablespoon of soda to a glass of water, place the jewelry, heat and boil for a few minutes, then rinse under the tap. You can try to remove any remaining dirt with a toothbrush, soaking it in the solution used. Be careful: dry soda or a paste made from it can ruin the surface of the product.

• Saline solution

Add 2-3 tablespoons of salt to a glass of water until completely dissolved. This is very important, since the crystals can scratch the metal in the process. Dip the jewelry and leave for 12 hours. The method is very simple, it removes dirt well in fastenings and grooves, but not the fastest.

• Table vinegar

Another simple option for cleaning gold is with ordinary 9% vinegar. The method is suitable only for yellow and red gold. The acid solution can ruin white and matte metal, as well as various types of inserts. Mix vinegar with water 1:1 and place the jewelry in it for 30-40 minutes, then rinse.

Why not of all jewelry can be given for professional cleaning?

Not all jewelers know this, but you must to know if you want to keep your jewelry in its original form. For cleaning in Ultrasonic you can give away gold jewelry with diamonds or without gemstones. But jewelry with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, pearls, and opals are definitely not worth it. This type of cleaning in 90% of cases will simply kill the stone. Especially if it is Glass-filled, and you did not know this, then at the exit from cleaning you will get a muddy cracked stone at best. Ultrasonic vibrations can weaken already-fractured stones, and hot steam can cause oil or unhardened resin to sweat out of fractures.

Using warm, soapy water coupled with gentle scrubbing is the safest way to clean emeralds. A hot water with ammonia, or steaming are also great ways to clean harder gems, including diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and alexandrite.